Claire Fraser (played by Caitriona Balfe) and her husband Jamie’s (Sam Heughan) love story is central to Outlander. Their passion for one another spans through time and Claire considers her home with him. But before she accidentally travelled through time, Claire’s upbringing was a sad and at times lonely one.
In the Outlander books by Diana Gabaldon, Claire will sometimes make passing references to her unorthodox childhood.
Claire was the daughter of Julia and Henry Beauchamp but the couple were killed in a car crash when she was just five-year-old.
She was then raised by her uncle and archaeologist Quentin Lambert Beauchamp, which led to her love of history.
Claire referred to her guardian as “Uncle Lamb” and the pair were close.
Initially, Uncle Lamb had wanted her to attend a boarding school in England but she refused to and he relented.
In the novels, Claire explains: “Faced with the necessity of prying my chubby fingers off the car’s door handle and dragging me by the heels up the steps of the school, Uncle Lamb, who hated personal conflict of any kind, had sighed in exasperation, then finally shrugged and tossed his better judgment out the window along with my newly purchased round straw boater.”
Instead, she went off around the world with her uncle who worked on various archaeological digs.
Among her travels, Claire went to the likes of Egypt and Persia, coming into contact with various walks of life which gave her an education of sorts.
Her childhood with her uncle in rustic conditions meant the 18th Century Scotland and its primitive ways wasn’t too much of a stretch for her.
She ended up marrying her first husband and Jacobite history professor Frank Randall (Tobias Menzies) after he came to consult with Uncle Lamb on a matter.
Claire’s childhood is integral to her strength and independence as she’s had to be self-sufficient from a very young age without much time for other things.
Only through travelling and learning about the world and healing does Claire find herself equipped with the skills to succeed.
Throughout the course of Outlander, Claire has survived because of her upbringing and also sticking to her guns whatever life throws at her.
Her strong survival instinct continues to see her through her adventures with Jamie including wars, separation and journeys to new places.
Her lack of ties to the 20th Century also makes it easier for Claire to go through time and remain in the past as well as explaining why Jamie now feels like her home.
An interesting point to note is that Claire carries the time travelling gene within her, which means that either one or both of her parents were able to traverse through different eras.
There’s been speculation that something more sinister may have led to the death of Claire’s parents but there’s never been anything in the books to suggest this.
However, the thought her parents may have also ventured to another time period is intriguing.
Outlander season 5 will premiere on Starz on February 16
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