In season 4 of "Downton Abbey", who attacks Anna?

In season 4 of "Downton Abbey," Mr. Green attacks Anna. Green is Lord Gillingham’s valet, and the assault occurs during his visit to Downton Abbey when Anna is working downstairs. The storyline becomes one of the season’s most serious and traumatic plots.

Anna initially conceals what happened, telling Mrs Hughes only that a stranger broke in. Her husband, John Bates, notices her distress but does not understand its cause. Mrs Hughes eventually learns the truth and helps protect Anna’s privacy, while Anna struggles with fear, shame and the possibility that Bates might discover the attacker’s identity.

Bates later suspects Mr Green after the valet returns to Downton. Green subsequently dies after falling into the street in London, leading police to investigate whether he was murdered. Bates had travelled to York and contemplated confronting Green, which creates suspicion around him, although the evidence is circumstantial. A common mix-up is naming Bates as Anna’s attacker or killer: Bates is her husband and suspects Green, but Mr Green is the perpetrator of Anna’s assault.