Diana Collins
Encyclopedia
Dame Diana Clavering Collins, DBE
(b. August 13, 1917 - d. May 23, 2003) was the widow of Dr John Collins
, the fiery Canon of St Paul's Cathedral
who earned an international reputation for his leadership of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
and the British campaign against apartheid in South Africa
. She was his partner in these enterprises and in other activities.
She was born as Diana Clavering Elliot at Stutton Hall
, Suffolk
. She gave up reading English at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, to marry John Collins, then Dean of Oriel College
and later Chairman of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
.
The Collins' friends included Sir Stafford Cripps
, Rev. Trevor Huddleston
, the Lord Chancellor Gerald Gardiner, Victor Gollancz
, J.B. Priestley, Jacquetta Hawkes
, Bertrand Russell
and Oliver Tambo
. All were active in the anti-capital punishment, anti-nuclear proliferation, anti-apartheid and other progressive causes. They launched the Defence and Aid Fund to support black South Africans. Diana Collins travelled incognito to South Africa
when her husband was banned from entering that country. The Collins' raised large sums of money for the legal defense of their causes by the best barristers, including the defence of Nelson Mandela
at the Rivonia trial.
Following her husband's death in 1982, Diana Collins became a trustee of the International Defence and Aid Fund for Southern Africa until 1991, and remained on the Council of Christian Action.
in 1999 "for services to human rights in Southern Africa". She died, aged 85 in 2003, and was survived by three sons. One son predeceased her.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(b. August 13, 1917 - d. May 23, 2003) was the widow of Dr John Collins
Canon John Collins
John Collins was an Anglican priest who was active in several radical political movements in the United Kingdom.Educated at Cranbrook School, Kent and the University of Cambridge, Collins served as a chaplain in the Royal Air Force during World War II and was radicalised by the experience...
, the fiery Canon of St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
who earned an international reputation for his leadership of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament is an anti-nuclear organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty...
and the British campaign against apartheid in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. She was his partner in these enterprises and in other activities.
She was born as Diana Clavering Elliot at Stutton Hall
Stutton, Suffolk
Stutton is a small village and a civil parish which is located west of Ipswich in Suffolk, United Kingdom. Situated on the Shotley Peninsula, the village has two pubs, a primary school, a village hall and a hair salon, an 18th century period self-catering holiday cottage, bed and breakfast, and a...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. She gave up reading English at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, to marry John Collins, then Dean of Oriel College
Oriel College
Oriel College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford...
and later Chairman of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament is an anti-nuclear organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty...
.
Years of activism
In 1940 her husband joined the RAF as a chaplain. In 1946 the Collins' convened a public meeting at Oxford Town Hall, calling for Christians to involve themselves in social and political action. This led directly to the formation of Christian Action, with John Collins as the chairman. Diana Collins edited Christian Action's journal.The Collins' friends included Sir Stafford Cripps
Stafford Cripps
Sir Richard Stafford Cripps was a British Labour politician of the first half of the 20th century. During World War II he served in a number of positions in the wartime coalition, including Ambassador to the Soviet Union and Minister of Aircraft Production...
, Rev. Trevor Huddleston
Trevor Huddleston
Ernest Urban Trevor Huddleston CR, KCMG was an English Anglican bishop. He was most well known for his anti-apartheid activism and his 'Prayer for Africa'...
, the Lord Chancellor Gerald Gardiner, Victor Gollancz
Victor Gollancz
Sir Victor Gollancz was a British publisher, socialist, and humanitarian.-Early life:Born in Maida Vale, London, he was the son of a wholesale jeweller and nephew of Rabbi Professor Sir Hermann Gollancz and Professor Sir Israel Gollancz; after being educated at St Paul's School, London and taking...
, J.B. Priestley, Jacquetta Hawkes
Jacquetta Hawkes
Jacquetta Hawkes was a British archaeologist.Born Jessie Jacquetta Hopkins, the daughter of Nobel Prize-winning scientist, Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins, she married first Christopher Hawkes, then an Assistant Keeper at the British Museum, in 1933. From 1953, she was married to J. B. Priestley...
, Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic. At various points in his life he considered himself a liberal, a socialist, and a pacifist, but he also admitted that he had never been any of these things...
and Oliver Tambo
Oliver Tambo
Oliver Reginald Tambo was a South African anti-apartheid politician and a central figure in the African National Congress .-Biography:Oliver Tambo was born in Bizana in eastern Pondoland in what is now Eastern Cape...
. All were active in the anti-capital punishment, anti-nuclear proliferation, anti-apartheid and other progressive causes. They launched the Defence and Aid Fund to support black South Africans. Diana Collins travelled incognito to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
when her husband was banned from entering that country. The Collins' raised large sums of money for the legal defense of their causes by the best barristers, including the defence of Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
at the Rivonia trial.
Following her husband's death in 1982, Diana Collins became a trustee of the International Defence and Aid Fund for Southern Africa until 1991, and remained on the Council of Christian Action.
Writings
She wrote an account of her marriage, Partners in Protest. She also wrote Time and the Priestleys (1994), an account of her friends, author J.B. Priestley and his wife.DBE/Death
Diana Collins was appointed DBEOrder of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 1999 "for services to human rights in Southern Africa". She died, aged 85 in 2003, and was survived by three sons. One son predeceased her.
Quotes
- "I would rather be married to the Chairman of CND than to the Archbishop of Canterbury".