Even though Mary sometimes struggled to discuss things openly with Matthew, for the most part, they actually had pretty good communication as a couple — especially when it came to money. Shortly before their wedding, Mary discovered that Matthew’s ex-fiancée’s father had left him his entire fortune. This comes at the perfect moment, as her family has just lost all of their money to a bad investment. Mary assumes that Matthew will accept his inheritance and save Downton. Matthew, however, is too proud to accept. Mary almost decides to call off the wedding — but in the end, they get married, knowing that they are in disagreement about the money.
As therapist Elisabeth Joy LaMotte explained in a piece for HuffPost, their disagreement may initially look like a pretty big red flag for the couple. However, the way they dealt with their money disagreement was actually pretty commendable. “The lesson lies in the extent to which they fully enjoy their early marriage in spite of this ongoing disagreement,” she wrote. “One moment, they speak openly about how much the completely disagree with one another. The next moment, Mary says, ‘Now kiss me and let’s go to bed!'” It’s quite impressive how this couple manages to work through their problems.
