Who is revealed as Rochester's first wife in Jane Eyre?

Bertha Mason is revealed as Rochester’s first wife in Jane Eyre.

Rochester secretly married Bertha Mason, a wealthy Creole woman from Jamaica, before meeting Jane. Bertha’s brother, Richard Mason, interrupts Jane and Rochester’s wedding ceremony and exposes the existing marriage, making Rochester’s proposed marriage to Jane legally impossible.

Rochester keeps Bertha confined in a hidden room on the third floor of Thornfield Hall. Her laughter, nighttime wanderings, and attacks create the novel’s Gothic mystery. A common mix-up is calling her “Mrs Rochester” without mentioning Mason: Bertha Mason is her maiden name, while Bertha Antoinetta Rochester is her married name.

Bertha later sets Thornfield ablaze and dies after jumping from the roof. Rochester is injured while trying to rescue her, and Jane eventually returns to him after the revelation has permanently changed their relationship.