On December 11, 1936, King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom renounced the throne and married Wallis Simpson – at this point, Mrs. Simpson became a red-faced disaster and suffered countless slanders throughout history.
Mrs. Simpson was widely vilified, historically referring to her as the woman who led to the downfall of a king. At that time, King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom was deeply loved by the people, but in 1936 he gave up the throne for this divorced American woman, so he has been despised by the "righteous people" to this day.
Anna Pasternak, author of "The American Duchess: The Real Wallis Simpson," told PEOPLE for Royals that Mrs. Simpson was a scapegoat and held no responsibility for Edward VIII's abdication.
In fact, Anna says, Edward VIII said that in the face of the so-called "evil trinity of palaces, churches, and parliaments," he had long been disgusted and could not marry Mrs. Simpson as king. Mrs. Simpson did not want vigorous love, but the King of England, who had reigned for only 326 days, had a fierce, persistent love for her and would never let go.
Anna wrote in The Duchess of America: "In the case of Edward VIII, he could not have lived without Simpson, nor could he see that the other side might not be able to tolerate the consequences of his willfulness." Mrs. Simpson has since removed the British favourite king from the throne and nearly destroyed the monarchy. She was blamed and everything became a lifelong burden. Edward VIII signed the instrument of abdication on December 10, 1936, and announced the news by radio.
Later, Edward VIII and Mrs. Simpson became Duke and Duchess of Windsor and spent most of their time in exile in France. Anna got a letter from a former employee of the Duke and Duke of Windsor proving that they had always loved each other. David (Edward VIII) would write to Mrs. Simpson every birthday. "Happy birthday, my sweetheart. You have to rest well because your David loves you more and more. ”
According to Anna, in 1971, the former king drew a line under his name to emphasize, "This is conclusive evidence of a true love story." After Edward abdicated the throne, his shy brother Albert (aka Bertie) became the center of attention and succeeded to the throne, proclaiming himself King George VI.
A little more than 15 years after George VI's coronation, his eldest daughter, Princess Elizabeth, 25, ascended the throne in 1952 when the king accidentally died of coronary artery thrombosis. The 95-year-old became the longest-reigning monarch in British history, and next February will usher in the glorious moment of her 70-year reign, followed by the Jubilee celebration of the Queen's enthronement in June.
And the coward who was forever inscribed in the history books, Edward VIII never felt sad about it. Anna said: "The Duke always said that he had never regretted abdicating, really too happy. "This could be the bear paw of A and arsenic of B." Fortunately, no matter how the named gears work, history always moves forward in a rolling torrent.