At last they were ascending the steps and being ushered into the lofty entrance hall by servants; there was hardly time for Mr Collins to demand that Charlotte admire the dimensions of the room and the grandeur of the furnishings found there before they were escorted into the morning room to meet Lady Catherine, her daughter Anne, and Mrs Jenkinson, Miss de Bourgh’s companion.

Lady Catherine was a tall, statuesque woman with strong features that had no doubt once been striking, if not actually handsome. Charlotte, as she sank into a deep curtsey, noticed that their benefactor had the same dark eyes as Mr Darcy, but there was no resemblance between her and the slight figure of her daughter, who was so pale as to look almost transparent.

‘So, Mrs Collins, you are older than I thought you would be.’ These opening words, uttered as soon as the formal introductions were completed, were spoken in the decided tones typical of all statements by Lady Catherine, and Charlotte, startled by her ladyship’s rudeness, thought them not worth replying to. This left her husband almost on the verge of apologising for the advanced age of his bride, but fortunately the entry of servants into the room with tea-things spared his blushes.

‘But then I suppose we must be thankful that you are not some green and idle young girl,’ Lady Catherine continued. ‘You must have been very useful to your mother? I assume from what Mr Collins tells me of your situation that you helped her with the running of her home.’ This statement was followed by a thorough inquisition as to Charlotte’s family, education, and life in Hertfordshire.

Charlotte did her best to answer all questions, no matter how impertinent, without agitation or embellishment, restricting herself to providing the facts. She was well aware that she had no especial talents or charms that might engage or delight on a first encounter; winning the favour of the mistress of Rosings would be a long game. But she was fairly confident it was one in which she would acquit herself well.

Her first duty, as soon as they had returned from their wedding visit to Rosings, was to write her letters home, even though she was eager to explore her new domain. Mr Collins was at first disappointed, as he was wishing to show her around the garden and grounds, but when she explained that she wanted to assure her parents as speedily as possible of the kind condescension Lady Catherine had shown her, he was full of smiles of approval. She duly wrote them a short note, in which she encompassed her sister Maria, and then penned a more dense missive to Elizabeth.