Chapter 41: Mrs. Bold confides her sorrow to her friend Miss Stanhope.
Eleanor bumps into Charlotte, who on hearing of the Slope affair, sees Bertie's chance to propose and offers Eleanor her family's protection, which she finds odd considering her father is there to protect her. Eleanor and Charlotte look for Bertie and Signora Neroni and find the latter with Arabin. While Signora Neroni and Charlotte discuss events Eleanor and Arabin chat awkwardly, neither one feeling able to disclose their mutual feelings of love.
Chapter 42: Ullathorne sports - Act III
Harding tells Eleanor that he will let the archdeacon know the truth of the rumours surrounding her and Slope, but she asks him to wait. Bertie makes a half-hearted effort at proposing to Eleanor and discloses that he is doing so in order to fulfil Charlotte's wishes. Eleanor, realising Charlotte's falsehood, says she will have nothing more to do with the family. She travels home in Dr. Stanhope's carriage while Bertie walks.
Chapter 43: Mr. and Mrs. Quiverful are made happy. Mr. Slope is encouraged by the press.
Mr. and Mrs. Quiverful call at the palace to receive written confirmation of the former's appointment as warden. Gwynne sees Proudie and his wife and is disappointed to hear of the recent appointment. Slope receives a letter from Tom Towers supporting his candidacy for dean. His pride is still hurting from Eleanor's stub and he wishes he could hate Signora Neroni in the same way as he does her, but finds that he cannot conquer his infatuation.
Chapter 44: Mrs. Bold at home.
On returning from Ullathorne Eleanor tells Mary of what happened to her and reluctantly admits that she had been right all along in her distrust of Slope and the Stanhopes. The next evening she also tells Harding but asks him not to tell the archdeacon. Harding, despite Eleanor's urging, decides not to move in with her, but to stay in his present lodgings. Signora Neroni sends a letter to Eleanor telling her that Bertie is to leave for Italy and asking her to come and see her.
Chapter 45: The Stanhopes at home.
Stanhope lectures Bertie on his degenerate nature and agrees on the plan of sending him back to Carrara the next day with a small allowance. Eleanor visits the day after Bertie's departure and Signora Neroni tells her of Arabin's love. She is annoyed that he should have discovered himself to the Signora and not her, but is nevertheless overjoyed at the news.
Chapter 46: Mr. Slope's parting interview with the Signora.
Arabin, Slope and Thorne attend a small gathering held by Signora Neroni, who taunts an outwitted Slope by enquiring: "when is the widow to be made Mrs. Dean?" Arabin suffers to hear Eleanor thus referred to, but Slope is certainly no longer infatuated with Signora Neroni.
Chapter 47: The dean elect.
After much worry and speculation on the part of the archdeacon about who will be dean, Arabin's behaviour vis-à-vis Signora Neroni, Slope' amorous intentions and so on. Harding arrives and announces that he has been offered the deanship but intends to turn it down.
Chapter 48: Miss Thorne shows her talent at matchmaking.
On the next day while driving Harding home the archdeacon tries to persuade him to accept the position of dean. A note from Eleanor asking him to seek her out as a matter of urgency awaits him. Before this, Miss Thorne decided that Eleanor would make a good wife for Arabin and therefore invited them both to come and stay at Ullathorne. To her amazement, it works and after some awkward conversations Arabin proposes and Eleanor accepts. He leaves the next day for Plumstead and she for Barchester. Susan is overjoyed at the news but the archdeacon is away.
Chapter 49: The Belzebub colt.
Eleanor finds herself unable to hold back from telling Miss Thorne of her engagement. The next morning she finds Thorne and Arabin discussing an excitable colt at breakfast. When Thorne leaves to see the colt, Arabin and Eleanor are left alone and confirm their love for each other. Harding, having received his daughter's note rushes happily to see her. She tries to persuade him to accept the deanship but he stands firm, especially as the idea has just occurred to him that Arabin could be made dean.
Chapter 50: The archdeacon is satisfied with the state of affairs.
The archdeacon, still unsure of the truth behind the rumours of Slope and Eleanor, feels conflicting emotions when he hears on visiting Harding, of the engagement, but is glad of the discomfort it will surely cause Slope. Harding manages to persuade the archdeacon that it would be good if Arabin were to become dean. He and Harding head for Plumstead to consult Gwynne and almost run over Slope, who despite looking as smug as ever, has actually just got his marching orders from the bishop. The archdeacon visits Mrs. Quiverful at the hospital and communicates his good wishes towards her and her husband. He then meets Arabin between St. Ewold's and Plumstead, congratulates him and insists that he must preside at their wedding at Plumstead to make amends for his unfair judgement of Eleanor.
Chapter 51: Mr. Slope bids farewell to the palace and its inhabitants.
Slope receives a letter from Fitzwhiggin to the effect that he will not be dean. He then writes a letter to a rich sugar-refiner's wife in London who has evangelical leanings, hoping that she might become his new patron. The bishop summons him and reprimands him feebly, while Mrs. Proudie censures his behaviour with Signora Neroni. On being dismissed he threatens to publicise how much Proudie is in thrall to his wife, but she surmises correctly that he will not want to let anything relating to his time in Barchester to be published. He is offered and refuses the post of curate of Puddingdale and leaves for London. We then hear that he later married the widowed wife of the sugar-refiner and became an important clergyman. In the bishop's palace all is peaceful as Proudie, even though he is elected to the Lords, has learnt that total submission to his wife in all things is for the best.
Chapter 52: The new dean takes possession of the deanery, and the new warden of the hospital.
Harding and the archdeacon go to Oxford and manage to enlist the help of Gwynne in getting Arabin made dean. They then go to London and with a little difficulty succeed in making the necessary arrangements for the appointment with the government departments concerned. Harding and the archdeacon return to Barchester and invite Arabin to come and see them in the Deanery, where they tell him of his appointment. Harding is at last persuaded to live with Eleanor and Arabin in the Deanery. Harding then as an act of good will personally introduces Quiverful to the old men of Hiram's hospital.
Chapter 53: Conclusion.
The archdeacon marries Arabin and Eleanor, who then go abroad for a few months. The Proudies leave the dean and chapter to their own devices. The archdeacon is much relaxed now that Slope is gone. Eleanor becomes more high church after her marriage, something on which she and her sister somewhat differ, although Susan can disregard it as she is so glad that her sister married Arabin and not Slope. Arabin recommences his scholarly works and the Stanhopes go back to Italy, while Harding continues assiduously to carry out his work as precentor of the cathedral and pastor of St. Cuthbert's.