Edwin Jarvis was the butler in the employ of millionaire inventor and industrialist Anthony Stark and worked in Stark's mansion in midtown Manhattan. Apparently, Jarvis originally served Stark's parents, Howard and Maria Stark, and continued to work for Anthony Stark after their deaths. Before coming to the United States, Edwin Jarvis once served heroically in the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force as a pilot.
Jarvis was present at the mansion when the new team of superhuman adventurers, the Avengers, held their first meeting there. Anthony Stark, who, in his identity of Iron Man was a founding member of the team, donated the mansion to the Avengers for their use as a headquarters and set up the Maria Stark Foundation to cover the team's operational expenses. Jarvis stayed on at the mansion, to act as the Avengers' principal domestic servant.
Jarvis has served the Avengers loyally since the very beginning of the team's history. His duties include the maintenance of the Avengers' quinjets and specialized equipment and the supervision of work crews repairing damage to the Avenger headquarters, as well as normal household duties such as preparing the Avengers meals. Presumably there are other members of the household staff to help Jarvis take care of such an enormous mansion, but Jarvis is the only servant who lives in the mansion itself.
Years ago the Avengers enemy, Ultron, hypnotized Jarvis into helping him and the second Masters of Evil organization to capture the Avengers and Avengers Mansion. Under Ultron's control, Jarvis even briefly assumed the guise of the Crimson Cowl, which Ultron himself used to conceal his true identity. Ultron caused Jarvis to believe he had betrayed the Avengers of his own free will to procure money to pay his ailing mother's hospital bill. Consumed by guilt, Jarvis revealed the location of Ultron's lair to the third Black Knight, thereby making possible the Avengers' rescue. The Avengers took the repentant Jarvis back into their service. Months later Jarvis's memory cleared and he remembered that Ultron had hypnotized him into betraying the Avengers and told them so.
When the fourth Masters of Evil organization, led by the second Baron Zemo, seized control of Avengers Mansion, one of its members, Mister Hyde, brutally tortured Jarvis. The Avengers finally defeated the Masters of Evil, but the Mansion had been left in ruins, and Jarvis was hospitalized. As a result of Hyde's treatment of him. Jarvis was left 90% blind in his left eye and had to walk with a cane due to the damage to his right leg.
Although he could have retired due to his injuries, Jarvis instead chose to return to his work with the Avengers. A short time after returning to work his leg injuries had healed, and Jarvis is slowly recovered his vision in his left eye.
When the Avengers temporarily disbanded from active duty Jarvis was released from his duties until the Avengers reassembled. During the Avengers temporary disbanding, Jarvis met and began dating Glory Garsen.
Upon reassembling, the Avengers expanded their "ground crew" to include other non-superhuman job dutites, of which Jarvis enjoyed a senior position as "Chief of Staff." At one point, the Ground Crew was brainwashed by the villainous Skeleton Crew into attacking the Avengers, they were easily stopped and freed from the Skeleton Crew's control. When the Avenger Crystal took up residence in the mansion with her daughter Luna, she brought with her a nanny, Marilla. The two became rivals over various domestic duties but over time became fond of each other. Eventually, the Avengers' Ground Crew was dismissed and Jarvis remained the sole domestic worker for the mansion once more.
Later, Jarvis was relieved of duty when the Avengers disbanded again, this time presumably permanently due to the perceived death of many members by the entity known as Onslaught. Jarvis felt extremely displaced and sank into a depression, living off his pension from the Stark Foundation. Even so, he helped his former ground crew member Fabian Stankowicz deactivate his Protectorate robots, who were meant to replace the Avengers, but had gone renegade. When the Avengers returned and reassembled, Jarvis also returned to service, with a renewed sense of duty.
Jarvis recently revealed that he had been sponsoring a foreign child, Maria de Guadalupe "Lupe" Santiago, and had the opportunity to meet her in person as she came to New York for college. The Avengers soon discovered Lupe was the superhuman adventurer Silverclaw and was placed in Jarvis' sponsorship precisely because of his connection to the Avengers. Silverclaw aided the Avengers against the arms dealer Moses Magnum, and was later offered provisional membership in the group.
