Dr Tertius Lydgate is put in charge of the fever hospital in Middlemarch. Dorothea Brooke marries ageing scholar Edward Casaubon and they honeymoon in Rome.
Dorothea is having an uneasy honeymoon in Rome, when Casaubon's restless young cousin Will Ladislaw calls on them. Dr Lydgate discovers he has enemies.
Fred Vincy is anxious to know to whom Featherstone will leave his fortune. Casaubon is furious when Ladislaw visits Dorothea. Lydgate and Rosamond's wedding goes ahead.
Dorothea is now a widow, but she vows never to finish Casaubon's book because of the vindictive codicil to his will. Will Ladislaw is out of a job.
Ladislaw vows to quit Middlemarch for good once he learns the terms of Casaubon's will. Lydgate's financial problems worsen. Fred declares his love for Mary Garth.
The Lydgates' marriage grows increasingly bitter with the prospect of bankruptcy. The return of Raffles sets off a train of events which change the lives of everyone.
