Mitford family to "The Times" journalist Ben Macintyre, as "Diana the Fascist, Jessica the Communist, Unity the Hitler-lover; Nancy the Novelist; Deborah the Duchess and Pamela the unobtrusive poultry connoisseur". The family traces its origins in Northumberland back to the time of the Norman conquest. In the Middle Ages they had been Border Reivers based in Redesdale. The main family line had seats at Mitford Castle and Mitford Old Manor House prior to Mitford Hall in 1828. The sisters achieved notoriety for their controversial but stylish lives as young people, then for their public political divisions between communism and fascism. Nancy and
Pamela Clauss She also had an extensive family in Australia including two sisters: Jill and Phillipa, numerous nephews, nieces, and many grand-nephews and nieces. Philippa, was the late wife of Leslie Lazarus, of Sydney, an Officer of the Order of Australia. Pamela Clauss Pamela Clauss (17 August 1925 – 5 August 2001) was an Australian pioneering nurse, philanthropist and supporter of historical preservation and the arts. Born as Pamela Heavey in Longueville, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, to Alison Maud (née Bennett) and John Aloysius Heavey, a New Zealand Navy veteran who had been decorated during World War I for