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N0KFQ > TODAY 03.06.15 14:41l 105 Lines 5303 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 57593_N0KFQ
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Subj: Today in History - Jun 3
Path: IW8PGT<IW7BFZ<I3XTY<I0OJJ<GB7CIP<N0KFQ
Sent: 150603/1238Z 57593@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQ1.4.63
1937
Duke of Windsor weds
In France, the duke of Windsor-formerly King Edward VIII of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland-marries Wallis Warfield, the
American divorcee for whom he abdicated the British throne in
December 1936.
Edward, born in 1896, was the eldest son of King George V, who
became the British sovereign in 1910. He served as a staff
officer during World War I and in the 1920s made extensive
goodwill trips abroad as Prince of Wales, a title bestowed on
male heirs to the British throne. During the Depression, he
helped organize work programs for the nation's unemployed and was
highly regarded by the public in the years leading up to his
father's death.
Edward, still unmarried as he approached his 40th birthday,
socialized with the fashionable London society of the day and
frequently entertained at Fort Belvedere, his country home. By
1934, he had fallen deeply in love with American socialite Wallis
Warfield Simpson, who was married to Ernest Simpson, an
English-American businessman who lived with Mrs. Simpson near
London. Wallis, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1896 and brought
up in Maryland, had previously married and divorced a U.S. Navy
pilot. The royal family disapproved of Edward's married mistress,
but by 1936 the prince was intent on marrying Mrs. Simpson.
Before he could discuss this intention with his father, George V
died on January 20, 1936, and Edward was proclaimed king.
The new king proved popular with his subjects, and his coronation
was scheduled for May 1937. His affair with Mrs. Simpson was
reported in American and continental European newspapers, but due
to a gentleman's agreement between the British press and the
government, the affair was kept out of British newspapers. On
October 27, 1936, Mrs. Simpson obtained a preliminary decree of
divorce, presumably with the intent of marrying the king,
precipitating a major scandal. To the Church of England and most
British politicians, an American woman twice divorced was
unacceptable as a prospective British queen. Winston Churchill,
then a Conservative backbencher, was the only notable politician
to support Edward.
Despite the seemingly united front against him, Edward could not
be dissuaded. He proposed a morganatic marriage, in which Wallis
would be granted no rights of rank or property, but Prime
Minister Stanley Baldwin rejected this as impractical on December
2. The next day, the scandal broke on the front pages of British
newspapers and was discussed openly in Parliament. With no
resolution possible, the king renounced the throne on December
10. The next day, Parliament approved the abdication instrument,
and Edward VIII's 325-day reign came to an end. That evening, the
former king gave a radio broadcast in which he explained: "I have
found it impossible to carry on the heavy burden of
responsibility and to discharge the duties of King, as I would
wish to do, without the help and support of the woman I love." On
December 12, his younger brother, the duke of York, was
proclaimed King George VI. That day, the new king made his older
brother the duke of Windsor.
By that time, Edward had already left for Austria, where he lived
with friends apart from Mrs. Simpson as her divorce proceedings
progressed. Her divorce became final in May 1937, and she had her
name legally changed back to Wallis Warfield. On June 3, 1937,
the duke of Windsor and Wallis Warfield married at the Chateau de
Cande in France's Loire Valley. A Church of England clergyman
conducted the service, which was witnessed by only about 16
guests. Wallis was now the duchess of Windsor, but King George,
under pressure from his ministers, denied her the title of "royal
highness" enjoyed by her husband.
For the next two years, the duke and duchess lived primarily in
France but visited other European countries, including Germany,
where the duke was honored by Nazi officials in October 1937 and
met with Adolf Hitler. After the outbreak of World War II, the
duke accepted a position as liaison officer with the French. In
June 1940, France fell to the Nazis, and Edward and Wallis went
to Spain. During this period, the Nazis concocted a scheme to
kidnap Edward with the intention of returning him to the British
throne as a puppet king. George VI, like his prime minister,
Winston Churchill, was adamantly opposed to any peace with Nazi
Germany. Unaware of the Nazi kidnapping plot but conscious of
Edward's per-war Nazi sympathies, Churchill hastily offered
Edward the governorship of the Bahamas in the West Indies. The
duke and duchess set sail from Lisbon on August 1, 1940, narrowly
escaping a Nazi SS team sent to seize them.
In 1945, the duke resigned his post, and the couple moved back to
France. They lived mainly in Paris, and Edward made a few visits
to England, such as to attend the funerals of King George VI in
1952 and his mother, Queen Mary, in 1953. It was not until 1967
that the duke and duchess were invited by the royal family to
attend an official public ceremony, the unveiling of a plaque
dedicated to Queen Mary. Edward died in Paris in 1972 but was
buried at Frogmore, on the grounds of Windsor Castle. In 1986,
Wallis died and was buried at his side.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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