Guardian 345
Guimant, Madame (NM’s maid) 374
Guinness, Bryan, 2nd Lord Moyne (first husband of Diana Mitford) 76, 85, 102, 106, 110
Guinness, Catherine 187
Guinness, Desmond 106, 164
Guinness, Diana see Mosley, Diana, Lady
Guinness, Jonathan (son of Diana Mitford): comment on David Mitford 22 ; The House of Mitford (also with Catherine Guinness) 28, 93, 137, 187, 298, 303, 308; comment on NM 44, 125, 228, 251; and Pigeon Pie 149; mother’s imprisonment 164–5
Haig, Lady Alexandra 296
Hamish Hamilton (publisher): Pigeon Pie 156; The Pursuit of Love 209, 219; Love in a Cold Climate 209; La Petite Hutte 274; Noblesse Oblige 283; The Blessing 297; Madame de Pompadour 308; The Sun King 360-61
Hammersley, Violet (‘Widow’) and correspondence with NM: Nazism and Communism 139; Edward Stanley scandal 145; Unity Mitford 154; war experiences 148, 159, 163–4; Diana Mitford 163; Spanish refugees 163; Peter Rodd and Adelaide Lubbock affair 173; Free French liaison 175–6; Palewski 194, 197, 314; French society life 254; and Violet’s death 353
Hanham, Dr (NM’s doctor) 378
Hare, Humphrey 136
Harrod, Billa 167, 307, 314–15, 318, 350
Harrod, Henry 170
Harrod, Roy 170, 170
Hartington, Peregrine, Marquess of (son of Deborah Mitford; ‘Stoker’) 170
Harvey, Lady Maud 253
Hassan (NM’s manservant; ‘My Good Moor’) 373–4, 375, 379
Hastings, Selina: Nancy Mitford 9, 278
Hatherop Castle (NM’s school) 51, 58-9, 66
Hemingway, Ernest 252
Hensher, Philip 264, 297
Herald Tribune 295
Hesketh, Roger Fleetwood 78, 80
Heywood Hill (bookshop): NM at Curzon Street 180–3, 197, 218; Paris branch 202–3, 218–9, 225 see also Hill, Heywood
Hill, Heywood 180–2, 188, 202–3, 244, 376
Hill, Lady Anne 183, 197, 203
Hitler, Adolf 120, 131, 140, 144
Hope-Vere, Rosemary (‘Romie’) 97
Hospital Rothschild: NM at 369
Howard, Brian 70, 81, 83, 94
Hozier, Blanche, Lady (sister-in-law to Bertram Mitford) 21
Hozier, Clementine (later Churchill) 21
Hussey, Miss (Mitford governess) 52, 53, 54
Jackson, Derek (second husband of Pamela Mitford) 130–1, 153, 281
Jackson, Pamela (née Mitford; NM’s sister; ‘Woman’) 1, 2, 37, 45, 158; relationship with NM 4–5, 8, 47–8, 358, 374; upbringing 57; marriage to Derek Jackson 130; meeting with Hitler 130
Jackson, Sir Hugh 273
Jackson, Vivian 131
Jebb, Gladwyn 162–3, 297
Jones, Anthony 241
Kemsley, Lord 269
Keppel, Alice 300
Kerr, Deborah 296
Kersey, Lily (NM’s first nanny; ‘Ninny’) 4–5, 11
Koenig, Rhoda 279, 295, 364
Korda, Alexander 293
Lady, The 17, 23, 36, 86, 87
Laessoe, Major de 164
Lancaster, Osbert 175, 195
Law, Joy 367
Lees-Milne, Alvilde (née Chaplin) 197, 226, 301, 318, 356, 365, 373
Lees-Milne, James: Another Self 28, 30; comment on NM 43, 160, 178, 183, 185, 192, 198, 202, 279, 281; and Hamish St Clair-Erskine 93; correspondence with NM 171, 177, 377, 380; NM and Heywood Hill (bookshop) 181; comment on Palewski 185, 186, 197; relationship with Tom Mitford 216; comment on David Mitford 218
Lehmann, Rosamund 282
Lillie, Beatrice 252
Little Hut, The see Petite Hutte, La
London Films 293
Lopez, Arturo 254
Losch, Tilly (actress) 77
Lottie (NM’s dog) 45, 109
Love in a Cold Climate: BBC TV 243; radio 359
Lubbock, Adelaide (NM’s cousin) 173, 243 see also Rodd, Peter
Lubbock, Eric 173
Lutyens, Edwin 111
Mabel (Mitford parlourmaid) 49
Manchester Guardian 277, 330
Mari, La Femme et La Mort, Le (Roussin) 275
Markova, Alicia 169
Maugham, W. Somerset 113, 286, 297
Maurois, André 298
Meade, Jimmie 16
Mersey, Viscountess 365
Messel, Oliver 81–2, 185
Milly (NM’s bulldog) 45, 108, 132, 140, 159, 160, 198
Milnes-Gaskell, Mary 51, 75, 107
Mirams, Miss (Mitford governess) 53
Miranda (Jessica’s pet sheep) 45
Mitford, Algernon Bertram Freeman, 1st Baron Redesdale (NM’s paternal grandfather) 19–22, 36, 59, 86; Tales of Old Japan 20
Mitford, Clement (older brother of David Mitford) 22, 37, 43
Mitford, Clementine (daughter of Clement Mitford; cousin of NM) 37, 44
Mitford, David Freeman, 2nd Baron Redesdale (NM’s father; ‘Farve’): early life and character 14, 19, 21, 22–4; marriage and birth of NM 14–15, 19, 22–3; as inspiration for ‘Uncle Matthew’ (The Pursuit of Love) 23–31, 32, 123, 143; financial insecurity 36–8, 69; succeeds to family title 37; attitude to education 53–4, 60; comment on Peter Rodd 104; family schisms 130, 140, 155, 216–7; flirtation with Fascism 130–1, 140; buys Inch Kenneth (Inner Hebrides) 142; Rodd’s letter regarding Unity 146; Unity’s illness 155; death of Tom (son) 214–8; and own decline 217–8, 262; reconciliation with Oswald Mosley 262; death 335–6, 338
Mitford, Deborah see Devonshire, Deborah, Duchess of
Mitford, Diana see Mosley, Diana, Lady
Mitford, Helen (widow of Clement Mitford) 37
Mitford, Jessica see Treuhaft, Jessica
Mitford, Lady Clementine (née Ogilvie; NM’s grandmother) 21
Mitford, Nancy (later Rodd; ‘Susan’, ‘Naunce’)
BIOGRAPHICAL SUMMARY: mole symbol 1; childhood and poor relationship with mother 3–16, 18, 139, 143, 158, 168, 175, 337, 338, 375; childhood jealousy of Pamela 4–5, 8, 47, 55; own childlessness 10–11, 168–2, 282; bond with father and his inspiration for ‘Uncle Matthew’ 23–30, 43; mother as inspiration for ‘Aunt Sadie’ 26, 27; friendship with James Lees-Milne 28–30; relative family poverty 36–8, 41–2; paradoxical love of hunting and animals 44–5; family life and upbringing 45–6, 49–50; teasing and spitefulness 46–9, 278–83; education 50–4, 58, 65; attitude towards sex 51–2, 79–80, 93–4, 186–8; friendship with Vanda Sereza (‘Zella’) 53, 160, 165; love of French language 53–5, 175; need for attention 56–7, 58; relationship with Tom (brother) 58; love of reading and learning 59–61; and of laughter and jokes 61–3; U and Non-U controversy (Noblesse Oblige) 62, 123, 233, 283–7; early experiences of Paris 65, 201; financial difficulties and boredom 68–70; the Slade and bedsit land 72–3; life as one of the Mitford Girls 69, 73–6; love affair with Gaston Palewski 79, 103, 184–92, 193–197, 199–200, 202, 206–07; marriage proposals from Sir Hugh Smiley 79, 97, 101, 103, 104, 107, 109; friendships with homosexual men 81–4, 93–4; close friendship with Evelyn Waugh 81, 206, 370; difficult relations with parents 85–6; beginning of writing career 85–92; failed relationship with Hamish St Clair-Erskine 92–99, 100–1, 199; attraction to Robert Byron 95, 177; suicide attempt 98; marriage to Peter Rodd 99–114, 127, 131–2, 133, 153, 172–4; Diana, Unity and Fascism 117–119, 117, 120–3, 279–81; political views 123–6, 138–9, 232; and work in Spanish refugee camps 134–38, 140, 162–3, 208–09; strained relations with Diana and Jessica 139, 166; Unity’s failed suicide and illness 141–2, 143–4, 155–6; war years 143, 148, 159–60; detachment from family 145–7; decline of marriage to Peter Rodd 146–7, 184, 192, 242–44, 256–9; role in Diana’s imprisonment 162–4, 164–6; pregnancy and affair with Desplats-Pilter (a.k.a. André Roy) 172, 178–80, 184, 192; work as Free French liaison 175–78; Heywood Hill (bookshop) 180–3, 297–8, 203–4, 218, 219–20, 224, 244; Omnibus (TV) controversy 196, 279–81, 364; weekends at Faringdon House 198–9; comment on failed relationsh
ips 199–200; love of Paris 201, 219, 224–30; Palewski as NM’s muse 211–14; death of Tom (brother) 215–17; and separation of parents 217–18, 338; renewal of affair with Palewski 221–4, 225, 242–4; journalism and translation 224, 269–78; new realistic writing style 230–1; reluctant return to London 231; major success of The Pursuit of Love 235–40; wealth and fame 240–42, 245–6; proposal for BBC comedy series 241; returns to Paris 244–5; love of haute couture 246–9, 322; home at 7 rue Monsieur 249–51; life in French society 251–6; hero-worships de Gaulle 258, 295; declining relationship with Palewski 258–61, 339–43, 355–6, 359; death of Unity 261–2; anti-Americanism 295; jealousy of Violet Trefusis 300–1; absorption into French life 302–4; NM approached by MGM 311–12; Palewski made French Ambassador to Rome 311–14; gossip and friendships 313–18, 318–21; relationship with sisters 317–18; acceptance of solitude and ageing 321–3; correspondence with Theodore Besterman 325–8, 330–2, 333, 335, 343; divorce from Peter Rodd 332–35; death of father 335–6, 338; and of mother 336–9; life at Versailles 350–2, 356–8; departing friends 352–55; Palewski’s marriage 363–5; final illness and relations with sisters 363, 365, 369, 372, 374–5; awarded Légion d’Honneur and CBE 396; death 379–81
DOCUMENTARIES, DRAMATISATIONS AND INTERVIEWS 26, 27, 233, 236, 238, 240, 251, 285, 286, 347, 348, 359
HEALTH: low stamina 11, 44, 266, 322; gynaecological problems 131–2, 134, 157–8, 167–8, 179, 192; poor sight 322, 360, 362; leg pain 363, 370, 372; cancer 362, 365–6, 367, 368–9, 370, 370–1, 374–5, 378–80
HOMES AND RESIDENCES: rue d’Artois 3, 343, 350–2, 363–5, 373–5, 378; Graham Street (now Graham Terrace) 3, 9, 45; Victoria Road 3–4; Batsford Park 20, 36–8, 45, 53, 59; Swinbrook House 29, 30, 32, 38, 60, 65–8, 142; Asthall Manor 38, 40–2, 58–60, 69; Rutland Gate 69, 84, 108, 174, 216; Queen’s Gate 72, 84; Canonbury Square 84; Rose Cottage 108; Blomfield Road 113, 140, 158–9, 174, 180, 186, 215, 242, 244; Inch Kenneth 142, 217, 218, 262; Old Mill Cottage 154; Jacob et d’Angleterre 220, 230; rue Bonaparte 220–1, 224, 226, 228 249; Hôtel Pont Royal 227; Hôtel de Bourgogne 227, 246; Hôtel Madison 227; Quai Malaquais 227, 249; rue Monsieur 249–51, 256, 310, 317, 351
WRITINGS (in page order):
The Pursuit of Love 3, 7, 32–6, 40, 44, 52, 125, 203–14, 219, 234–42, 245, 348–9, 361
Love in a Cold Climate 7, 10, 41, 89, 209, 263–6
La Petite Hutte (Roussin; trans. NM) 274
Madame de Pompadour 187, 188, 277, 304–11, 324–25, 359
‘Mothering the Mitfords’ 7, 10, 11–12, 14, 17, 28, 43, 337
The Blessing 11, 79, 184–5, 210, 229, 252, 288–300
Highland Fling 27, 84, 86–90, 92, 123, 157, 207
Frederick the Great 43–4, 273, 325, 332, 348, 349, 361–2, 367–8
Noblesse Oblige 61, 124, 233, 283–7
Pigeon Pie 71, 113, 140, 148–50, 152, 153, 156–7, 194, 206, 213
‘At a Point-to-Point’ 87
Christmas Pudding 90–2, 194, 290
Wigs on the Green 104, 112, 115–17, 120–3, 125, 138–9, 193
‘Rome is Only a Village’ 107, 276
‘Two Old Ladies of Eaton Square’ 121
The Stanleys of Alderley (ed.) 125
The Ladies of Alderley (ed.) 125, 285
Voltaire in Love 171, 302, 308, 325–7, 372
The Water Beetle (collected essays) 211, 245, 368
Don’t Tell Alfred 217–8, 229, 232, 292–3, 316, 335–6, 343–48
Kind Hearts and Coronets (film script) 259
‘Wicked Thoughts in Greece’ 276
‘Letters from Paris’ 271–2
La Princesse de Clèves (Lafayette; trans. NM) 273–4, 320, 343
‘Britain Revisited’ 276
‘The Other Island’ 276
‘A Queen of France’ 277, 278
‘The English Aristocracy’ 283
Sun King, The 306–7, 325, 348, 358, 360, 367, 370
Mitford, Pamela see Jackson, Pamela
Mitford, Sydney, Lady Redesdale (née Bowles; NM’s mother; ‘Muv’): difficult relationship with NM 5–16, 124, 139; marriage and birth of NM 15–16, 19–20, 23–4; early life and character 16–19; as inspiration for ‘Aunt Sadie’ 26, 28, 32, 238; financial insecurity 41–2, 45, 70; attitude to her children’s education 53, 54; family schisms 129, 130, 217–8, 337–8; flirtation with Fascism 129–30, 138-9, 140, 144, 155; letter from NM 137–8; Unity’s illness and effect on marriage 155; death of Tom (son) 215, 217–8; illness and death 336–9
Mitford, Thomas (NM’s brother; ‘Tom’; ‘Tuddemy’): birth 5; at Eton 22, 29, 36, 50, 82–3; friendship with James Lees-Milne 29; character 58–9; correspondence with NM 65, 82, 96; affair with Tilly Losch 78; friendship with Hamish St Clair-Erskine 94, 97; Fascist sympathies 119, 124, 215; war years 140, 160, 181; death 215
Mitford, Unity Valkyrie (NM’s sister; ‘Bobo’): Fascism and suicide attempt 20, 57, 70–2, 119–20, 141–3, 143–4; NM’s teasing 48; schooling 50, 56; insulted by Wigs on the Green 118–19, 123–4; aftermath of suicide attempt 154–6, 180, 216; death 261–2, 338
Mitterrand, François 300
Morley, Robert 276
Mortimer, Raymond: comment on Frederick the Great 274, 362, 368–9; Madame de Pompadour 306, 307–8, 325; Voltaire in Love 326; The Sun King 360; and NM’s last years 370–1, 372–3, 375–6, 379
Mosley, Alexander (son of Diana Mitford): comment on NM 46–7, 79, 263, 282, 309, 316–17, 317, 325; and Peter Rodd 104; on NM’s politics 124, 139; birth 132, 152; imprisonment of mother 165; comment on Palewski 222–3; and NM’s relations with editors 273–4; Noblesse Oblige 285, 287; Madame de Pompadour 305; Don’t Tell Alfred 345
Mosley, Charlotte (Diana Mosley’s daughter-in-law) 101–2
Mosley, Diana, Lady (née Mitford, then Guinness; NM’s sister; ‘Honks’): comment on NM 5, 8–9, 132, 207, 226, 282, 303; NM’s relationship with mother 13–14, 16; espousal of Fascism 20, 72, 120–1, 165, 279–81; comment on parents 28–9; and Hons and Rebels 33; NM’s teasing of siblings 47–9; brief school days 51; recollections of home life 57, 59; marriage to Bryan Guinness (first husband) 70, 71, 76, 85; marriage to Oswald Mosley 70, 71, 98, 102, 120; comment on Peter Rodd 101, 104, 105, 106; anger at Wigs on the Green 117–19, 121–3; birth of son Max 152; imprisonment and NM’s role relationship with Tom (brother) 58; 162–5, 197; comment on Palewski 191, 221–2; Omnibus controversy 196, 279–81, 364; death of Tom 217–8; letters from NM 231, 257, 258;
A Life of Contrasts 240
Mosley, Lady Cynthia (née Curzon) 102
Mosley, Max 152, 345
Mosley, Nicholas (son of Oswald Mosley): Natalie Natalia 188
Mosley, Sir Oswald (second husband of Diana Mitford; ‘Kit’): and Diana Mitford 70–1, 85, 102, 120, 122; on Palewski 79; Fascism and imprisonment 116, 121, 122–3, 161–2, 163, 197; parodied in ‘Two Old Ladies from Eaton Square’ 122–3; and in Wigs on the Green 122, 123; friendship with and death of Tom Mitford 216
Murray, Pauline and Basil 229
Murray, Venetia 229
Mussolini, Benito 121
Nancy Mitford: A Portrait by Her Sisters (TV) 27
Nancy Mitford’s Versailles (TV) 348
Nicolson, Harold 185, 306, 331
Norwich, John Julius: comment on NM 79, 96, 171, 194, 213, 266, 279, 283, 287; and Hamish St Clair-Erskine 94; and Peter Rodd 100, 103, 104; NM’s homes 113, 227; on Palewski 190–1, 195, 222–3, 311; Omnibus controversy 196, 279–81, 372; NM’s final illness 377
Nuffield Hospital, NM at 398–9
O’Neill, Mary (‘Middy’) 75
Observer 294, 359
Ogilvie, Clementine, Lady see Mitford, Clementine
Ogilvie-Grant, Mark: close friendship with NM 82, 259; and correspondence 85, 87, 92, 95–6, 97, 100, 107, 108, 157–8, 163, 267, 364-5; war years 181, 218
Oliver, Vic 239
Olivier, Laurence 252
Omnibus (TV): 196, 279–80, 364
Palewski
, Gaston (‘Col’): love affair with NM 79, 184–87, 189–92, 193–96, 197, 200, 202, 213–23, 242–4, 257, 288, 299–300; war work 186–7, 197; as NM’s muse (The Pursuit of Love) 212–14; post-war political work 220–2, 225, 312–13, 342; cooling of affair with NM 259–61, 311–14; alleged affair with Violet Trefusis 301; made French Ambassador to Rome 310, 311–14; end of relationship with NM 339–42, 355–6; birth of illegitimate son 340–1; marriage 342, 363–5; NM’s final illness and death 377–8, 380
Palewski, Violette (née Talleyrand-Périgord; wife of Gaston Palewski) 363, 365
Penguin (publishers) 245, 273
Père-Lachaise cemetery: NM’s cremation 380
Peter (NM’s dog) 45
Peters, A.D. (NM’s literary agent) 241, 270
Petite Hutte, La (Roussin; adapt. NM) 274–6, 303
Philipps, Hon. Mrs see Lehmann, Rosamund
Pinter, Harold 326
Pompidou, Georges 342
Powell, Anthony 39, 282, 344, 378
Pryce-Jones, David: Unity Mitford:
A Quest 16, 28, 45, 50, 56, 65, 73–4, 141
Pursuit of Love, The: BBC TV 243; Bristol Old Vic (musical) 361
Quennell, Peter 267, 332
Rachel (NM’s horse) 44
Radice, Betty 273
Radziwill, Princess Dolly 255, 303, 318, 319, 353
Rainbird, George (publisher) 274, 361, 362, 367
Ratular (Unity’s pet rat) 45
Redé, Baron Alexis de 254
Redesdale Cottage (David Mitford’s final home) 262, 335
Renard, Marie (NM’s maid) 251, 317–18, 373–4
Rennell, 1st Lord of (father of Peter Rodd) 105–7, 110–11
Rennell, Lady (mother of Peter Rodd) 105, 131, 175, 266
Rhys, Jean 324: Good Morning, Midnight 224; Quartet 224
Rodd, Francis (older brother of Peter Rodd) 105, 110, 132, 152
Rodd, Peter (‘Prod’; husband of NM): marriage to NM 1, 99–102, 106–8, 109, 299; appearance 102–3, 313; erudition 103–4; personality 104–5; irresponsibility 105, 110–11, 118, 134; affair with Mary Sewell 112–13, 113–15, 133; work in Spanish refugee camps 134–6; war years 144, 146, 157, 160, 185; decline of marriage to NM 146–7, 174, 184, 192, 242–4, 256–9; affair with Adelaide Lubbock 173–4; meeting with Palewski 185; divorce from NM 333–35; death 334–5, 353
Romilly, Constancia (second daughter of Jessica Mitford) 153
Life in a Cold Climate Page 55