Monarchs who abdicated the throne. Edward VIII: The man who proved that a woman is worth more than a horse
“No king can marry for love,” Alla Pugacheva once sang. In fact, this is not so, and history knows many examples of this. It's just that not all kings are able to pay the price of marrying for love. But it’s always so nice to learn stories in which love turned out to be stronger. Stronger than palace intrigues, prejudices and social restrictions, probably even stronger than death itself. This was exactly the feeling of the British king Edward VIII, whose reign lasted about a year, and whose love lasted until the end of his life.
Edward was warned more than once that his infatuation with Mrs. Wallis Simpson would lead nowhere and he might even have to sacrifice his crown, but the king was ready to abdicate the throne rather than part with his beloved.
This woman, a frivolous, twice-divorced American, suddenly turned all the prince’s ideas about love upside down. They met in November 1930, when she found herself at an evening to which the Prince of Wales was invited. Wallis felt absolutely calm when she was introduced to the prince, and she curtsied before him. Quite quickly, the meaningless flirtation turned into a strong passion.
When they met for the second time, the prince confessed his love to Wallis. The woman, in turn, reciprocated and said that for several years she had been collecting newspapers that mentioned Edward in some way. Your passionate romance The lovers didn’t even think about hiding it. They appeared together on the streets of the capital, the heir took his girlfriend to the most expensive restaurants, theaters and often appeared with her in society. The royal family, hoping that the prince's unexpected love affair would turn out to be just a passing infatuation, chose to wait. But time passed, and the Prince of Wales, it seemed, did not even think about parting with his sweet Wallis.
Six years after their meeting, in January 1936, the English King George V died, and his heir, Edward, ascended the throne. In that terrible night, when the prince lost his father, he called his beloved and promised that he would never leave her and saw no reason for anything to separate them.
- READ:
When Edward VIII announced his intention to marry Wallis, many guardians of the norms of royal power vehemently opposed it. But Edward decided to stop at nothing. On December 10, 1936, he made a speech to his people that forever separated him from royal family: "You all know the circumstances that forced me to abdicate the throne. But I want you to understand that in making this decision I have not forgotten my country and empire, which I, as Prince of Wales, and later as King, for twenty-five years he served faithfully... But you must also believe that it is impossible for me to fulfill my duty as a king as I would like without the help and support of the woman I love...” and then signed the act of abdication. The document stated: “I, Edward VIII, King of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions, Emperor of India, hereby declare my firm and final decision to abdicate the throne and express the desire that this act should take effect immediately...”
In addition, under pressure from high society, the former king was forced to sign an act depriving Edward’s wife of all titles (while he himself became the Duke of Windsor with his abdication). But this only accelerated preparations for the wedding.
The wedding took place in a modest castle near the French town of Cande. Among the guests were Churchill's son Randolph, the Rothschilds, the British Consul in Nantes and the First Secretary of the British Embassy.
A few years later the Second began World War. Edward and his wife sympathized with Hitler. However, when German troops entered France, the Duke of Windsor began to prepare to leave. Having reached the French border, he and Wallis left the country and headed through Spain to New York. The couple lived there until the victory in the spring of 1945. Throughout the war, Edward was governor of the Bahamas. After the war, the loving couple returned to France and settled in the former palace of Charles de Gaulle.
King Edward VIII, who occupied the throne of Great Britain in 1936 from late January to December, is remembered today only for the fact that he abdicated the throne for love. Elizabeth II's uncle, the eldest son of her grandfather George V, made a decision in 1936 that he never, as he said, regretted: he left the throne for the opportunity to marry his long-time lover, the American Wallis Simpson, who had been married twice before. At the time of the wedding he was 42 years old - and before that he had never thought about getting married.
The eldest son of King George V was always loved in Britain: charming, democratic, he was the star of parties, danced beautifully, played tennis and golf. He was not allowed to fight in the First World War for fear that he would be wounded or, even worse, captured. For a similar reason, he was not allowed to engage in other risky activities, such as participating in horse racing or learning to fly. This saddened him - and he himself upset his father because he, the heir to the throne, did not want to settle down and finally get married.
Adding to the sadness were rumors that Prince Edward was having an affair with a married woman, American Wallis Simpson.
I introduced them to home party Lady Furness is believed to have been in an intimate relationship with Edward, Prince of Wales. Wallis Simpson was invited there along with her husband, Ernest Simpson, a native of New York. The couple lived in Britain, but Wallis Simpson, with her thick Baltimore accent (she came from an influential New England family) and American straightforwardness, stood out clearly from her British surroundings. Beautiful, elegant, witty, the prince, of course, liked her.
A fleeting acquaintance with a couple of Americans quickly grew into friendship - and now they began to be regularly invited to events. But when one day King George V, once again expressing regret that Edward would not marry, accused him of having a close relationship with a married American, the Prince of Wales responded indignantly that there was no “immoral” relationship between them. Even after the wedding that followed a few years later, he continued to claim that Wallis Simpson was not his mistress before marriage. Despite the rumors.
AP Governor of the Bahamas, Duke of Windsor with Duchess Wallis Simpson in official residence in Nassau, August 1940
On the evening of 16 January 1936, the Prince of Wales was practicing shooting in Windsor Great Park when he received a note from his mother, Queen Mary, saying that the royal physician was “dissatisfied with the condition of the Pope in this moment"and that he should come to Sandringham Palace, only somehow unobtrusively, so as not to create unnecessary tension. The next morning he flew to the palace by airplane. On January 20, George V died and the throne passed to Edward. Wallis Simpson was one of the first to know about this.
The new king's relationship with his brothers quickly deteriorated - especially the Duke of York, the future King George VI - who were irritated that Edward VIII openly showered Wallis Simpson with expensive gifts and generally supported this outrageous relationship.
In October 1936, the British Press Association informed Edward VIII's private secretary that Wallis Simpson had filed for divorce, with the matter due to be heard on 27 October. He discussed this with Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, who decided to talk to the king about the scandal that this “friendship” of his with the said lady was causing in society and ask him to prevent the divorce.
The king refused to do this. It was clear that he planned to marry an American - this was known to everyone, despite the fact that the newspapers came to a gentleman's agreement not to name Wallis Simpson. On November 10, this name, however, was first heard at a meeting of the House of Commons from the lips of a Labor MP from Glasgow during a discussion of the future coronation of the king. More precisely, that there may not be a coronation.
It became clear that abdication of the throne was no longer an opportunity for Edward, but a necessity.
London was filled with rumors. Even the king's friends understood that if he married Wallis Simpson, he would have to immediately abdicate the throne - otherwise, this would lead to a constitutional crisis, general elections, the rise of leftist sentiment - all against the backdrop of unemployment, recession and foreign policy problems (remember , it was 1936).
On November 16, the king informed Stanley Baldwin that he would marry Wallis Simpson in the very near future, whether his ministers approved it or not. If not, he will abdicate the throne. Later in the evening. He said the same thing to his mother and sister. Of course they were shocked.
Of course, they insisted that it was his duty to be king, and he must refuse this woman. To which he replied that he could not be king without her, which means that his real duty was to leave the throne. On December 10, 1936, in the presence of his four brothers, Edward VIII ceased to be king. For the first time in British history, a monarch voluntarily abdicated the throne.
AP The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Prince Edward and Wallis Simpson, at the Château de la Croe on Cote d'Azur, June 1968
They married on June 3, 1937 in France - the former king of Great Britain, now the Duke of Windsor, and the twice-divorced daughter of an American businessman from Baltimore who made his fortune in the flour trade. The modest wedding took place at the Chateau de Cand, in Monte.
Members of the former British monarch's family were not present. Despite the fact that the British press was prohibited from being there, Time magazine reported in detail from the scene, not forgetting to mention that Edward could not take his eyes off the bride.
Wallis Simpson wore a light blue crepe dress and a hat with a brim that surrounded her head like a halo, and a large brooch adorned her neck. “Only two incidents interrupted the ceremony,” Time reported. - When Vicar Jardin asked: “Will you love her, care for her, respect and protect her?”, the excited Edward shouted: “Yes!” in a shrill voice, more like a scream. When he put a simple ring of Welsh gold, traditional in the British royal family, on her finger, the trembling in his hands was visible even to the most distant observers.”
The couple remained married until Edward's death in 1972. Wallis Simpson survived him by 14 years.
They say that for the sake of love a person can make any sacrifice. That's probably true. But once a century there occur victims so extraordinary that they forever remain in the memory of mankind, becoming romantic legends. In the twentieth century, a love story became such a legend English king Edward VIII and the American Wallis Simpson. For the sake of his beloved, Edward abdicated the throne...
Romantic fairy tale
Prince Edward was the first and beloved great-grandson of the famous British Queen Victoria, who occupied the English throne for 64 years in the 19th century. Over the years, Victoria acquired many heirs. She had nine children and forty grandchildren. In 1901, the long-lived queen was replaced on the throne by her son Edward VII, and nine years later it was the turn of her grandson, George V, whose son our prince was.
So 17-year-old Edward became the direct heir to the throne and received the title Prince of Wales. Historians claim that the prince led a completely carefree lifestyle, traveled and, although he had affairs from time to time, he did not seem to think about marriage. He even joked that he would probably never get married because he was too passionate about sports and theater.
And suddenly, on a November evening in 1930, Wallis Simpson came into his life. I entered to stay there forever. Nee Warfield, Wallis was born in America, was pretty and clearly had a penchant for love adventures. By the time she met the prince, she had already been married three times (!) and, in addition, had experienced several whirlwind romances. Her first husband died of tuberculosis, and she separated from her second.
Then she experienced an insane passion for some Argentine diplomat, who eventually ran away from her. Trying to get rid of the stress she had suffered and recover from this unhappy love, Wallis went to China.
Apparently, the “course of treatment” was successful, and Wallis returned to New York, ready for new romantic adventures. She soon met Mr. Simpson, who became her new husband. They married in 1928 and immediately went to Honeymoon in Europe. After which they settled in London.
Here she would have calmed down, but Wallis continued to live an active social life, attending balls, horse races, numerous salons and dinners. They say that at these evenings she felt most comfortable with handsome young men, with whom she flirted tirelessly.
At one of these evenings in November 1930, she was introduced to the Prince of Wales. Wallis later recalled that she especially remembered his sad look, golden hair, upturned nose and absolute naturalness. Out of habit, Wallis tried to catch 36-year-old Edward in a light flirtation and was surprised to find that he was “caught.” Their relationship quickly grew into a close one. Many British people consider this meeting fatal and destined from above.
Wallis Simpson
As confirmation of this theory, a prediction is given from one astrological magazine, which shortly before promised Edward a whirlwind romance: " If a prince falls in love, he will soon sacrifice anything, even his crown, so as not to lose the object of his passion"A few years later, Edward fulfilled this extraordinary prediction with 100% accuracy, which surprised not only his compatriots, but the whole world.
When King George V died in January 1936, Edward called Wallis and, telling her the sad news, hastened to assure her that "nothing can change my feelings for you"However, Wallis herself did not really believe in the possibility of marriage with the king. After all, the English monarch, who is also the head of the Anglican Church, could not marry a divorced woman. But Edward VIII was determined, and Wallace realized that she I need to divorce Simpson.
In this she was helped by the king himself, who came to Mr. Simpson and directly stated that he could not be crowned if Wallis did not stand next to him. The dumbfounded Simpson replied that he would let Wallis decide for herself. And her choice was already known. As the newspapers wrote, she felt that she and Edward were made for each other, that they were connected not only by physical attraction, but also by intellectual partnership and spiritual intimacy.
After a London judge, spending only 19 minutes, legalized Wallis's divorce, the danger of the so-called morganatic or unequal marriage loomed over the country. In conservative England this was considered unacceptable. But when Prime Minister Baldwin warned the King that no one in the Empire would agree to his marriage to Mrs Simpson, Edward VIII replied: " No no and one more time no!" And the king was offered three solutions: refuse to marry; get married ignoring government recommendations; abdicate the throne altogether.
For Edward, the dilemma: her or the throne did not exist. The king preferred Wallis. At the end of December 1936, having been on the throne for only 11 months, Edward VIII signed an act of abdication. " I, Edward VIII, King of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions, Emperor of India, hereby declare my firm and final decision to abdicate the throne and express the desire that this act should take effect immediately..."
It is said that Wallis, who was in Cannes at the time, tried to keep the king from taking an irreparable step. When he called her and told her that the decisive step had been taken, Wallis, as one of the servants recalled, said: “ Brainless fool". And she burst into tears. Edward was given the title of Duke of Windsor and recommended to leave his homeland. The former king immediately went to his beloved France, where in 1937 they married Wallis Simpson.
The homeland, however, prepared an unexpected wedding “gift” for them. The wife of the Duke of Windsor was now entitled by status to be called the Duchess and “Her Royal Highness”. Ladies had to greet her with a curtsey, and men with a low bow. But under pressure from the British establishment and the cabinet of ministers, who blamed the “upstart American” for the abdication, King George VI (Edward’s younger brother) deprived Wallis of the title of duchess by the highest order. So she remained just Wallis Simpson until the end of her days.
This was a heavy blow for Edward, but outwardly he never showed his resentment. Did he regret the lost crown? He himself said that it was not very good. When, much later, producer Jack Levin made a feature film about their lives, the Duke told him after the premiere: " Jack, I cried throughout the whole picture.". Wallis added: " You see what he gave up". To which the Duke remarked: " Compared to what I received - from very little".
Edward and Wallis lived in love and harmony for 35 years. After his death in 1972, the London Sun wrote: " Great story love is over. One and only romantic story a king who gave up his crown for the woman he loved".
Not renounce loving?
Recently the National Archives declassified documents from the Scotland Yard file "The Abdication of King Edward the Eighth" and everyone gasped. It turned out that this idyllic story had another, not at all romantic, side.
It turns out that in 1936 Edward VIII did not want to abdicate the throne. The king was looking for a way to enter into a forbidden marriage and remain in power. And none other than Winston Churchill, the most famous British politician of the 20th century, helped him in this. True, at that moment he was in disgrace and was not a member of the government, but nevertheless remained an important figure in political life kingdoms.
With the participation of Churchill, Edward wrote an appeal to the people, which he was going to read out on the BBC. " “I cannot continue to bear the heavy burden of my royal duties,” Edward wrote, “unless I strengthen my position.” happy marriage. So I was determined to marry the woman I love...
I spent a lot of time searching for the woman I would like to call my wife. Without her, I was a terribly lonely person. With her I will find everything that can give family life, - home, mutual sympathy and understanding."
Then the king made an extremely important clarification: "Neither Mrs. Simpson nor I insist that she become queen. All we dream of is that our family happiness brought my wife dignity and a proper title".
In other words, he agreed to a morganatic marriage, which meant that his wife would not be crowned, and their joint children would not receive the right to inherit the throne. The text of the appeal sent by the king to the prime minister caused confusion among cabinet members. The head of the government, Stanley Baldwin, had already explained to the king that the cabinet could not allow him to marry an American with two living ex-husbands.
The appeal, in which there was no mention of abdication, was in fact contrary to the recommendation of the government and should therefore be declared unconstitutional. The ministers were afraid that Edward was, in fact, preparing a palace coup: he was going to overthrow the government and instruct Churchill to quickly put together something like the “King’s Party” and form a new cabinet. It is the government that sanctions his marriage to Simpson.
The prime minister flatly refused to allow the king to make this address and even warned the director of the BBC about his decision. Edward had no choice but to agree to abdicate.
The police knew how to keep a secret
The abdication file contained another secret that shocked the British. Special unit Scotland Yard, which had been following Wallis Simpson since the beginning of her affair with the future king, recorded that, " although she spends a lot of time with the crown prince, she has another secret lover whom she supports".
That lover, according to the file, was a car salesman named Guy Trendle. Trendle, who, as British newspapers found out, had the nickname “love machine,” became known in the mid-30s in London as a very successful Don Juan, with whom many pre-war beauties of the English capital spent time.
According to the police, this tall, stately former military pilot, and since 1927 an employee of the Ford company store, won the hearts of his lovers by dancing superbly. He himself shamelessly boasted that no woman could resist him.
Wallis Simpson
External surveillance established that there was a constant close relationship between Wallis Simpson and Trendle. In public they demonstrated friendship, but often met secretly "for intimate relationships"The Pinkertons even interrogated Trendle, and he admitted that he had received from Wallis expensive gifts and money.
The file does not say when the affair ended. It has been suggested that Wallis may have continued to see Trendle until her departure to France in 1936. It is interesting that the police did not inform either Edward or the government about their discoveries.
Who knows how events would have turned out if Edward had found out about this betrayal. Perhaps he would prefer to break with Wallis and remain on the throne. Then his brother would never have become king, and his eldest daughter Elizabeth would not have been a queen, but just one of the Windsor princesses... But what happened happened. And only because one lover did not know about the existence of the other...
In her memoirs, entitled “The Heart Has Its Own Laws,” Willis Simpson, who became the Duchess of Windsor, admitted that her feelings for her husband were the meaning of her existence. As for the Duke of Windsor, former King Edward VIII, his love for her was combined with dissatisfaction with life. According to the observations of the duchess, a feature of the former king’s nature was his belief in an unpredictable future and a change in circumstances under which he could find his “I.” Assessing the complexity of their relationship, the Duchess wrote: “During all the years I have lived, I have felt as if something mysterious and elusive was separating us. I think that it was precisely the royal dignity that he inherited from his romantic Hanoverian ancestors and hidden in the depths of his soul... .prevented him from being happy." Was it regret about the lost crown or the pain of wounded pride? And what did the disgraced Duke expect from his future?
On June 23, 1894, King George V wrote in his diary: “At 10 o’clock in the morning a lovely baby was born in Richmond Park. Weight - 8 pounds." These were probably the kindest words the king said to his son in his entire life.
The mother, a cold and prim woman, fulfilled her duty by giving her husband an heir, and fully shared the opinion of Queen Victoria, who wrote on a similar occasion: “It is terrible that the first year of a happy married life spoiled and darkened by such unfortunate inconveniences.” However, Queen Victoria herself was very happy about the birth of her first great-grandson and asked that the newborn be named after her late husband. And the prince was christened Edward-Albert-Christian-George-Andrew-Patrick-David.
On the day David was born, James Keir Hardie MP said in the House of Commons: “This child is expected to one day be called to reign over our great country. In due course, the heir will travel around the world, and it is very likely that this will be followed by rumors of his organic marriage. The country will have to pay the bill.” This prophecy came true with amazing accuracy.
Parents saw their children only before bed, when they went into their bedroom to kiss them good night. The king-father instilled fear in the children. The words “His Majesty is waiting for you in the library” thrilled David. The boy grew up in an atmosphere of prohibitions.
In the 19th century, the king in Britain became national symbol, A political power passed to parliament. Queen Victoria was a “balanced personality” for the British, Edward VII was a “cheerful king”, and George V was seen as the “father of all subjects”.
At the age of twelve, David was sent to Osborne Nautical School on the Isle of Wight, where the short, stooped, frail boy received the nickname Sprat. Studying was difficult for him. He was constantly falling behind. Two years later he was transferred to the Royal Marine Corps at Dartmouth.
In 1910, Edward VII died, and David's father became King George V, and the young man himself became the Prince of Wales. The coronation ceremony impressed David strong impression: Dressed in silver brocade, with a sword in a red velvet scabbard, he knelt before his father in Westminster Abbey and pronounced the words of the traditional oath of allegiance, and then kissed the king on both cheeks. A few days later, a ceremony dedicated to David personally took place at Carnarvon Castle - he was solemnly elevated to the dignity of Prince of Wales. Soon his father, to the indescribable joy of the prince, allowed him to go on a three-month voyage to
At eighteen, David entered Oxford University, where he studied at St. Magdalene's College German and history, went in for sports and hunting. The general opinion of the faculty about the prince was: “No, he will not invent gunpowder.”
The Prince of Wales got a checkbook, kept two ponies, learned to play the bagpipes and banjo, and performed in the Oxford football team, was fond of dancing. He had no friends. But even those who were sincerely disposed towards him were forced by the mysterious magic of royalty to keep a respectful distance. Undoubtedly, one of the reasons that he became addicted to alcohol was the desire to relax, to give vent to repressed ardor, carefully hidden passion, for he was endowed with both in abundance.
In 1914, the war began. David did not give up trying to get to the front. He told the famous Lord Kitchener, Secretary of War, that if he were killed, his four brothers would replace him on the throne. Kitchener replied that he would not have interfered if it was only about death crown prince, “but I cannot ignore the possibility of captivity.”
Eventually David went to France, to the headquarters of the expeditionary forces. There he took every opportunity to visit the wounded in a field hospital or travel to the front by car or bicycle. There was a saying among the officers: “After hurricane fire from the Germans, be sure to wait for the Prince of Wales.” David witnessed the Battle of the Somme, where fifty-seven thousand people died on the first day...
Relations between the heir and George V in the last years of his reign could not be called warm. The maid of honor and close friend of Queen Mary, Countess Airlie, claimed that shortly before his death, the king prayed to God that his eldest son would never marry or have children, which would allow Albert, who then bore the title of Duke of York, and his daughter Elizabeth, who had already been born, to become immediate successors to the throne.
The reason for the disagreement between the king and his heir was trivial. In 1934, the son introduced his parents to the 38-year-old American Willis Simpson, who had married the Englishman Ernest Simpson for her second marriage, and who had previously been the wife of a junior naval officer of the United States. Almost simultaneously, George V learned that his 39-year-old son was in a long-term intimate relationship with the lady introduced to him. The future of the throne immediately appeared to the king in the darkest colors, and heavy thoughts did not leave him. Last year life. George V's vision came true.
10. 1920s
Deprived of maternal care and affection at a young age, the Prince of Wales looked for these qualities in the young aristocrats he liked. They are also possessed by mature married women. With some breaks long years Edward's affair with the married beauty Dudley Ward continued. But her charms faded when on the prince’s path she met Willis Simpson, who was not distinguished by noble birth and beauty, but was known for her enterprise and the art of seducing male representatives. The youngest of the four sons of the late king, Duke George of Kent, considered her a sorceress in love pleasures. One way or another, Willis did not turn out to be Cinderella, captivated by the handsome prince, but immediately became the leader in their love duet.
11. That’s what they called Edward - the Sharman Prince
January 20, 1936, when millions of people in Great Britain sadly saw off last way George V, there were those who hoped that his son would breathe new life into the institution of the monarchy. And in fact, compared to his conservative father, the new king was distinguished by his ebullient energy, freedom in communicating with people, and showed an interest in technical innovations. In addition, nature endowed him with stateliness, beauty and charm. That's what they called Edward "charman prince" All this, at first glance, distinguished him favorably from his next eldest brother, Albert, who took many features from George V.
12. The Prince of Wales during a morning walk with his father, King George V. 1932
Here is what Edward himself wrote about himself in his memoirs: “I was the first king of the 20th century who did not spend at least half his life under the harsh rule of Queen Victoria. My father lived half his life when his grandmother died. And he took a lot of his character from her, and not from his father(i.e. Edward VII - G.O. )... His courtyard retained the spirit of Victorianism to the end, and he himself expressed the views of the generation of sixty-year-olds.".
Edward was confident that he would have a long reign and that he would be a good monarch. In 1957, looking back on his short reign, he categorically denied that he did not want to be king: "This is a lie. I firmly state that all my life I have been preparing for this job and at 24 years old as the Prince of Wales I served my country and Commonwealth faithfully. After ascending to the throne, for a year, I worked hard and selflessly. I wanted to be king Moreover, I wanted to remain king." His wife Willis Simpson confirmed in her memoirs: “He was obsessed with the mission of modernizing the monarchy while preserving its traditional glory and influence.”.
13. Edward, Prince of Wales is still single at about 32 years of age. Prince Charming is constantly surrounded by beautiful women. 1926
After taking the throne, Edward VIII promptly tried to bring Simpson closer to his family. But his attempts were in vain. Queen Dowager Mary and his brothers did not accept Willis. They unanimously perceived her as an ill-mannered foreigner and did not even allow the thought that this person could become a queen.
Compared to the successful marriages of all the other sons of George V, Edward VIII's relationship with Willis could be compared to a storm approaching the House of Windsor. If Edward had remained a bachelor, it would have been seen as a violation of tradition, but his enslavement by an American divorcee looked like a terrible disaster.
Simpson's bourgeois manners were shocking, as was then considered. Willis did not hesitate to reprimand servants for minor offenses in front of strangers or teach them how to make sandwiches for guests. But the possessive manners of the king’s beloved were even more indignant. Yes, during official receptions in the residences of the monarch, she felt almost like a mistress, and, what was completely unbearable, she could pull a cigarette out of the king’s mouth when his smoking seemed inappropriate to her.
14. Wheelless Simpson
Meanwhile, Edward VIII himself admired Willis’s homeliness and decisive character. If his grandfather Edward VII commanded his lovers, then he was created to obey them. Everything in their duet seemed harmonious. Some damage was caused only to the state duties of the sovereign.
In August 1936, a couple in love with a narrow circle of friends, taking refuge on a yacht, took a cruise along Mediterranean Sea. The British newspapers, thanks to an agreement between the two kings of the press, Beaverbrook and Rothermere, remained silent on this matter. But the American press, already accustomed to revealing the secrets of the English court, published photographs of Edward and Willis in bathing suits. This was in no way compatible with British ideas about the moral character of the king.
16. Willis Simpson - 1927
The autumn of 1936 was marked by a monarchical crisis. The King notified Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin that Willis had begun a divorce from her second husband. The divorce and registration of a new marriage had to take place before the coronation of Edward VIII, scheduled for May 12, 1937. New King was about to step onto the steps of Westminster Abbey to be crowned, along with his girlfriend. But such a prospect was unacceptable to the royal house, the prime minister, the government, the Church of England and prominent figures in the British establishment.
S. Baldwin entrusted the delicate negotiations concerning the monarch's marriage to his personal secretary A. Harding. The latter addressed a letter to Edward VIII on November 13, 1936. In it the king was warned that silence British press his relationship with Ms Simpson cannot continue any further and that the government intends to discuss the situation immediately. If it decides to resign, it is very doubtful whether the king will be able to find anyone capable of forming a government that enjoys the support of the House of Commons. The only alternative in such circumstances could be the dissolution of parliament and the announcement of new elections, in which the personal affairs of the sovereign would be the main topic of discussion. Inevitable in this case will be damage to the crown as the cornerstone government structure on which the British Empire rests. To avoid the coming danger. His Majesty was politely given urgent advice to send Mrs. Simpson abroad without delay.
The king was shocked and angry. On November 16, he invited Baldwin to Buckingham Palace. The audience was not pleasant. Edward told the Prime Minister that he intended to marry Willis Simpson as king, but if this turned out to be impossible, then he was ready to abdicate the throne. Baldwin informed the office about the conversation, but could not contain his emotions. "I heard things from the king that I never thought I would hear"- he exclaimed.
18. King Edward YIII with his mother Mary of Teck
The crisis has reached its climax. Along with the government, the Anglican Church episcopate also showed obvious concern. On the evening of November 16, the same day that the king announced his fateful decision to the prime minister, he met with Queen Mary, and the next morning with his three brothers, the Dukes of York, Gloucester and Kent. They all refused to countenance any possibility of Edward's abdication. But the real shock was experienced by the king's immediate successor, the Duke of York. Like his father, Albert, as he was called from birth, did not crave power and was happy in family circle and understood the responsibility that would fall on him when he acquired the crown. He soon came to his senses and on November 25th he told his private secretary G. Thomas that if the worst happened, he would accept the burden and try to perform his duties to the best of his ability.
19. Family of George YI
The next most senior Duke, Harry of Gloucester, served in a cavalry regiment and was known among the officers as a buffoon and fool. But the main thing is that he, like Albert, was happy with his position and did not think about the throne.
The fate of the youngest of the four sons of George V and Queen Mary, the Duke of Kent, was not easy. Like his older brother, Edward VIII, he was tall, slender, and had an attractive appearance. But the career of a naval officer, intended for him by his father and which began with his studies at the Dortmouth Naval College, turned out to be beyond the prince's ability. Georg suffered from seasickness and was homesick.
Go to civil service initially to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and then of the Interior, radically changed life young man. His passion for painting and collecting paintings by famous artists did not interfere with his nightly revelry in the company of his older brother, then the Prince of Wales. Sense of humor, almost professional knowledge in the field of art in addition to natural beauty and royal origin soon made George the center of attraction for London bohemia.
According to rumors, he was friendly with homosexual aesthetes, but at the same time he enjoyed success with girls from high society and the artistic world. There is information that one of Georg’s lovers introduced him to drugs in the 20s. Fortunately, treatment in a sanatorium freed the prince from this addiction.
His marriage to the Greek Princess Marina in November 1934 put an end to George's wild lifestyle and turned out to be a happy one. By the time the crisis arose, the Duke of Kent, the only one of the brothers, had a son as an heir. Added to this undoubted advantage was the fact that among the British elite, George was considered the most capable and educated of the king's three younger brothers.
20. King Edward YIII and Princess Elizabeth
On December 3, a message about the king’s decision to throw in his lot with Willis Simpson appeared on the front pages of British newspapers for the first time. On the same day, the monarch’s beloved left the shores of England. At the same time, talk began in British society about the formation of the “king’s party” and the possibility of his morganatic marriage. W. Churchill took the side of Edward VIII and called on politicians to show restraint. True, his sympathy for the king was explained not so much by sympathy for the disgraced sovereign, but by his own far-reaching plans. The fact is that the out-of-work well-known and enterprising statesman was going to use the given chance to remove his rival, S. Baldwin, from the leadership of the Conservatives.
21. King Edward YIII and Willis
In a critical situation, part of the press also found itself on the side of the monarch. It seemed that events could take an unexpected turn. The curious break in communication between Edward VIII and the Duke of York between December 3 and 7 fit into the mainstream of these speculations. According to the Duke, Edward was the culprit. The reality was that the decisive conversation between the brothers, and, consequently, the renunciation itself was delayed. There may be several explanations for this state of affairs.
First of all, we can assume that Edward was under stress and needed time to pull himself together. W. Churchill, who visited him on December 4 and 5, recalled that during their conversation the owner was constantly distracted by calls from France, where Simpson was, and their conversations were difficult and anxious.
In addition, some members of the British establishment doubted whether the Duke of York would be a worthy king. Compared to his personable and sociable brother, he was homely and was distinguished by painful shyness. He was also embarrassed by his long-standing physical disability - stuttering. There was a fear that the monarch would not be able to maintain his greatness and would look pathetic during his public speeches.
22. Willis Simpson, who became the Duchess of Windsor
Given these points, some researchers admit that the government was considering the possibility of transferring the crown through the head of Albert and the considered mediocrity of Harry their younger brother Georg. In order to have more time for reflection, Baldwin probably asked Edward VIII to postpone the meeting with the Duke of York.
On December 7, the hesitation on all sides, if there was any, ended. Edward and Albert met for a decisive conversation, and on December 10 a historic moment took place. Edward VIII signed an act of abdication and an appeal to the British Parliament and the parliaments of all the Dominions. According to Lord Mountbatten's recollections, he looked like a carefree schoolboy before the next holiday, and his sleeping bed was covered in several layers with telegrams from governors, prime ministers, cabinet members, city mayors and ordinary people from all parts of the Commonwealth. Their content was as follows: "For God's sake, do not renounce, do not abandon the Commonwealth to the mercy of fate!" The crown remained the pinnacle and symbol of the empire, and the colonial administration feared for the strength of the throne.
The abdication undermined the royal house's prestige as the nation's model family. The monarch's traditional relationship with the Church of England was also called into question. The English episcopate, concerned about the moral character of the head of the church, followed the developments with alarm. But the government undoubtedly played a decisive role in the abdication of Edward VIII.
23. Before renunciation...
With all this, a question arises. Was the intended marriage to Willis the only reason for Edward VIII's removal from the throne? British historians make a number of assumptions in this regard.
At the beginning of Edward's reign everything went well. The monarch enthusiastically read the papers sent to him and made notes in their margins. But after a few months his diligence was exhausted, and confidential documents were returned to the office unread. In his attitude to the routine work of the monarch, Edward VIII in some ways repeated his grandfather Edward VII.
The king's interest was mainly directed towards foreign policy. In particular, he had obvious sympathy for the fascist dictators of Germany and Italy. This was partly due to the fact that in the early 1930s, and again in November 1936, Edward visited depressed areas of South Wales and observed unemployment and dire poverty. Not seeing a solution to these problems in his own country, he assumed that studying the experience of Germany and Italy with their centralized system will help cope with the troubles of the UK population. Feeling fear of Bolshevism, like other representatives ruling class, Edward VIII began flirting with fascism. Soon after his accession to the throne, on January 21, 1936, the German ambassador in London von Hirsch reported to his leadership in Berlin: "You are aware from my reports that King Edward is most definitely in sympathy with Germany. I am convinced, after frank and lengthy conversations with him, that his sympathies are deep and serious enough to withstand the contrary influences of which you often hear." .
In March 1936, when German troops occupied the Rhineland in France and British intervention was not ruled out, the king informed the German ambassador that he would oppose British intervention. Edward took a similar position when Italy captured Abyssinia. According to some accounts, he believed that for the sake of peace on the continent, Germany and Italy, as great nations, should have their territorial claims in Europe and the colonial world satisfied.
In general, by December 1936, according to Lord Mountbatten, it was quite clear to the government that the king, as well as his girlfriend Willis Simpson, were pro-Nazi. At least the German Foreign Minister I. von Ribbentrop, according to the recollections of the head of foreign intelligence of Nazi Germany W. Schellenberg, considered him "a sincere and true friend of Germany" and, on Hitler’s instructions, set Schellenberg in the summer of 1940 with the task of abducting the Duke of Windsor, who was then living in Spain, who had been removed from the throne, in order to use him for far-reaching political goals in Germany. At the same time, Edward was not alone in his pro-fascist sympathies. At the end of the 1930s, the so-called “policy of appeasement” of Germany and Italy found support among many members of the Conservative Party. But could the king really support Germany and Italy?
In response to this question, it can be argued that Hitler and Mussolini overestimated the role of the king in political system Great Britain. At the same time, dictators could count on receiving some confidential information from their well-wisher sitting on the throne.
Given the situation and in violation of the king's constitutional right to be informed, Baldwin restricted the flow of certain classified materials to Edward VIII. But he could not prevent the sovereign from spontaneous and free conversations with foreign ambassadors, during which the monarch could exceed his constitutional duties.
All this led to the fact that Edward VIII became an inconvenient king, and by December 1936 the government already had two arguments pitting ministers against the further reign of the sovereign: the pro-Nazi views of the monarch and his decision to make a twice-divorced American queen. This was enough to initiate a campaign of abdication.
Edward VIII managed to do little for the country. He caused enormous damage to the monarchy with his abdication, and his connections with Nazi Germany more than once had the most negative impact on the prestige of his successors.
24. Duchess of Windsor, Duke of Windsor, 1937
By the first act of the new sovereign, the former king received the title of His Royal Majesty Duke of Windsor. On June 3, 1937, the long-awaited wedding of Edward and Willis took place. The Duke really wanted his brothers, sister and especially his mother to come to their wedding, but they all ignored the invitations sent, limiting themselves to congratulatory telegrams. For the former king, this meant the beginning of a kind of exile.
After the marriage, Willis began to be styled the Duchess of Windsor without the title Her Royal Majesty, which the newlyweds perceived as a new offensive gesture towards them. The Windsors also considered themselves deprived in matters of allocating property to them.
According to Walter Monckton, a confidant and adviser to the Duke of Windsor, the former king often called his brother, trying to help him settle into his new role. Moreover, his recommendations often ran counter to what was proposed by His Royal Majesty’s ministers. But what was especially unpleasant for George VI was that the telephone conversations inevitably touched on issues relating to the division of the inheritance and the relationship royal family to Willis. In the end, negotiations were interrupted on the initiative of Buckingham Palace, which, naturally, was a new trauma for the Duke of Windsor.
Queen Mary could not forgive her eldest son for his abdication and union with a woman who, according to all the canons, did not fit royal house. The young Queen Elizabeth was equally firm, insisting that the Dukes of Windsor had no place in the United Kingdom. George VI took his brother’s forced exile hard, but followed the advice of the women closest to him.
25. The Duke of Windsor, together with Robert Ley, walks around the SS honor guard in Pomerania 1937
The alienation that arose between the brothers was never overcome. On the contrary, she soon had new reasons. The fact is that in the summer of 1937, the newlyweds paid a visit to Nazi Germany, which confirmed their interest in the fascist regime. The Duke of Windsor's meetings with leading Nazi figures, including Göring, Himmler, Hess, Goebbels and finally the Führer himself, were widely reported in European newspapers and met with disapproval in England. In addition, the German press, not without intent and with exaggeration, noted the Duke and Duchess’s delight in comfortable houses for workers, well-equipped factories, hospitals and summer youth camps. The Windsors were greeted with honor. On a number of occasions, fireworks were fired in their honor. What did Hitler expect from the disgraced king? Did he have illusions about returning to the throne through diplomatic or military means? There are no substantiated answers to these questions yet.
26. Duke of Windsor ( former Edward VIII) and his wife meet with Hitler. October 1937
During the Second World War, the ex-king turned to the British government with a request to provide him with the opportunity to help his homeland. The War Cabinet, in consultation with George VI, appointed the Duke of Windsor to the low-prestige post of governor of the small British colony of the Bahamas. The governorship lasted from 1940 to 1945, and, according to the American press, the Windsors did not leave a good memory of themselves. The Duke was accused of racial prejudice against the dark-skinned population of the islands, and his wife was accused of spending money on her own outfits and jewelry inappropriately during the war.
28. Duchess of Windsor, Duke of Windsor, after the war
After World War II, the brothers never met. In 1952, the Duke of Windsor came to London alone for the funeral of George VI, and a year later, also without his wife, he buried his mother, Queen Mary. Queen Elizabeth II acted as a peacemaker between relatives. Initially, she showed attention to her uncle, congratulating him on his 70th birthday in 1964. Then, in 1966, she officially invited the Windsors to London for the unveiling of a memorial plaque in memory of Queen Mary. In May 1972, Elizabeth II, Duke Edinburgh Philip and the heir to the throne, Prince Charles, during a state visit to France, visited the dying Duke at his estate in Bologna. And, a few days later, the coffin with the body of the ex-king was delivered to England, and after cremation, the duke’s ashes were placed in the family tomb in the chapel of Windsor Castle.
She: American, daughter of a banker
He: king of great britain
Happy hours don't watch...
The story of the king, who gave up the throne for the sake of the woman he loved, began in November 1930, when the favorite of the Prince of Wales (the future Edward VIII), Thelma Furnis, invited the wealthy American couple, the Simpsons, to a country estate in Melton Mowbray, in Leicestershire. This is how the 36-year-old heir to the British throne met 34-year-old Wallis Simpson. The American woman charmed him with her free demeanor, ability to listen, sense of humor, love of travel, and deep knowledge of topics such as politics, art, sports, and literature. The prince, according to Wallis’s recollections, liked her at first sight due to the lack of snobbery inherent in aristocrats, and touched her heart with the pain of loneliness hidden in his gaze. Simpson guessed correctly: Edward lived in an atmosphere of constant prohibitions - a person of royal blood cannot drive a car quickly, get involved in gliding, participate in horse racing so as not to cause harm to health, and do many of the things that are available to his peers.
Light flirtation between a married American woman and British prince quickly developed into a strong attraction, although their romance remained platonic until 1934. On January 20, 1936, King George V, Edward's father, died, and the prince assumed the rights of succession to the throne. True, he did not remain King Edward VIII for long: on December 10 of the same year, the newly-crowned monarch signed an abdication of the throne for himself and his descendants, since the crowned relatives, as well as the government of the country and many ordinary British people did not approve of his desire to marry Mrs. Simpson. Her sins in the eyes of those around her were her humble position, the experience of divorce (before the businessman Simpson, Wallis was the wife of naval pilot Winfield Spencer) and open betrayal of her current husband. Wallis received a second divorce, and on June 3, 1937, in France, the couple exchanged marriage vows, which they kept for 35 years until Edward passed away. No relatives were present at the wedding ceremony, but notification was received from the new King of Great Britain, George VI, that the couple was given the title of Duke and Duchess of Windsor.
Love Formula
Prince Edward's act is the only case of a monarch voluntarily abdicating the throne in British history. The radio message he made on December 11, 1936, saying that he could not and did not want to give up the woman he loved for the privileges and responsibilities of a king, was listened to by millions of people around the world. The couple had no children, and free time they devoted themselves to traveling, picnics and yacht trips, horse riding, alpine skiing, taking care of pets - Wallis adored dogs - and going out.
In many European countries, the disgraced couple was received with great honor. Raising a toast to his wife, the Duke of Windsor called her his muse, lover, like-minded person and best friend, emphasizing that he never regretted what he gave up to be with her. The love story of Prince Edward and Wallis Simpson inspired singer Madonna to make her directorial debut. She shot the feature film “WE. We Believe in Love" (2011), which tells the story that kings can do anything if they follow the voice of their heart.
