Mosley, Diana (1910-2003), was a British writer and political activist known for her right-wing political views and her friendship with Adolf Hitler. She was the wife of Sir Oswald Mosley, who founded the British Union of Fascists in the 1930’s. Her sisters included the writers Nancy and Jessica Mitford and the right-wing activist Unity Mitford, who joined Diana in support of the German Nazi Party.
Diana Freeman-Mitford was born on June 17, 1910, in London on June 17, 1910, and educated at home. She met Sir Oswald Mosley in 1932 and became interested in Mosley’s fascist political beliefs. In 1936, they married in Berlin, Germany, with Adolf Hitler as one of the guests. Diana Mosley became involved in the Nazi Party in Germany, where she met members of the Third Reich, including Albert Speer and Joseph Goebbels. At the beginning of World War II (1939-1945), many British people viewed Mosley’s fascist politics and association with Hitler as a threat to the defense of their country. From June 1940 to November 1943, Diana and Oswald Mosley were interned (confined for political reasons) in London as potential traitors. Their release in 1943 caused a storm of protest in the United Kingdom. After the war, the Mosleys moved to Wiltshire, United Kingdom, where they lived until 1951. For the next 12 years, the Mosleys divided their time between Galway, Ireland, and Orsay, France. From 1963 onward, they lived in France.
Diana Mosley’s publications include her memoirs A Life of Contrasts (1977); Loved Ones: Pen Portraits (1985), a series of essays about her friends; and the biography The Duchess of Windsor (1980). She died on Aug. 11, 2003.
See also Hitler, Adolf; Mitford, Jessica; Mitford, Nancy; Mitford, Unity; Mosley, Sir Oswald; Nazism.
