what happened to edward?

mani · 10-12-2005, 22:34

the former king who abdicated the throne to go live with the woman he fell in love wiht? did they have any kids?

do the currently royalty stay in touch with them?

SPUGGIE J · 10-12-2005, 22:36

Eddie and Wallace didnt have kids which must have been a relief to the royal family under the circumstances.

Margaret Pilkington · 10-12-2005, 22:37

And they are both dead......Edward died first.

garinda · 10-12-2005, 23:01

They lived just outside of Paris as the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. Although given a royal burial place, the late Queen Mother snubbed the Duchess at the late King's funeral, as she blamed them for her husband George VI's early death, because the abdication forced the monarchy onto his younger brother's shoulders.

mani · 10-12-2005, 23:23

hmmmm they got buried in uk?

SPUGGIE J · 11-12-2005, 09:40

Both are buried in the royal cemetery at Frogmore, England, near Windsor Castle. Wallis was only burried there because it was Eddies request. Think the Queen Mother avoided both as she reckoned her husband died young because of Eddie and Wallis.

West Ender · 11-12-2005, 16:29

Though sometimes accused of over-familiarity with the Nazis, the late Duke of Windsor (Edward VIII) was, in my opinion, a decent sort and would have been an excellent king. Almost all the aristocracy, in the 1930s, had fascist leanings though most changed their minds when Hitler came to power. His biggest fault was that he was stubborn and he would not give in to pressure from The Government not to marry Wallis Simpson (whose greatest crime was not being twice-divorced but being - horror of horrors - an American). She gets the blame for being the instrumental force behind the abdication but I don't think it was down to her. David, as he was known in the Royal family, was the one who wouldn't back down and insisted on marriage and nothing less.

When I lived just outside Melton Mowbray, where he spent a lot of time hunting when he was Prince of Wales, there were still a lot of people there who remembered him. Rich and spoilt he undoubtedly was but, never the less, the locals liked him as he was never aloof with anyone and always had time for ordinary folk. He was "ahead of his time" in his attitude to Monarchy and that was what upset the Establishment.

There was more contact between the Windsors and the rest of the family than was ever made public, after the war, though Queen Mary would never "receive" the Duchess and the title Royal Highness was denied to her (quite illegally as it turns out). David and Wallis often came over from Paris and stayed with his friend Fruity Metcalf and there were occasional private visits to Paris by members of the family. After the Duke died they ignored Wallis and treated her like a pariah - except for Prince Charles who rather liked her.

Their story is fascinating, not so much as a great romance but in its insight into how things were 70 years ago, morally, socially and politically.

mani · 11-12-2005, 16:47

wow...

so who was wallis? was she like a jounalist or sommet?
quite saddening though that yrs ago the religion was changed to marry a divorcee and yet her only fault was that her passport said american

garinda · 11-12-2005, 17:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by mani

wow...

so who was wallis? was she like a jounalist or sommet?
quite saddening though that yrs ago the religion was changed to marry a divorcee and yet her only fault was that her passport said american

No she was just a lower middle class girl from Baltimore, who made the best of herself and travelled the world, turning herself into a style icon along the way. There are lots of books about her, and lots of things on the internet about this fascinating woman. My favourite story of her is that she learned a sexual technique whilst in a brothel with her first husband in the far East. It was something she learned to do with her feet, and help clinch the love of the Prince of Wales, who up until that time had only very unsuitable relationships with other married women such as Mrs Freda Ward.

The Prince of Wales was really pretty much like the late Diana Princess of Wales, in as much as he was hugely popular with the people, and visited a great many of them in the areas most hit by the depression, something unheard of at the time in the Royal family.

Tealeaf · 12-12-2005, 11:25

Who has seen the fasinating photograph of him & his mrs giving the Nazi salute on one of his several visits to his good friend, Mr Hitler?

garinda · 15-12-2005, 00:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tealeaf

Who has seen the fasinating photograph of him & his mrs giving the Nazi salute on one of his several visits to his good friend, Mr Hitler?

Me and Unity Mitford. We can be seen giggling in the background.

Debbie J · 15-12-2005, 12:45

Edward and Wallis's story is on TV this weekend. Might be worth a look to get a bit of background