An Imagined Affair?

Romantics have always treasured the saga of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson. He was the only English king to have loved his mistress so much that he voluntarily abdicated the British throne for her, stepping down as monarch after less than a year and taking up the mantle of Duke of Windsor instead. When they finally married, after the prescribed six-month pause after her divorce was granted, she became the Duchess of Windsor, and they spent the next decades as one of the most famous couples in the world, beloved by high society and the demi-monde alike. It was only in England where they were ostracised, thanks to the falling-out that occurred between Edward and his brother Bertie, who later became George VI, but even this was rectified later in their lives.

The love story of “Edward and Mrs Simpson” the title of which refers to the initials they adopted to denote their unbreakable love for one another. The couple have been synonymous with fashion and style, both during their lives and afterwards, and even today, their relationship attracts headlines – not least in the parallels with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who have staged their own abdication of sorts to preserve their relationship. It is one of the great romantic tales. And, unfortunately, it doesn’t owe very much to fact.