Historical Snack
There are few things that have seriously rocked the royal boat like the Abdication crisis in 1936 when King Edward VIII. abdicated the throne and left the UK for good to live together with the woman he wasn’t allowed to marry if he wanted to stay king. Often stylized as a choice between love over duty, the abdication crisis was more than that. In this post we will take a closer look at what happened and the circumstances that led to the fateful year in British history that went down as the “year of the three kings” or “the abdication crisis”.
So grab your mug, get comfy and enjoy our first historical snack!
Who is who?
The main protagonists of this Shakespearean-esque drama were the then Prince of Wales, Edward (who was called “David” by his family) and American socialite Wallis Simpson.
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More InformationPrince Edward – the rebel
Edward was the first-born son of King George V. and immensely popular with the British people for his good looks and vigor. His father, however, often clashed with Edward who was not as obedient and dutiful as his second son Albert. George V. in his later years favored Albert over Edward, because Edward showed no interest whatsoever in settling for a family in contrast to Albert. Nearing his forties, Edward was bored with his duties, which he then snubbingly referred to as “princing”. Instead, he was often out and about on the social scene and very much indulging in his bachelor lifestyle.
Wallis Simpson – the temptress
When Edward met Wallis in 1931 for the first time in London, Wallis was 35 years old, married to Ernest Simpson, divorced once – and an American. No one would have ever thought for one second that Edward would fall for her and thus spark a never before seen constitutional crisis during the reign of the House of Windsor.
BUT …
… at a closer look, Wallis Simpson was exactly what Edward needed. Like Edward, she was a party animal, good in looks and not really intimidated by royal protocol. Edward’s biographer wrote that Edward was attracted to Wallis’ irreverence towards his position, but also to her domineering character. On top of that, Wallis was not interested in settling for a domestic life either. But the fact that she was the complete antidote of what was expected of a royal bride for the future king, was the most striking aspect of all. Wallis was no virgin, not demure, too old – and American. In every respect, Wallis was George V.’s worst nightmare come true. But for Edward Wallis Simpson was all he wanted.
The Affair
Not long after Edward and Wallis met for the first time, they started seeing each other on a frequent basis. During the first meetings, Ernest, Wallis’ husband, was still in tow. But in summer 1934, Wallis joined the Edward and his party on a cruise before the Spanish and Portuguese coast without her husband.
Things came to head, when Edward took Wallis to accompany him to Buckingham Palace to celebrate the Duke of Kent’s birthday. Edward introduced Wallis to his mother Queen Mary, but his father, the King, was fuming for Edward having the nerve bringing Wallis to court. Not only had his initial dismay by then grown into outright antipathy towards Wallis, but also towards his eldest son for so deliberately flouting all the rules in the royal textbook. One of which was not bringing a divorcee to court, let alone seriously courting one.
Frustration
The King was appalled by his son, telling Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin that Edward better should never have children, so that the Crown would pass on to Albert and his children because the King by then deemed Albert the better fit for the burdens of the Crown. Albert had married Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon on April 26, 1923 and the couple had two children: Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret. The young princesses adored their uncle Edward, but little did they know that Edward’s unwillingness to settle with a suitable wife would turn their lives upside down forever – especially Princess Elizabeth’s life.
By 1935 the King’s health deteriorated. He sensed his upcoming end and feared for the future of the Crown. The King prophesied to Prime Minister Baldwin that after his own death Edward would ruin himself within twelve months…
The King is dead!
The King died died in January in Sandringham leaving the throne in Edward’s hands. Edward was 41 years old and still besotted by Wallis Simpson. With his father dead now, Edward must have felt free to finally marry the one and only woman he really loved: Wallis. Indication for this was that he invited Wallis over to witness his proclamation as king. Edward broke protocol twice here: King or Queens traditionally don’t observe their own proclamations and they certainly don’t bring their lovers with them to witness the proclamation. Again, his family, especially his mother Queen Mary urged his son to finally come to his senses and to end the affair.
But Wallis and Edward were adamant to proceed. Wallis – now infatuated with the idea of becoming Queen – filed for divorce in October. Her husband, Ernest, made no attempts whatsoever to object the divorce. He pretty early on realized that his chances of winning Wallis back were slim to nothing. Wallis grew too fond of the lavish lifestyle Edward was able to offer her.
Barriers
Edward was now in hurry to marry Wallis Simpson and to finally put a lid on that growing controversial issue. But, he knew that he needed parliament’s consent to marry Wallis Simpson. It is unclear whether Edward VIII. had underestimated this step, for he must have known for sure that the conservative cabinet under Stanley Baldwin would not grant their permission for a wedding with a woman like that of Wallis Simpson. A word that is often used to describe Edward is “besotted” as this fits perfectly his state of mind back then. Cabinet AND the church turned down Edward’s request to marry Wallis Simpson on the grounds that she was a divorcee. Technically, divorcees weren’t even allowed at court, let alone on the throne.
Edward found himself in a gridlock situation: His affair with Wallis Simpson was now public – and the majority of the public didn’t condone that relationship. But there were also people supporting Edward and Wallis, the most prominent one Winston Churchill himself. The question was: Duty or love? The romantically inclined ones obviously wanted them to get married. Thing was, however, that Edward had lost many sympathies along the way for neglecting his royal duties ever since he fell in love with Wallis. This absolutely didn’t sit well with the public and the conservative cabinet.
Abdication
Edward had little leeway now and only two choices left:
- letting go of Wallis
- letting go of the throne and marry Wallis
Too deep in love with Wallis Simpson and no chance of obtaining a morganatic marriage granted by parliament, Edward signed the so-called “instrument of abdication” on Dec. 10, 1936. All of his brothers signed the instrument:
- Prince Albert, the Duke of York
- Prince Henry, the Duke of Gloucester
- Prince George, the Duke of Kent
For one last time, Edward spoke to the nation telling them his reasons for his abdication in his abdication speech, that was recorded by the BBC (who long have denied its existence). Today, this audio is considered one of the most important historical speeches of younger times. Never before did a king abdicate on grounds of love. Listen for yourself to this historical piece:
Fallout
The fallout of the abdication was immense. It not only stunned the nation, but also the royal family itself.
Exile
Edward and Wallis left for France and lived on an allowance granted by the new King George VI. personally. Edward was not put on the Civil List but had to negotiate the amount of his monthly allowance over and over again with his brother. This was, of course, humiliating and degrading, but the new king made sure that Edward would not hold any official roles in Britain and thus establish a rival court to his. Edward was not even allowed to come to Britain uninvited!
Edward and Wallis got married in 1937 and both were styled Duke and Duchess of Windsor. Problem was that both craved the style “Royal Highness” for Wallis, which the court flatout denied. Only Edward was allowed to use the style Royal Highness. Until their very last days, Edward and Wallis felt very bitter about this decision. They accused the new King and Queen of snubbing Wallis deliberately. And indeed, the relationship between both couples was more than strained after the abdication. Ingrid Seward, who wrote a biography on the Queen, wrote that:
“The Queen’s attitude towards the Windsors bordered on a vendetta”
Ingrid Seward
The new Queen really did embrace her new role and duties but never forgave Edward his – in her eyes – very selfish act of abdicating the throne.
The new King: George VI.
Upon the abdication, Prince Albert became the new King. He named himself George VI. to mark continuity during a tumultuous royal year that saw three kings on the British throne. He dreaded the kingship and had urged his brother Edward not to abdicate. Albert knew exactly what it would mean to carry the burden of the Crown. Albert was rather shy in nature and had a stutter ever since his childhood. The movie “The King’s speech” that won the Oscar for best picture in 2011 closes in fantastically on his struggles. Speaking publicly deeply terrified him. He had to resort to a speech therapist to overcome his stammer.
Like his wife, he took on his new role dutifully and became very popular for “stepping in”. But he died comparably young in 1952 aged 56 of lung cancer in Sandringham. Edward, however, outlived his brother by 20 years when he died in 1972 in France.
New Crown Princess: Elizabeth
Elizabeth was 11 years old when her life was set on a totally new path. Since her parents didn’t have a son who would have superseded her, she was destined to become Queen on day. This meant that Elizabeth’s whole education was turned upside down: She was no longer brought up to live a highly aristocratic life in the countryside and to enjoy the benefits of her royal connections. Instead she had to be equipped to one day run the complex socio-political setting of the British Crown.
Elizabeth and her uncle Edward, whom she always called Uncle David, had met on a number of occasions after his abdication and after she became Queen in 1952. Certainly, they must have talked about the consequences the abdication had on her life. It’s up for speculation whether Edward ever apologized for his abdication and having put his niece on the spot like indicated in the Netflix series “The Crown”. But one can agree that the consequences were extremely far-reaching for Elizabeth who has been Queen now for almost 69 years!
The trauma
The abdication left a long-lasting impact on the royal family and had to be avoided under all circumstances. Ever since Edward’s abdication, all heirs were instilled with the credo of duty over love. Edward’s abdication and his subsequent destiny in exile was supposed to serve as a warning example that those who leave the Crown will end up miserable.
Prince Charles had to pass that test. For a while his family feared that Charles would follow his great uncle’s lead. Charles was also “besotted” with a woman not befitting his position: Camilla. Like Wallis, Camilla was married and even had two children. But Charles and Camilla couldn’t let go of each other, even if they tried. Charles was 32 when he started to court Lady Diana Spencer who ticked all the boxes for a future royal bride: young, beautiful, aristocratic and a virgin. Charles’ father Prince Philip pressured his son into proposing to Lady Diana or of letting go of her once and for all – officially for the sake of Diana’s reputation. But inofficially, Queen Elizabeth and her husband feared that history would repeat itself. They wanted to marry the often pensive and hesitant Charles off as quickly as possible. Charles did marry Lady Diana and the rest is history …
