Ethel Leckwith

Ethel Leckwith (née Williams) (born 1893) is a fictional character and one of the protagonists of the Century Trilogy by Ken Follett.^[1] She is the oldest child of David and Cara Williams of Aberowen, a fictional town in southern Wales.

At the beginning of the trilogy, she is a housemaid at Ty Gwyn, the country estate at Aberowen. She is made acting housekeeper for a visit by King George. She has an affair with Earl Fitzherbert, the earl of Aberowen, who sends her away to London when she becomes pregnant. There, she becomes a political activist in the women's suffrage movement during World War I. She marries Bernie Leckwith, with whom she has a daughter, Millie, and is elected a Member of Parliament.

In the second book, Winter of the World, Ethel continues as a Member of Parliament during the Second World War. She is a force of moderation in a tumultuous political world.

In the third book, her children and grandchildren continue to shape society.

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