THE last surviving Mitford sister has died aged 94.

Like her five sisters Deborah Cavendish, the Dowager Duchess of Devonshire, was born at Asthall Manor, West Oxfordshire on the banks of the River Windrush.

The family then moved to nearby Swinbrook where their father had a home built.

Her sisters had differing views about their Cotswold childhoods and while Nancy Mitford wrote about it in her books The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate they were generally keen to move away.

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But Deborah Mitford was deeply attached to Swinbrook and bought The Swan Inn and The Mill Cottage next door which she owned until her death.

Deborah Freeman-Mitford – known as Debo – was born on March 31, 1920.

Her father was the 2nd Baron Redesdale and she came out as a debutante at a ball at their London home in 1938.

By this time she had already been introduced to Adolf Hitler by her sister Unity though she was unimpressed by the German dictator and compared him unfavourably to Winston Churchill.

She met Lord Andrew Cavendish at the races and the couple married in 1941.

When her husband became Duke of Devonshire in 1944 they moved into Chatsworth House in Derbyshire.

Since Chatsworth House lacked modern facilities such as wiring and plumbing the family moved across the park to Edensor House in 1959.

In 1981 the running of Chatsworth was taken over by the Chatsworth House Trust, a charitable foundation established by the 11th Duke and the Duchess to help ensure the preservation of the house, its essential contents, the garden and the park for the benefit of the general public.

Unlike some of her sisters who were politically active – Jessica was a left-wing activist and Diana became the second wife of fascist leader Oswald Mosley – Deborah was more focused on running her new estate.

She was keen to promote the estate as a destination for the public, helped run its large farm shop and was known to work in the ticket office.

As well as Deborah, the Mitford sisters were novelist Nancy (1904-1973), Pamela (1907-1994), prominent fascist Diana (1910-2003), Hitler supporter Unity (1914-1948) and Jessica (1917-1996).

There was also a brother Tom who was killed in action in Burma in 1945.

They were born to David Freeman-Mitford, the 2nd Baron Redesdale, who was a notable eccentric who attended Radley College and failed the entrance exam to Sandhurst so went to work in Ceylon for a tea planter instead.

Lord Cavendish died in 2004 and Deborah became the Dowager Duchess of Devonshire.

Deborah Mitford died on September 24. She is survived by her son Peregrine, the current Duke of Devonshire, and two daughters Emma and Sophia.

Her funeral will be held at St Peter’s Church, Edensor, in Derbyshire today.

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