PAMELA DIGBY CHURCHILL HARRIMAN - MISTRESS TO PRINCE ALI SALMAN AGA KHAN

This month we continue our focus on Pamela Digby Churchill Harriman which began last month.  Digby was her maiden name. Churchill was her first married name which she kept; the name of her son by Randolph Churchill was named Winston after his grandfather. Harriman was her surname for her last, third marriage. Called The Courtesan of the 20th Century, this month we begin on her 20 year career as a Kept Woman.  Pamela proves to us that you can make the most of yourself and even become an important player in politics.  You can go from a not so terrific start to a very terrific finish.

In June of 1947, Pamela was in Paris when she met a man who some called an International Playboy, Aga Khan. (Prince Ali Salman Aga Khan had as a mistress the model Bettina when he died. Bettina Graziani, born Simon Micheline Bodine, was our Mistress of the Month for June 2015.) Aga was popular in English society. His mother was Italian and he was born in Italy. He was educated in England.
He had many conquests that included the wives of his friends.  He traveled constantly and seemed to have endless energy.  He was generous when it came to travel and accommodations to his friends though not with money or presents.  

In July of 1947 Aga and Pamela were known to be lovers.  The rumors were strong that he loved to give pleasure to women while holding back himself, that he liked to drive them crazy with passion for him. Pamela had the energy to keep up with this man. He afforded her travel on his private plane. She visited his house on the Riviera.  (See Mistresses of the Riviera, month of August 2018.)

Maybe Pamela Churchill was only a part of his harem, but her relationship with Aga Khan allowed her to mix with International society, where she continued to learn to be a social sophisticate and catered to powerful and monied men, while keeping herself open to the idea of an eventual husband.

Their relationship didn't work out. But Pamela stuck around after things cooled between them. It became a classic Pamela Churchill move.  She didn't take his big hint that it was over.  He even left her at one of his houses and didn't come back.  But also classic of Pamela was that they remained good friends.  And because she waited where she could meet more men, she did.  Gianni Agnelli.


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Primary reference for these posts is Sally Bedell Smith's book Reflected Glory.