Tracking Down the Mitfords

With all of the reading I did this summer about the Mitfords, it seemed only natural that I would track down their old digs. I had already been to Chatsworth where Deborah Mitford spent most of her later years but this trip was dedicated to Oxfordshire/the Cotswolds where they grew up.

I wasn't entirely sure about the bus process but I luckily caught a bus at our stop to Worsham Turn. The bus driver wasn't entirely sure where that stop was but we tag-teamed it and with my map and his knowledge of the towns, he dropped me off exactly where I needed to be. He also told me to just wait right there when I needed to head home and that he'd let the afternoon bus driver know I'd be waiting there. I walked through the gorgeous weather down really small lanes until I reached the Swan Inn and a river. The Swan Inn was connected to Mill Cottage where Deborah lived with Muv and Unity during WWII. Muv wanted to take Unity up to Inch Kenneth, the island that they owned in Scotland but because Unity was an enemy of the state at this point, she wasn't allowed up in the Scottish isles.

Mill Cottage and Swan Inn

I walked up and down the paths, looking at the gorgeous houses all made out of Costwold stones. I totally would have lived in a few of them and I loved the gorgeous countryside with the fields and lawns and all the beautiful flowers. I also stopped and had lunch at the church of St. Mary's. This is where the Mitfords all went to church and six of the nine Mitfords are buried here (Tom is buried in Burma where he was killed but he has a plaque dedicated to him in the family pew, Decca is buried in California and Deborah is still alive). The church was beautiful and quaint and the cemetery was quiet. I had lunch on a little bank next to the graves of Nancy, Unity, Diana and Diana's grandson (Pam was on the other side of the cemetery). The sun was bright and warm and I chatted with several people also visiting the church.

Pam's grave

Diana's grave

Unity's grave

Nancy's grave

Memorial to those who died in WWII

plaque for Tom in the Mitford pew

plaque for Muv and Farve

Eventually I popped into the Swan to use the toiler and was shocked to see that the whole place was decorated with pictures of the Mitfords, including my favorite series of the girls by William Acton.

all the Mitford related books

Debo on her horse with two of her sisters

Nancy the Novelist

Pamela the farmer

Diana the Fascist

Unity Valkyrie the Nazi

Decca (Jessica) the Communist

Debo the Duchess

Debo collecting eggs at Swinbrook House

Tom, Pam, Nancy and Diana with the chickens Muv raised for money

I talked to several people in the pub and they told me where exactly Swinbrook House was. It took me awhile to find it but after asking a kind old man in his garden for directions, I found Swinbrook House which was where the Mitfords moved after they left Asthall because it got too expensive. None of the kids except Deborah enjoyed Swinbrook- they found it isolating and dull compared to the beauty and vibrancy of Asthall.

Speaking of Asthall, I was on my way back to where the bus was going to pick me up and I pass Asthall Manor. It was hard to see through the front gates but by going into the cemetery, I was able to see the beautiful back of the large house where the Mitfords spent most of their childhood (after moving from the family own Batsford House).

To then make a long trip home short, I anxiously waited where the bus driver had indicated, sitting on the grass and reading for awhile and then nervously bouncing about praying that the bus would not only show up but also stop. Finally, five minutes late, it arrived and stopped for me. The bus driver was so stylish- She wearing black heels, a snazzy scarf, really cool dangly earrings and rocking black raybans. also dropped me off exactly where I wanted on Woodstock. Both of these bus drivers were great.

I had no idea if I will end up studying the Mitfords for my thesis but they are such an incredible family and I have had such a great time learning about them this summer and seeing precisely where they grew up. Whether or not they become the subject of my research, I will continue to want to read more and more about them.