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Lady Cynthia Blanche Mosley (née Curzon; 23 August 1898 – 16 May 1933), nicknamed "Cimmie", was a British politician of Anglo-American parentage and the first wife of the British
Fascist Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and t ...
, New Party, Labour and
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...
politician
Sir Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a memb ...
. She was herself a Labour
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
.


Childhood

Born Cynthia Blanche Curzon at
Kedleston Hall Kedleston Hall is a neo-classical manor house, and seat of the Curzon family, located in Kedleston, Derbyshire, approximately 4 miles (6 km) north-west of Derby. The medieval village of Kedleston was moved in 1759 by Nathaniel Curzon to mak ...
, she was the second daughter of Hon. George Curzon (later Marquess Curzon of Kedleston) and his first wife, Mary Victoria Leiter, an American department-store heiress. As the daughter of an
Earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particul ...
(and later a
Marquess A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...
), she was styled Lady Cynthia beginning in 1911.


Marriage and family

On 11 May 1920, Cynthia married the then-
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...
politician,
Oswald Mosley Sir Oswald Ernald Mosley, 6th Baronet (16 November 1896 – 3 December 1980) was a British politician during the 1920s and 1930s who rose to fame when, having become disillusioned with mainstream politics, he turned to fascism. He was a Member ...
. He was her first and only lover. They had three children: *Vivien Elizabeth Mosley (25 February 1921 – 26 August 2002), who on 15 January 1949 married Desmond Francis Forbes Adam (1926–1958) who was killed in a car crash nine years laterde Courcy, Anne (2003) "''The Viceroy's Daughters, The Lives of the Curzon Sisters''", HarperCollins; (biography); retrieved 14 March 2007. **and had one son and two daughters. * Nicholas Mosley, 3rd Baron Ravensdale (25 June 1923 – 28 February 2017), a successful novelist who wrote a biography of his father and edited his memoirs for publication; **and had four sons and one daughter. *Michael Mosley (25 April 1932 – 13 March 2012), died unmarried and without issue.


Political life

Both Cynthia and Oswald Mosley joined the Labour Party in 1924. She was elected Labour
Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
(MP) for
Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement in Staffordshire and is surrou ...
in
1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...
, her husband having been elected MP for
Smethwick Smethwick () is an industrial town in Sandwell, West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire. In 2019, the ward of Smethwick had an estimated population of 15,246, while the wider bui ...
in 1926. Frustrated with the ruling Labour Party's complacent and conservative response to high levels of unemployment, Oswald Mosley formed the New Party on 1 March 1931 which his wife also joined. The party failed to win any seats at the 1931 general election. After that Mosley started his move towards fascist policies, losing many of those who had joined the New Party as a result. In September 1930, Lady Cynthia Mosley sent a letter to exiled
communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...
and
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
revolutionary,
Leon Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian M ...
, whom she greatly admired, after flying to the Turkish island of Prinkipo, wanting to meet Trotsky. As Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent, Lady Cynthia had tried and failed to get the British Labour government to offer Trotsky political asylum in Britain. Lady Cynthia's letter read: Trotsky agreed to meet Lady Cynthia out of courtesy and curiosity, but he became very suspicious when Lady Cynthia said that her husband also admired him. While Oswald Mosley was still Labour MP for
Smethwick Smethwick () is an industrial town in Sandwell, West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire. In 2019, the ward of Smethwick had an estimated population of 15,246, while the wider bui ...
and attacking Ramsay MacDonald from the left at the time, along with being seemingly the finest left-wing mind on the Labour government front bench, Trotsky was already suspicious of Oswald's impatience and ambition, labelling Oswald as the "aristocratic coxcomb". Trotsky was also critical of Lady Cynthia for the female companion she brought with her to the meeting. In 1935, Trotsky recalled his meeting with Lady Cynthia, expressing no surprise in her husband Oswald's subsequent journey over to the far-right and becoming the British leader of fascism, with Trotsky also questioning what became of Lady Cynthia personally and politically before "her sudden death" in 1933.Leon Trotsky: Writings on Britain, Vol. III


Husband's adultery

During their marriage, Lady Cynthia's younger sister,
Lady Alexandra ''Lady Alexandra'' was a steamship built in 1924 in Montrose, Scotland which served in British Columbia from 1924 to 1952, mostly on Howe Sound. Design and construction ''Lady Alexandra'' was designed for the routes from Vancouver, British Columbi ...
, was a mistress of Oswald Mosley, as was, briefly, their stepmother, Grace Curzon, Marchioness Curzon of Kedleston.


Electoral defeat and death

All the New Party's candidates in the 1931 election lost their seat or failed to win in constituencies, instead seeing a unified coalition government which involved the Conservatives, Liberals and a breakaway from the main Labour Party amid the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The Financial contagion, ...
. Cynthia Mosley herself did not stand in the election. From then on she drifted away from her husband politically, having no sympathy for his move towards fascism. She died in 1933 at 34 after an operation for
peritonitis Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and cover of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One part or ...
following acute
appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a ru ...
, in London.


Styles

*23 August – 20 October 1898: ''Miss'' Cynthia Blanche Curzon *20 October 1898 – 2 November 1911: ''The Hon.'' Cynthia Blanche Curzon *2 November 1911 – 11 May 1920: ''Lady'' Cynthia Blanche Curzon *1928 – 30 May 1929: Lady Cynthia Blanche Mosley *30 May 1929 – 27 October 1931: Lady Cynthia Blanche Mosley MP *27 October 1931 – 16 May 1933: Lady Cynthia Blanche Mosley


Sources

* De Courcy, Anne (2003) ''The Viceroy's Daughters, The Lives of the Curzon Sisters'', HarperCollins; (biography); retrieved 14 March 2007 *'' Mosley'' *


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mosley, Cynthia 1898 births 1933 deaths English people of American descent English people of Swiss descent Daughters of British marquesses Deaths from peritonitis Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies People from Kedleston UK MPs 1929–1931
Cynthia Cynthia is a feminine given name of Greek origin: , , "from Mount Cynthus" on Delos island. The name has been in use in the Anglosphere since the 1600s. There are various spellings for this name, and it can be abbreviated to Cindy, Cyndi, Cyn ...
20th-century British women politicians Wives of baronets
Cynthia Cynthia is a feminine given name of Greek origin: , , "from Mount Cynthus" on Delos island. The name has been in use in the Anglosphere since the 1600s. There are various spellings for this name, and it can be abbreviated to Cindy, Cyndi, Cyn ...
20th-century English women 20th-century English people