Alison Towers Settle née Alison Violet de Froideville Fuchs (18 January 1891 in

Clapham Clapham () is a district in south London, south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (including Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Ea ...

, London – 14 September 1980 in

Worthing Worthing ( ) is a seaside town and borough in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 113,094 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Br ...

, Sussex) was a British fashion journalist and editor. Settle's career in fashion journalism spanned over five decades, from the 1910s to the 1970s. She wrote for publications including ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

'' and '' The Lady'', edited British ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ' ...

'' from 1926 to 1935, and belonged to government bodies tasked with improving British design and taste. Alison Settle's archive is located at the

University of Brighton Design Archives The University of Brighton Design Archives centres on British and global design organisations of the twentieth century. It is located within the University of Brighton Grand Parade campus in the heart of Brighton and is an international research r ...

Personal life

She was the second child of Margaret (Maggie) Campbell Munro and Georg Friedrich Gotthilf Fuchs, Premier Lieutenant of the Landwehr and descendant of the Central European aristocratic family Monod de Froideville. Her older brother was the zoologist Harold Munro Fox. Settle intended to read History at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, and won a bursary to

Somerville College Somerville College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. It began admitting men in 1994. The college's liberal tone derives from its f ...

, but was unable to attend because of lack of funds. In 1914, she became engaged to the barrister Alfred Towers Settle, marrying him four years later in November 1918. Alfred died of tuberculosis in 1925, leaving Settle with their two young children Margaret and John. She never remarried.

Career

In 1926, Settle became editor of British ''Vogue'', working for

Edna Woolman Chase Edna Woolman Chase (; March 14, 1877 – March 21, 1957) was an American who served as editor-in-chief of '' Vogue'' magazine from 1914 to 1952. Early life Chase was born on March 14, 1877, in Asbury Park, New Jersey. She was the daughter of F ...

, the American editor-in-chief of the three existing editions of ''

'', staying in her position for the next 9 years. Under her management, the magazine first employed influential writers including

Virginia Woolf Adeline Virginia Woolf (; ; 25 January 1882 28 March 1941) was an English writer and one of the most influential 20th-century modernist authors. She helped to pioneer the use of stream of consciousness narration as a literary device. Vir ...

Edith Sitwell Dame Edith Louisa Sitwell (7 September 1887 – 9 December 1964) was a British poet and critic and the eldest of the three literary Sitwells. She reacted badly to her eccentric, unloving parents and lived much of her life with her governess ...

and

Vita Sackville-West Victoria Mary, Lady Nicolson, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (née Sackville-West; 9 March 1892 – 2 June 1962), usually known as Vita Sackville-West, was an English author and garden designer. Sackville-West was a successful nov ...

. Settle left ''Vogue'' in 1935 under strained circumstances, spending the subsequent year writing the book ''Clothes Line'', published in 1937. In that year' she also became the fashion editor of ''

'', retiring in 1960. A year after her retirement, she received the

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

for services to the journalism of fashion. She was also a fashion columnist for '' The Lady'' for 27 years until 1972, which ended after Settle had a serious accident in Paris. Her book ''Fashion As A Career'' was published in 1963. Settle moved to Steyning (Sussex) after World War II. She died in Worthing on the autumn of 1980, at 89.'Mrs Alison Settle,' The Times (20 Sep 1980) 14

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Settle, Alison 1891 births 1980 deaths English columnists English women journalists British women columnists 20th-century British women writers English fashion journalists Fashion editors Writers from the London Borough of Lambeth British women magazine editors British Vogue 20th-century English women 20th-century English people People from Clapham Member of the Women's Press Club, London Vogue (magazine) editors