Edward VIII of the United Kingdom abdication 1/3

[luvleeana]

she didn't love Edward anyways.. She was writing love letters to her ex-husband for YEARS. I believe she just married him for the money and the excitement. Sad.

[bcpii]

Contrasts: Edward VIII & Edward, Duke of Kent (E.VIII’s great grandfather ).

E. DofK separated from his love, M. St. Laurent, to marry and have a child (Q. Victoria ).

E.VIII, abdicated the English throne to marry his love, Wallis Simpson.

E. DoK restored the Gibraltar Colony in 1803, but was criticized.

E. VII was criticized for abdication, but perhaps he intended to deceive Hitler and position himself to moderate harsh subjugation of England if America remained neutral, and Germany won?

[bcpii]

1936 - The English Gov. appeased Hitler & self-disarmed. Churchill said Hitler would attack, and was called a War Monger. A hopeless situation for a disarmed England! Did E. abdicate & fake a roll to position himself to mitigate harsh subjugation of England in future? In 1940, did his words & dangerous wandering from Paris to Provence to Portugal, offer himself as “bait”, hoping to delay Hitler’s invasion past summer & radar setup? Hitler did delay. --Did Edward’s desperate acts save Britain?

[mlowdude]

Baldwin.....appears to be in love with edward.. thus not wanting him to marry Wallis..

[Discoboy504]

All I can say is Thank the gods for the American Revolution! LOLOLOLOL

[Discoboy504]

LOL, this is so funny because now they are all a bunch of divorced people, just like everyone else.

[418sadeyes]

@Discoboy504 Obviously, you know NOTHING of History!

[counterhon]

@Discoboy504 But, even now, there is NO WAY William would've gotten away with marrying a twice divorced woman who had been married when they started courting. People compare Wallis & Edward to Charles and Camilla, but even that wasn't as shocking. If William, never having been married, had appeared to suddenly become swept up with a woman with two husbands living, it would never fly. Camilla is only accepted (by some) because we know their love is genuine.

[bcpii]

In '36- the Gov. appeased Hitler & self-disarmed. Churchill said Hitler would attack, and was called a War Monger. Hopeless situation for disarmed England! Did E. abdicate and fake a roll to position himself to mitigate harsh subjugation of England in future? In ‘40, did his words & dangerous wandering from Paris to Provence to Portugal, offer himself as “bait”, hoping to delay Hitler’s invasion past summer & radar setup? (Hitler did delay.) --Did Edward’s desperate acts save Briton?

[windstorm1000]

Thank goodness Edward abdicated for Wallis--otherwise the English would be serving strudel instead of tea right now.

[mc0558]

Edward seemed not to understand that British monarchs ALWAYS follow the advise of their prime ministers on political affairs and their Archbishops of Canterbery on religious matters. Moreover, his infatuation with Hitler and Nazi rule in Germany was grossly mistaken. Still more, like the soldiers who served in the war, Edward had a duty to his people. His duty was to find a nice, intelligent girl, who was not married so someone else, court her, marry her, get his dick up and produce heirs.

[Aitchotwo1]

Hee! Wills probably pervs at a few Amy Winehouse music vids before rocking the cot with Katie. He needs to hook up with a Kate Moss /Sienna Miller/Sarah Ferguson aristocratic clone.you know the sort..gorgeous looking but wild! Looking at Wills and Kate you just know it's all going to end very very badly. Wish it could be otherwise... one day he's going to cross paths with some louche type that changes her knickers weekly then it's going to be the bunfight of the century via the tabloids

[marybarton2011]

The royal boys just have a horrible taste in women, don't they? And they are willing to go to any extent for them - to their credit. Wallace over the throne, Camillia over Diana (what!?), and now Kate with her drugged and drunk family.

[counterhon]

@marybarton2011 They just don't pander to ridiculous pedants like you. Her drugged and drunk family? Because her uncle does drugs? That somehow erases the good living of the extremely respectable and hard-working Middletons? They certainly are a great deal more functional than any part of Diana's family, who you leave out of your assessment. I bet you've got much worse in your family.

[marybarton2011]

@counterhon No I don't. So you bet wrong. But I know the type that find the Middleton's respectable.

[finijfk10]

este hombre fue una verguenza para su pueblo

[attittood]

Edward has been shown to be a traitor to the British people throughout the war after his abdication passing information to Germany resulting in the deaths of many British soldiers. He should have been hanged by HM Government as a traitor. One rule for us one rule for them.

The Simpson affair was a red herring but a convenient get out for everyone at the time. As usual the dumb public are distracted from what was really going on.

[sea2007w1]

He is so brave. Wish they happy.

[honeybee7700]

I'm glad he abdicated George VI was a much better king than Edward ever was.

[bearcub410]

my mother is english , her cousin was valet to edward , he followed him after he abdicated , my mums cousin told me that her cousin (TEDDY ) wanted to leave his service in lisbon , i guess my cousin had enough , but hm duke of windsor told him he could not leave his service until after they arrived in Bermuda , after that he went to work of a movie star in hollywood , i bet my cousin has a few stories to tell , i dont know if he is dead or alive , being a lot older than my mum.

[truediabolique69]

Imagine her luck to meet and actually succeed in enamoring the future king of england!!!!!!!! goodness...was she ugly...but alas she must have had a golden throat and a manipulative personality.....how horrible of her to actually allow him to abdicate. ugly bitch

[Lamashtar]

@truediabolique69 Allow him? She changed her mind and told him to stay King. The one time he wouldn't follow her orders. He had to have been obsessed.

[Strefanash]

I must admit that I would have had  no problem with a morganatic marriage: he was King but she was NOT queen. but then my monarchism is of the VERY oldest kind

I have heard or read conflicting reports on this matter: that He did not want to be King and used Wallis as an excuse to get out; or that Edwards extreme right wing sympathies were the real reason and the establishment used Wallis was the excuse.

But George V was right. "that boy did ruin himself within 12 months." he said

[alunhughes147]

@Strefanash" He did not want to be King and used Wallis to get out " l thought all these so called Royals had a DUTY to thier surfs or subjects'...is'nt that what they and thier numerous offspring are paid vast amounts of money for. Being allowed to abdicate after being groomed for this job while living in luxury for so many years is a crime akin to the misuse of taxpayers money !!!! the bounder ought to have been shot .

[counterhon]

@Strefanash That's hardly ridiculous, really. Even today, the heir would never be allowed to marry a twice-divorced American. The comparisons between Camilla and Wallis are silly. Camilla being a divorced woman who carried on an affair with Charles doesn't erase the fact that their relationship was decades long, and she was a member of the British upper class. No woman like Wallis would be accepted, even today. Even Princess Kate was considered not dignified enough by many.

[Kevin3200]

The Simpsons...

[gaiuskaiser]

Wallis Simpson disgusts me

[mc0558]

Edward's abdication was a tremendous blow to the powers of The Crown. When Baldwin trumped Edward, what was left of the King's powers in effect passed to 10 Downing Street. This has gone so far that the Crown is a figure head, and even parliament is largely irrelevant. The Prime Minister is a virtual dictator.

[JuanMacready]

@mc0558 No British monarch had had any power since William IV.

[mc0558]

@JuanMacready What is the difference between power and influence? Edward VII had a lot of influence on policy, and because of the weakness of the Lloyd George government, George V had influence that certainly bordered on power. LG, for example, hated Haig, and favoured a united supreme command structure under a French general. George V successfully supported Haig and resisted a supreme command system as long as he could.

[JuanMacready]

@mc0558 The monarchy has been a complete irrelevance ever since William IV's time. That was why they had to force out Edward VIII and replace him with his useless loser brother Albert.

[mc0558]

@JuanMacready What can I say? You are mistaken! Moreover, King George VI was a wonderful king and far from being useless or a loser, he was a hero to all of us during the war. I don't know where you are from, but you do not seem to understand what a British monarch does.

[JuanMacready]

@mc0558 George VI was a worthless piece of shit and I am glad he died of lung cancer at only 56. The British monarch doesn't do anything.

[mc0558]

@JuanMacready No, you are a piece of shit, as I am sure you perfectly recognise, and I am blocking you!

[Lamashtar]

@mc0558 That'll get worse if the anti-monarchists have their way. The US President was never intended to be that powerful, but he's as bad as an elected king now. If the figurehead royals are removed, then the Prime Minister will become more powerful in the emotional vacuum.

[mc0558]

@Lamashtar But repeated prime ministers have kept the monarch in the dark and taken her powers for themselves with the result that the House of Commons is just a rubber stamp. This Queen has lost ground in terms of the political power her father had had, and her father lost power compared to what George V had, and so on back. As a result, we live in a virtual prime ministerial dictatorship. In effect, democracy has become, as Pobedonostsev said, a shearing of the sheep every four or five years.

[Lamashtar]

@mc0558 Sounds like things are almost as bad then. :( At least the House of Lords has been reformed?

[mc0558]

@Lamashtar We are all for democracy, but the British system relies on everyone doing his job. The Queen must be the spokesman of the British people, to whom the Prime Minister reports and listens to her suggestions. Parliament must govern, and Ministers must retain its confidence. What has happened is that PM's have taken the position that they are the Queen's minister whether the House of Commons supports them or not. The Queen should say "No" to this proposition. It leads to a PM dictatorship.

[lovesexpistols134]

Wallis was ugly and looked like a men in drag.Edward was an idiot i am glad he gave up the throne to marry that ugly , whore both deserved each other.

[mc0558]

@JuanMacready Why are you so viscious?

[betweenyouandsky]

ZEITGEISTism ! I maybe an idiot but at least I don't send a hate mail like that to anyone. Just F##k off ! You an a##hole !

[betweenyouandsky]

He was an idiot and she was the wicked bitch. He could have had any woman he wants while enjoying being the king. I don't know what he saw in that ugly woman !! Love is blind,I would say.

[PeterFirthFan]

She was much better looking than the fat, plain Queen Mother.

[ZEITGEISTism]

betweenyouandsky

YOU know NOTHING you ignorant twit your nothing more than a shallow imbecile who refuses to THINK past your mass media brainwashed mentality UGH You are the ughly one here NOT wallis Simpson

[mc0558]

between - clearly you have never been in love - it is a passion that cannot be denied. Having said that, I don't disagree with your description of the individuals concerned.

[nickdubya1215]

I fear that you guys have a unnecessarily negative view of Edward. Was it weak to go against his family's wishes and marry a woman he loved. Was it weak to give up his throne for something as abstract as love? I believe this shows fortitude. He may have not been the most suitable king but he was not weak.

[nevanovna]

Let's face it the Royals no longer behave like Royals,just look what Prince Charles has done; he should never be King as he has married a divorced woman, he wants to be head of all faiths when he would be head of the Church of England should he be king.

[counterhon]

@nevanovna He will be head of the church of england and defender of faith, rather than defender of the faith. This is a very wise and sensitive move, as there is no one faith in England. There's much better things to criticize him about than that.

[Verderer]

Wallis Simpson was Britain's worst nightmare to the British Constitution in 1936 and we just would NOT accept her as the King's wife and our "Queen" and he just had to abdicate the throne - so both of these losers just had to go - and they literally left Britain overnight never to settle in this country ever again - the only returned as visitors on a couple of occasions - they were total lepers in this country. British society refused to accede to Edward's plea to give her a Royal title. Good!

[Verderer]

King Edward VIII was an absolute disaster - he was spoilt, immature and so weak as a man and no man could have been less suitable to be King of this great country than him. Wallis Simpson was nothing more than a social climbing gold digger and even worse - she was twice divorced and even worse than that - an American with a horrid accent which grated on most British people. Having her as Queen was anaethema to British society at large. A "Queen Wallis" was quite out of the question!

[koikoiboi]

but.... who cares what grated on the british people or what british society at large thought, the guy was into her! He could have married the right person and had her as a lover like monarchs and politicians all over the world do and have done, but he chose to legitimize their relationship and I for one think that took extreme courage. Having said all that he was a racist bastard!

[brettl1984]

Why do you have such strong feelings about a monarch from a foreign country who abdicated almost 75 years ago. Leading a country, is not a privilege, but a responsibility. I doubt you know how much work is involved. Also, the crown is not as prestigous as you think. A significant portion of Great Britan wants to do away with the monarchy, and under Elizabeths reign, the empire has seen a huge decline. It was probley a good thing Edward abdicated, because we now know he was a nazi sympathizer.

[counterhon]

@brettl1984 The decline of the empire has nothing to do with the Crown. There simply is no reason why those countries should be linked to Britain anymore. If anything, the monarchy is the only reason why many citizens of commonwealth nations don't want to do away with the connection. It's also good to note that, currently, a majority of 60% of Canadians want to do away with our PM and a solid half of America hates their President. That's the validity of public opinion for you.

[NoirFemme]

I actually think it's a good thing David (aka Edward VIII) stepped down. He didn't want to be king, and who knows what the heck would have happened to Britain during the 1930s had he reigned.

[mc0558]

"A good thing"? It was vital to the life of the nation that Edward go!!!!!! Thank you God! Thank you Stanley Baldwin!!!!!!!!!!

George VI and his consort, Elizabeth--known to us as "the Queen Mum" were everything that Edward was not. They were instinctively anti-Hitler and anti-German. They instinctively understood the subtleties of constitutional monarchy. They had their feet firmly planted on the ground.

It is because of them that we still have a monarchy.

But Charles could ruin it all.

[DevaRupa]

What did it have to do with Stanley Baldwin - the little puritan wanker!!!!

[mc0558]

Baldwin was neither of these. He was a man of great personal strength and clear headedness.

[creolelady182]

Edward placed his happiness over the throne. Good for him!

[mc0558]

Edward was a degenerate. George was a family man, a man of service, a patriot, who understood and loved the British for what they were. He and Henry were the only normal people in that family. Thank God he became King!!

[creolelady182]

What do you mean a degenerate?

[SEANORINN]

He was a Nazi sympathiser also

[mc0558]

2/2 Remember that World War I was transformed by the propaganada machine into a war of self determination and freedom. That was how it was sold to keep people willing to fight it. The rationale of Brits lifting backward, "lesser breeds without the law" out of the dark ages was disappearing. Gandhi, Nehru and Jinnah were English gentlemen with brown skins.

The imperialist game was up. The questions is what would replace it, and how would Britain remain great in the aftermath.

[mc0558]

Happiness! Do you believe Edward was capable of happiness. She treated him like s---t in front of everybody and he unashamedly revelled in it. He was a sick, miserable, inept, lonely man. His wife dispised him; his mother and father disliked him. His brother and sister-in-law, Their Majesties, knew what a traitor he was. Everything was hidded and glossed over for the sake of the dynasty and the country.

He disgraced himself and he knew it!

He smoked and drank himself to death.

[PeterFirthFan]

Yeah he was only aboput 80.

[mc0558]

Edward VIII is presented here as some kind of hero. He was, in fact, a disgrace to the British nation, who played footsy with Hitler long after the war started. George VI was a very different kind of man.

[Mazdak1]

its a shame he wasn't on the throne. had he been maybe england would have fought on the right side of that war. now look at london and you'll see what you've done to yourselves.

[mc0558]

Great Britain fought on the right side in WWII. Edward VIII was an empty shell - a nothing - a self-indulgent piece of s---t! George VI and Queen Elizabeth understood what it means to be British, to play the game fairly, charitably and with heroic courage.

As I child, I saw London in ruins. It is now rebuilt. And I love London as it is. It's a city with a wonderful mixture of architecture in different styles, a mixture of old streets with Georgian and Victorian houses and broad avenues.

[Mazdak1]

I agree but London and Britain can thank WWII for the loss of its empire and its total degeneration as a state.

[mc0558]

Britain NEVER degenerated as a state. The Empire should never have been. It began as a search for raw materials and precious metals, that grew into trading stations, that get involved in local politics, the spread into markets. It just grew and spread until some fool took it in his head to make it a formal empire. Gladstone and most Liberals of his era never approved of it. The Labour Party did not approve of it either. Fortunately it evaporated without causing Britain too much pain.

[Mazdak1]

I agree because the empire had absolutely no spiritual basis whatsoever, it was a purely economic venture and had more to do with capitalism than with any sort of glory ala Rome.

That said men shed blood and spent years building it and they broke it by getting into that war.

[mc0558]

1/2 India was on its way to independence BEFORE the war started. It is unthinkable that Britain with its 40 million people the, half of them democratic socialists, should hold on to India with its 400 million, most of them following the Gandhi's Congress Party.

Despite class and despite monarchy, Britain was a DEMOCRACY. A democratic people like the British does not stomach imperialist domination--either the accepting of it or dishing of it out. Post 1918 the Empire had lost is rationale.

[Mazdak1]

Proof that democracy is incapable of preserving in any way- it just makes foreign policy and the entire process of governing impossible as one has to pander to one side, then another, than another, and no one is ever fully satisfied with the result.

[mc0558]

Some would argue that (1) the competition of different interest groups to promote their own policies is a guarantee of freedom and democracy. If you have one dominant figure, it can only be because contending influences have been repressed. As for policy being tugged this way then the other, it could be said that this insures balance; it insures that failed policies are corrected--as Mr. Obama is trying to do now after the catastrophe of Bush's rightist policies. Dont fear pluralism in politics!

[mc0558]

Britain was VERY different from Germany! In Germany the social and the political elite were one in the same. In Britain the social elite were just celebrities; political power rested with "public opinion", trade unionists, local and national party leaders. Hitler thought that if a Duke or an ex-King told him he was wonderful that this meant something politically. It meant NOTHING. Democratic public opinion forced the crypto-fascist social elite to line up against Hitler or go to gaol. :--)

[Mazdak1]

Exactly. Germany had some degree of unity. This wasn't particularly because of the Nazis but because of the social structure of the country and Prussian statecraft in general. The british "Aristocracy" had degenerated into effeminate socialites who were filthy rich and contributed absolutely nothing. The german aristocracy were mostly military men of somber demeanor and a sense of discipline. exceptions, naturally on both sides existed.

[mc0558]

But Germany LOST! You seem to forget that!!!!!!!!!!!! When Hitler was finished, Germany laid in ruins, had lost 4 million of its people and had blackened its name for generations to come. To give them their due, democratic Germany has done everything it can to atone for this shame, and I think deserves everyone's commendation. Einigkeit, Recht und Freiheit fur dad deutsche Vaterland!

[sylviajorgentorolaf]

@mc0558 The saying goes " We forgive but we never forget"

[volcanoclub]

Wallace simpson had a daughter that was adopted!

[spongeything]

Who? Was she any relation to Wallis Simpson?

[LilUsagiChan]

It's funny that so many people view this as a love story. This Mrs. Simpson is in my famly tree and she was NOT looked well upon by her family. She was quite mean and greedy even. She would get drubk and make fun of Edward and his speach problems. Much of her family thought she was a real greedy bitch.

[YogaNate79]

Not many people know this, but the United Kingdom's Royal Family is partly responsible for Nazi Germany's Holocaust from 1933-1945. A grandson of Victoria I, Charles-Edward was Duke of Saxe-Coburg Gotha in fascist Germany who also ran the German Red Cross, the organization that made German doctors euthanize thousands of sick and dying people under Hitler's plan of mass extermination. Likewise, Victoria's great-great grandson, Edward VIII was an ally of Hitler and Wallis Simpson was a Nazi spy.

[Sirknight1797]

Actually I think you will find that Prince Charles Edward had A been eixled by his family and B he was a mere figurehead for the German Red Cross with no actual power making decesions.

I suggest you read a history book rather that antiroyalist propaganda on youtube.

[YogaNate79]

To Sirknight1797: Charles-Edward was the President of the German Red Cross. How much more power can one get? I'd say definitely more than a figurehead.

His sister, Princess Alice tried negotiating his release as a prisoner-of-war under American General George S. Patton, but to no success. George VI was King at the time during WW2, and rightly so, his government indeed would exile him. Edward VIII was another fine example of exile. The Duke and Duchess of Windsor were sent to the Bahamas.

[Sirknight1797]

No I cant accept that because as with most of the Thrid Reich the power was held by those in the shade..

Edward VIII was sent into exile because there was a fear that he would enter into politics and set up another royal court. Edward was a playboy. I find it horrible that Prince Charles Edwrad is to bear the blame for everything that the German Red Cross got up to. I suppose everyone needs a scapegoat.

[TribunusAquilifer]

@YogaNate79 NAZI Germany, not "fascist". Italy was fascist. Is a great difference

[Fedesha]

Edward - in reality - had very little sympathy for the poor. Sure, he paid some lipservice: "Something should be done..." blablabla. But he was more interested in pretty clothes and chasing women than anything else. He was a shallow character who was a great admirer of Hitler (right until the 1940s) and flirted with fascism. As an ex-king he even visited Hitler with Wallis and favoured Chamberlain's appeasement politics even after Hitler attacked Poland.

[ultraplus1]

Edward, the queen, abdicated because Wallis was the closest thing to a real man he could ever find

[mahler71]

@ultraplus1 How true!

[goidly]

Hmm ... all very interesting ;)

[HenryBakerHarvington]

Thank you for this brilliant documentary.

[gaoxiuyuan]

thank you. just realize the error spelling.

[danielinho1942]

Abdication**