Diana Villiers is a fictional character in the Aubrey-Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian.
11 Facts About Diana Villiers
1.
2.
In Post Captain, Diana Villiers is living with the Williams family, as a poor relation.
3.
Diana Villiers accepts the victor Maturin, visits him often and suggests that she take care of him in the journey back to Europe as his nurse.
4.
Diana Villiers asks Maturin to give her an abortion, but he refuses.
5.
Diana Villiers takes her to Paris, where she can complete her confinement and give birth without the ignominy of being snubbed by British society.
6.
When Maturin is imprisoned in Paris, Diana Villiers uses the Blue Peter, believing it to be a ransom to secure his release.
7.
Diana Villiers is a resourceful woman, pawning her Blue Peter diamond for 50,000 pounds, so they are not pinched, and she can ride and breed horses, at which she is highly skilled.
8.
Diana Villiers pays a rent to her cousin for living in the unused wing, making the Aubrey family life easier, as they too are temporarily short on cash, renting out their marital home of Ashgrove Cottage.
9.
Diana Villiers is quick on the mark in the story, as she intercepts orders for Aubrey to return to his ship on the Brest blockade, so Aubrey can attend a vital committee meeting in Parliament on the issue of the enclosure of some of his land now used in common, for which Aubrey is most grateful.
10.
Diana Villiers enjoys driving a carriage and team of horses, exhibiting high skill in carrying her husband and Jack Aubrey across a narrow bridge, while bringing them to the coast to return to their ship.
11.
Diana Villiers makes her final appearance in The Hundred Days, in which she and her aunt, Sophie's mother, are killed when the carriage runs off a bridge at a dangerous corner.