Acc.13327 November 2014

Inventory

Acc.13327

Alexander Wallace Fielding

National Library of Scotland Manuscripts Division George IV Bridge Edinburgh EH1 1EW Tel: 0131-623 3876 Fax: 0131-623 3866 E-mail: [email protected]

© National Library of Scotland

GB 233 Acc.13327. Alexander Wallace Fielding. 1940-2011. Fonds. 23 files.

Personal and literary papers of Alexander Wallace Fielding (1918-1991), intelligence officer and author.

Alexander “Xan” Fielding was born Alexander Percival Feilman Wallace in India and grew up in , both his parents having died when he was young. He travelled in Europe until the outbreak of World War II, during which he worked as an intelligence officer with the Special Operations Executive behind enemy lines in , and met his lifelong friend, the travel writer .

After the war he continued to travel, and wrote a number of books including „The Stronghold‟ (Secker and Warburg, 1953) and „Hide and seek‟ (Secker and Warburg, 1954) about his experiences in Crete. He also translated a number of books into English including „Le pont de la Rivière Kwaï‟ („The Bridge over the River Kwai„) and „La Planète des singes‟ („Planet of the apes„) by French author .

His 1953 marriage to Daphne Thynne was dissolved in 1978 and he married Agnes (“Magouche”) Phillips, the widow of artist Arshile Gorky, the following year. They settled in Andalusia in Spain, and he continued to write, his later books including a biography of another wartime friend, Billy McLean, entitled „One man in his time‟ (Macmillan, 1990), and „ displayed: a book of the winds‟ (Typographeum, 1991). He died in in 1991.

His papers were donated to the National Library of Scotland in 2012 by his widow Agnes (“Magouche”) Fielding immediately following the Library‟s acquisition of the Sir Patrick Leigh Fermor Archive (Acc.13338), and include letters from friends and associates including Leigh Fermor, Cyril Connolly, Lawrence Durrell and Frances Partridge, manuscript and typescript drafts and notes concerning some of his literary works, as well as photographs and other memorabilia.

Presented, 2012, by Agnes Fielding.

The papers have been arranged as follows:

1-6 Correspondence 7-14 Manuscripts and typescripts 15-23 Memorabilia and ephemera

1-6 Correspondence

1 Letters from:

Bowra, Cecil Maurice, 1 letter; 1947.

Brenan, Edward FitzGerald “Gerald”, 4 letters; 1960 (copy extracts), 1961, 1981 and undated.

Cavendish, Deborah Vivien, née Freeman-Mitford, 1 letter; 1982. (See also file 5)

Connolly, Cyril Vernon, 2 letters; 1965 and undated.

Cooper, Diana, née Manners, 1 letter; 1959. (See also file 5)

Dawkins, Richard McGillivray, 25 letters; 1952 (8), 1953 (9), 1954 (2) and 1955 (6).

Durrell, Lawrence George, 44 letters; 1946, 1947, 1948, 1950 (2, including one written on letter of Xan Fielding to Lawrence Durrell), 1963, 1966, 1967, 1969 (3), 1970 (3) and undated (30).

Ferguson, Jamie, 1 letter; 1986.

2 Letters from:

Fermor, Joan Leigh, 2 letters; undated (1 to Magouche Fielding). (See also file 5)

Fermor, Patrick Michael Leigh, 52 letters and 1 fragment of a letter; [1958], 1962, 1963, 1966, 1971 (2), 1972 (2), 1974 (2), 1975, 1976 (3), 1977 (2), 1978 (4), 1979 (3, and 1 fragment), 1980 (2), 1981 (5), 1982, 1983 (3), 1984 (3), 1985, 1986, 1987 (4), 1989 (1), 1991 (4) and not dated (4). (See also files 4 and 5)

3 Letters from:

Fisher, Rudolf, 12 letters, 1986 (3), 1987, 1988 (2), 1990, 1991 (4) and undated.

Grigg, John, 1 letter enclosing draft obituary of Patrick Leigh Fermor, 1986.

Halliday, W R, 6 letters; 1953 (3), 1954 (2) and 1955.

Hill, Annie, 1 letter; 1976.

Holmes, Richard, 1 letter; 1987.

Hughes, David, 9 letters; 1971, 1977, 1981 (2), 1983, 1985 (3) and 1986.

Kee, Robert, 2 letters; 1974, 1989.

Lucas, H J, 1 letter; 1953.

Mayne, Peter, 1 letter; 1978.

Miller, Henry, 1 letter; undated.

Myres, John Linton, 2 letters; 1952 (2).

Nicolson, Harold George, 6 letters; 1952 (4), 1953 and 1955.

Nixon, Luica, 1 letter (fragments), undated.

Partridge, Frances Catherine, née Marshall, 11 letters; 1978, 1984 (4), 1985 (4), 1990 and undated. (See also file 5)

Quennell, Peter Courtney, 1 letter; 1961.

Shaw, A R Perry, 2 letters; 1953 and 1954.

Spender, Matthew, 2 letters; 1973 (2).

Tamaron, Santiago de, 1 letter; 1985.

Waley, Arthur David, 1 letter; 1954.

Waugh, Evelyn, 1 letter; 1955.

“Joãoninho” (unidentified), 2 letters; 1961, 1962.

4 Correspondence concerning „One man in his time: the life of Lieutenant-Colonel N L D („Billy‟) McLean‟ (Macmillan, 1990), approximately 50 letters, with enclosures, 1987-1989.

5 Letters of condolence to Magouche Fielding following Alexander Fielding‟s death, 60 letters; 1991, 1992.

6 Financial and publishing documents and correspondence (9 letters), 1987-1992.

7-14 Manuscripts and typescripts

7 “Vendette impériale: l‟histoire de la lutte de deux Corses: Bonaparte et Pozzo di Borgo”. Typescript in French, presumably by Alexander Fielding, with illustrated cover, circa 1960-1975.

8 „Aeolus displayed: a book of the winds‟ (published in an extended German translation as „Das Buch der Winde‟ by Greno, 1988, and subsequently in English as „Aeolus displayed: a book of the winds‟ by Typographeum, 1991). Annotated typescript and photocopies, with related material including diagrams, correspondence and press cuttings, 1987-1991.

9 „Aeolus displayed: a book of the winds‟. Annotated typescript, circa 1987-1991.

10 „Hide and seek for Greek translation‟. Photocopy of the 1954 Secker and Warburg edition, annotated by Alexander Fielding and Patrick Leigh Fermor, circa 1990-1991, with 5 letters, 1990-1991, in English, French and Greek.

11 Book of press cuttings, mainly articles and book reviews by Alexander Fielding, 1947-1968, 1987-1991, with obituaries of Alexander Fielding, 1991. Also includes correspondence with the BBC concerning radio broadcasts, 1949-1958, and a page of autographs including Patrick Leigh Fermor, Billy McLean and Sophie Moss, 1981.

12 Notebook containing notes, in English and French, on „Dom Miguel, 1802-1866‟ and „Pozzo di Borgo, 1764-1842‟, with further manuscript and typescript material and 4 letters loosely inserted, circa 1961-1974.

13 „For the men in battle‟. Photocopy of poem, 1940.

“Old man‟s country”. Corected typescript, circa 1940-1960.

„Sentry-go (a fragment of the living)‟. Typescript, 1946.

Miscellaneous material and notes concerning Pierre Boulle, circa 1953- 1960.

„Stronghold – corrections‟. Typescript notes, circa 1950-1980.

Folder, on which are written lists of published manuscripts and broadcasts, circa 1951.

„Aegean testament (to Xan)‟. Manuscript poem, 1943, author unknown.

Daphne Fielding: „No flowers by request‟. Typescript, circa 1950-1980.

14 „Psychoundakis diary 1960‟. Manuscript by George Psychoundakis, in Greek, 1961.

15-23 Memorabilia and ephemera

15 Correspondence (9 letters and 1 fragment of a letter; 1918-1971 and undated), press cuttings, some official documents and other material of and concerning Alexander Fielding‟s family, circa 1905-1971.

16 Photographs of Alexander Fielding‟s family, circa 1896-1930.

17 Folder originally containing the material in Acc.13327/15 and 16.

18 “Xan‟s important documents”, including 2 marriage certificates, divorce certificate, multiple copies of death certificate, 2 passports, French driving licence and carte de séjour, 1918-1991.

19 Manuscript, typescript and photocopied biographical notes and obituaries concerning Alexander Fielding, circa 1986-1991, photocopied photographs, circa 1940-50, photocopied statement of military and other experience, 1944, and press cutting of an Alexander Fielding advertisement in „‟ seeking employment, 1950.

20 Photograph album containing photographs of Alexander Fielding and others in England and France, circa 1927-1935.

21 Material of and concerning Patrick Leigh Fermor, including 4 letters of Patrick Leigh Fermor to Magouche Fielding, 2004 (2), 2008 and undated, 1 letter of Patrick Leigh Fermor to Sophie Moss, 1990, photographs, 1942 and circa 2005-2011, some material concerning William Stanley Moss, manuscript and typescript works of Patrick Leigh Fermor presented to Alexander Fielding and Magouche Fielding, press cuttings including obituaries, and a copy of Patrick Leigh Fermor‟s will, circa 1980-2011.

22 Reproduction of a drawing of Patrick Leigh Fermor by John Ward, 1996.

23 Miscellaneous ephemera, including photographs, offprints and press cuttings, circa 1940-1991.