Daphne Winifred Louise Fielding (née Vivian, formerly Thynne; 11 July 1904 – 5 December 1997) was a British author in the 20th century.

The Honourable Daphne Fielding
Pictured in 1927 with Henry Thynne, Viscount Weymouth
Born	The Hon. Daphne Winifred Louise Vivian 11 July 1904 Westminster, London, England
Died	5 December 1997(1997-12-05) (aged 93)
Occupation	Author
Spouses	Henry Thynne, 6th Marquess of Bath ​ ​ (m. 1927; div. 1953)​ Alexander Fielding ​ ​ (m. 1953; div. 1978)​
Children	Caroline Somerset, Duchess of Beaufort The Hon. Thomas Thynne Alexander Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath Lord Christopher Thynne Lord Valentine Thynne
Parents	George Vivian, 4th Baron Vivian Barbara Fanning

Family

Daphne Vivian was born on 11 July 1904 in Westminster, London, the elder child of George Vivian, 4th Baron Vivian, and Barbara (née Fanning). Her parents separated when she was four years old and her father raised the children at Glynn, Cornwall, where the family were known as the 'mad Vivians'.[1]

She married, firstly, Henry Thynne, Viscount Weymouth (who became the 6th Marquess of Bath in 1946), on 27 October 1927. Neither his nor her parents approved of the marriage,[2] and they were divorced in 1953. From 1946, she was known as the Marchioness of Bath. The couple had five children:[1][2]

• Lady Caroline Jane Thynne (1928–1995); married David Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort, and had issue.
• The Honourable Thomas Timothy Thynne (1929–1930); died in infancy.
• Alexander George Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath (1932–2020); married Anna Gyarmathy and had issue.
• Lord Christopher John Thynne (1934–2017); married Antonia Palmer, daughter of Sir Anthony Palmer, 4th Baronet, and had issue.
• Lord Valentine Charles Thynne (1937–1979); married, first, Veronica Jacks and had issue. He married, secondly, Susanne Alder; and, thirdly, Liese Dennis.

She married, secondly, Major Alexander Wallace Fielding, on 11 July 1953. The couple divorced in 1978.[3]

Career

She moved in the world of the "Bright Young Things" in the 1920s and produced a series of popular books about high society. Of Fielding's memoirs, Mercury Presides, Evelyn Waugh wrote: "Daphne has written her memoirs. Contrary to what one would have expected they are marred by discretion and good taste. The childhood part is admirable. The adult part is rather as though Lord Montgomery were to write his life and omit to mention that he ever served in the army."[4]

Works

• Longleat from 1566 to the present time. Longleat Estate (1949)
• Before the Sunset Fades. Longleat Estate (1951)
• Mercury Presides. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode (1954)
• The Adonis Garden (1961)
• The Duchess of Jermyn Street: Rosa Lewis. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode (1964) ISBN 0-413-25190-X
• Emerald and Nancy: Lady Cunard and Her Daughter. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode (1968) ISBN 0-413-25950-1
• The Nearest Way Home. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode (1970)
• The Rainbow Picnic: a portrait of Iris Tree. London: Eyre Methuen (1974) ISBN 0-413-28520-0
• Face on the Sphinx: a portrait of Gladys Marie Deacon, Duchess of Marlborough. London: Hamish Hamilton (1978) ISBN 0-241-89314-3

References

External links

• Entry at ThePeerage.com