Sotheby's Auction: Deborah, Duchess of Devonshire

This weekend I spent a few hours poring over the catalogue for the upcoming Sotheby's Auction on March 2 of the contents of the home of Deborah, Duchess of Devonshire. She was the last of the legendary Mitford sisters. Although she mostly avoided the limelight, in 1941 her life changed forever when she married Andrew Cavendish, the second son of the Duke of Devonshire. They unexpectedly inherited Chatsworth estate, one of England's most splendid houses, when Andrew's older brother died in the war. They became the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire and moved into Chatsworth House in 1957. This was a mixed blessing as it had been badly neglected during two wars as well as in a great amount of debt due to inheritance taxes.

The Dowager, Duchess of Devonshire, photographed at Chatsworth in 1995

They set about saving the estate by selling thousands of acres of land and giving many works of art and ancient books to the National Treasury. And slowly but surely they turned the estate into a successful business. By the 1960's and 70's thousands of tourists were visiting the house and gardens. In 1977 a farm shop selling local produce, one of the first of its kind, was opened. This was one of the many ingenious ideas from the Duke and Duchess that helped the estate turn a profit. Today more than 700 people are employed in the running of the estate for more than a million annual visitors, as well as helping run the many events which bring in more tourists.

Chatsworth House

Deborah was largely responsible for bringing the house back to life and turning it into one of England's most popular and beloved historic houses. Sotheby's will be offering the contents of her final home, the Old Vicarage at Edensor on the Chatsworth estate. It includes the wonderful objects with which she lived -- from exquisite jewels gifted to her by her husband to a rare copy of "Brideshead Revisited" personally inscribed to her by her friend Evelyn Waugh. This historic auction will offer fine and decorative art (I counted three paintings by Duncan Grant!), furniture, china, jewels, and the Duchess of Devonshire's library. Here are a few images of her home:

I was in England in September, 2014 when Deborah Mitford passed away at age 94. I was touched by the huge outpouring of sympathy and articles about her in all the newspapers. She was an admired woman in Britain, considered gracious, down-to-earth and credited as the driving force behind making Chatsworth House one of England's most popular stately homes. If you want to know more about her read Wait for Me, her wonderful memoir about growing up in the storied Mitford clan, her life with Andrew Cavendish, and living at Chatsworth. She was a talented writer and her story is enchanting.

Oh to be in London for this! The auction is happening on Wednesday, March 2. Viewing is from February 27-March 1. Go to Sotheby's to watch the amazing video of how they put this auction together. If you are in London and get a chance to see this, please let me know. I would love to hear about it. What an opportunity to see Deborah Mitford's beloved objects and interiors before they go on sale at auction.

P.S.  I am very excited about the new banner for my blog. After all these years, it was time for a change. The talented team at Thunderwing Press created it for me and I couldn't be happier!