This began with the lists of characters in the front of Duncton Rising and Duncton Stone, the second and third volumes of The Book of Silence trilogy. I have melded the two lists together, and modified the comments to include the events of Duncton Stone, as well as adding entries for a number of characters. I also added a final column which gives the birthplace of each character, when known.
— Katherine (E-mail: katherine@williamhorwood.net)
| Name | Description | Birthplace |
|---|---|---|
| Arum | Loyal helper to Thripp. | |
| Arvon | A Siabod mole, a follower, and something of a route-finder. Maple met him in Caer Caradoc. | Siabod |
| Avens | A young and aimless would-be scholar from Avebury | Avebury |
| Bantam | A Duncton female who becomes a Newborn. Sadistic and vindictive, and a friend of Snyde | Duncton Wood |
| Barre | Newborn Senior Brother Inquistor, of a bullying sadistic kind. Sent by Quail and Thripp to help cleanse Duncton Wood's Library. Killed in the chamber of Roots. | |
| Boden | One of Thripp's most loyal helpers. | |
| Brimmel | Smallest of Privet's pups by her Brother Confessor, Thripp. She died young. | Blagrove Slide |
| Brimmel | Son of Whillan and Loosestrife. He told Duncton Tales, Duncton Rising and Duncton Stone to Collis. | |
| Caldey | Known as Sister Caldey. The leader of the Community of Rose. | |
| Chamfer | Drubbins' young brother and a keeper of the peace. | Duncton Wood |
| Chater | A journeymole working for the Duncton Library, and mate of Fieldfare. Killed at Caer Caradoc. | Duncton Wood |
| Chervil | A charismatic powerful and senior Newborn Brother. Thripp's son by Privet. Called Mumble as a pup. | |
| Cluniac | Son of Elynor and a doughty follower who helps Pumpkin. | Duncton Wood |
| Cobbett | Master Librarian of Beechenhill, and brother of Stour and Husk. Sets Privet on her quest for the Book of Silence. | |
| Collis | Scribed down Duncton Tales, Duncton Rising and Duncton Stone as dictated to him by Brimmel. | |
| Compline | Senior Delver of Compline Chamber of the Charnel. | The Charnel Clough |
| Dint | An Elder of the system of Great Stoke at the time of Rooster's arrival there. | Great Stoke |
| Drubbins | Elder of Duncton Wood at the time of Privet's arrival, and a close friend of Stour. Killed by the Brother Inquisitors. | Duncton Wood |
| Drumlin | Daughter of Gaunt and mother of Glee. | The Charnel Clough |
| Elynor | Elderly female follower who becomes friend and help of Pumpkin. Mother of Cluniac. | Duncton Wood |
| Fallow | One of Chervil's guardmoles. Son of Feldspar. | |
| Feldspar | Chervil's personal guardmole. Father of Fallow and Tarn. | |
| Fetter | A Newborn Senior Brother Inquisitor sent by Thripp to 'cleanse' the Duncton Library of blasphemous texts. He travels in company with Law and Barre, among whom he is first among equals. Intelligent and cruel. | |
| Fey | Kindly female who helped her mate Tarn care for Shire in Crowden. | Crowden |
| Fieldfare | Middle-aged female who befriends Privet on her arrival at Duncton. Resident of the Eastside and mate of Chater, from whom she is separated on her journey to Seven Barrows where she helps lead a group of rebels. After Chater's death becomes Hamble's mate. | Duncton Wood |
| Fiddler | A young warrior male of the Rollright system. | Rollright |
| Firkin | Copy Master of the Duncton Library. | Duncton Wood |
| Frogbit | A young orphaned male, originally of the system of Great Stoke, who became Rooster's apprentice. | Great Stoke |
| Furrow | A follower. Mate of Myrtle, and friend of Maple. | Broseley |
| Gaunt | The senior delver, known as Mentor, and leader of the delvers of the Charnel Clough. Father of Drumlin. Half-brother of Prime. | The Charnel Clough |
| Glee | Albino female puphood friend of Rooster in the Charnel Clough. Close friend of Humlock. Daughter of Drumlin. | The Charnel Clough |
| Grear | Aggressive last leader of the Ratcher moles. Son of Red Ratcher and therefore one of Rooster's brothers. Rooster kills him at Crowden. | |
| Hamble | Crowden warrior and puphood friend of Privet, later colleague of Rooster on his campaign against Newborns to the east of moledom. After Chater's death becomes mate to Fieldfare. | Crowden |
| Hawthorn | Daughter of Whillan and Loosestrife, sister of Rose and Brimmel. | |
| Hobsley | Elderly follower who escapes into a coppice named after him north of Caer Caradoc. Privet, Rooster, Maple, Weeth, Whillan and Madoc stay with him. | |
| Hibbott | A mole of Ashbourne Chase who went on a pilgrimage in search of Privet. He saw the Book of Silence. | Ashbourne Chase |
| Hilbert | Legendary last known medieval Master of the Delve. Founder of the Charnel Clough delving tradition. | |
| Hume | A senior delver of the Charnel Clough, and Rooster's mentor. | The Charnel Clough |
| Humlock | Blind, deaf-mute puphood male friend of Glee and Rooster in the Charnel Clough. Mother is Sedum. | The Charnel Clough |
| Husk | Reclusive Keeper of Rolls, Rhymes and Tales, brother of Stour and Cobbett. Scribed the Book of Tales which became the first folio of the Book of Silence. Killed by the Newborns at the end of Duncton Tales. | |
| Lavender | Drubbin's mate. | |
| Law | Newborn Senior Brother Inquisitor sent by Quail and Thripp to help cleanse Duncton Wood's Library. | |
| Lime | Privet's spiteful sister by Shire, and the favoured one. She is the mother of Whillan by Rooster, but died at his birth. | Crowden |
| Loosestrife | One of Privet's female pups by her Brother Confessor, Thripp. Her mother's favourite. She becomes Whillan's mate and is the mother of Rose, Hawthorn and Brimmel. | Blagrove Slide |
| Madoc | Newborn female (known as Sister Hope) from Bowdler who becomes follower when she is befriended by Privet. Loves Whillan but is raped by Squelch and bears pups by him in Siabod, including Morwenna. | Bowdler |
| Maple | Nephew of Lavender. Much respected for his strength and fighting knowledge; but essentially a gentle mole. Accompanies Privet and Whillan to Caer Caradoc. Lead the folloers against the Newborns. Was infested by talon worms but cleansed of them at the Community of Rose. | Duncton Wood |
| Meddick | An elderly male of the Community of Rose who dies soon after Privet's arrival there. | |
| Morwenna | Daughter of Madoc by Squelch. Born in Siabod. She sought out her father in Duncton Wood. | Siabod |
| Mumble | Privet's only male pup by her Brother Confessor, Thripp. Called Chervil as an adult. | Blagrove Slide |
| Myrtle | Mate to Turrell of the Moors. Not to be confused with Myrtle, Furrow's mate, both friends of Maple. | |
| Myrtle | A follower. She and her mate Furrow were both friends of Maple. After Furrow's death she becomes Sturne's mate. | Broseley |
| Noakes | Enterprising follower, originally from Gurney. One of the rebels under Spurling at Seven Barrows. | Gurney |
| None | Female Senior Delver of the None Chamber of the Charnel. | The Charnel Clough |
| Peach | Mate to Spurling. | |
| Prime | Dwarf Senior Delver in charge of Prime Chamber of the Charnel. Half-sister of Gaunt. | The Charnel Clough |
| Privet | Scribemole born at Crowden in the Moors. Daughter of Shire, granddaughter of the infamous Eldrene Wort; her father is Sward. During a period in Blagrove Slide, she had pups—Brimmel, Sampion, Loosestrife and Mumble (later Chervil)—by her brother Confessor, Thripp. Was in search of, then scribed, the Book of Silence, the last of seven Books of Moledom. She once 'loved and lost' Rooster. Adoptive mother of Whillan. | Crowden |
| Pumpkin | Library aide who worked closely with Stour. Now elderly but fiercely loyal to his Master and entrusted with the task of helping to resist the Newborns. Becomes a brave but reluctant leader of the remaining rebels in Duncton Wood. He died placing the Book of Silence beneath the Duncton Stone where the other six Books waited. | Duncton Wood |
| Quail | A high ranking Newborn Brother from Avebury. Father of Squelch. Died during the foul ceremony at Duncton to name him paramount and prime. | Avebury |
| Red Ratcher | Vile and rapine leader of the Ratcher Clan of the Charnel Clough. He fathered Rooster on Samphire, the only one of his mates he could not dominate. Killed by Rooster at Crowden. | The Charnel Clough |
| Rolt | Brother Rolt was a sympathetic Newborn assistant to Thripp, Privet's Brother Confessor at Blagrove Slide. He saw her pups safe. | |
| Rooster | Son of Red Ratcher and Samphire. Born in the obscure Charnel Clough high on the Saddleworth Moors. Believed to be a Modern Master of the Delve, the first in centuries, but a wild, massive, ugly, unpredictable one. | The Charnel Clough |
| Rose | Daughter of Whillan and Loosestrife. Sister of Hawthorn and Brimmel. | |
| Samphire | Rooster's mother. Originally abducted from Chieveley Dale by Red Ratcher. | Chieveley Dale |
| Sampion | One of Privet's female pups by her Brother Confessor, Thripp. In adulthood, she has a mate and pups. | Blagrove Slide |
| Sans | Foster-mother of Shire. A cold disciplinarian. | |
| Sedum | Mother of Humlock. | The Charnel Clough |
| Sext | Senior Delver of the Sext Chamber of the Charnel. | The Charnel Clough |
| Shire | Privet's mother, and herself daughter of Wort. | |
| Skua | Senior Brother Inquisitor under Quail, and effectively his second-in-command. A pitiless persecutor of follower and Newborn alike. | |
| Slane | The Senior Brother Inquisitor responsible for the Ludlow strettening. | |
| Snyde | Unpleasant hunchbacked scholar and scribemole who clawed his way up to be Deputy Master of the Library. Went over to the Newborn side, where he was able to reveal his perverted nature. | |
| Spurling | Follower, and escaped library aide, from Avebury. He led a group of refugees from Buckland. His mate was Peach. Joined Fieldfare on the way to Seven Barrows. Killed in a battle with the Newborns. | Avebury |
| Squelch | Quail's obese son. His extreme depravity is redeemed only by his wonderful ability to sing and make melody. He fathers pups on Madoc. One of these is Morwenna who seeks him out in Duncton Wood. | |
| Stour | Master Librarian of Duncton Wood and regarded as the greatest scholar and librarian in moledom. Brother of Cobbett and Husk. An outspoken enemy of the Newborns, went into secret retreat in the Ancient System. Goes to the Silence taking the Six found Books of Moledom to their resting place beneath the Duncton Stone. | |
| Stowe | A loyal follower, and Elder at Bourton in the Wolds. | |
| Sturne | Unsmiling librarian, one of the Keepers in the Library. Trusted before all others (but Pumpkin) by Stour, who always appeared to reject him. Kept up a courageous pretence of siding with the Newborns during Stour's final retreat. A friend of Pumpkin. | |
| Sward | Known as Sward the Scholar. A wandering scribemole of the Moors. Mate of Shire and father of Privet and Lime. | |
| Tarn | An aide in the Crowden Library, who befriended Shire. Mate to Fey. | Crowden |
| Tarn | One of Chervil's guardmoles. Son of Feldspar. | |
| Terce | Senior Delver of the Terce Chamber of the Charnel. | The Charnel Clough |
| Thripp | Sinister but charismatic leader of the Newborns, originally of Blagrove Slide, then resident at Caer Caradoc. Was Privet's Brother Confessor at Blagrove Slide and fathered her pups, Brimmel, Sampion, Loosestrife, and Mumble, later known as Chervil. Turned against Quail">Quail. | Blagrove Slide |
| Turrell | A grike mole living in seclusion on the Moors with his mate, Myrtle. Father of Waythorn. | |
| Waythorn | Son of Turrell from the Moors. | |
| Weeth | A male Newborn turned follower. Loyal assistant to Maple. | Evesham |
| Wesley | Scholarly Newborn who helped form the Newborn cell in Duncton's Marsh End. His coming warned Stour how dangerous the Newborn sect might be. | |
| Whillan | Son of Lime and Rooster. Fostered by Privet after being mysteriously discovered by Stour at the cross-under into Duncton Wood, his newborn siblings dead, his then-unnamed mother dying. Trained in scribing by Privet and Pumpkin. Loved Madoc for a time. Eventually became mate to Loosestrife, and fathers Rose, Hawthorn and Brimmel. | Duncton Wood (The Cross-under) |
| Whindrell | A Rowton follower who supports Maple against the Newborns. | Rowton |
| Worthing | A Newborn Brother who lives in the Marsh End. | |
| Wort | The Eldrene Wort was an evil ally of the moles of the Word in Duncton Quest and Duncton Found who caused much harm to the followers. Notorious persecutor of Beechen, the Stone Mole. She escaped to the Moors, sought the Stone's forgiveness, and gave birth to Shire. | |
| Ystwelyn | A male Siabod mole, known to Maple, who he met at Caer Caradoc. | Siabod |
Links Related to the Duncton Trilogies