| June 3 |  |
Editor says, what if King Edward VIII had agreed to settle down with a nice English girl? muses Robbie Taylor.Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the July 2012 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.
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In 1937, King Edward VIII marries a much younger noble woman, Lady Edwina Goddard, in a lavish ceremony at Westminster Abbey.
Queen EdwinaKing Edward had been convinced by several Parliamentary leaders to give up his relationship with the American divorcee, Wallis Simpson, and settle down with a nice English girl. Although to all outward appearances this is exactly what he did, the reality of his relationship with Queen Edwina was that she had little interest in him, preferring the company of other ladies; so, she raised no objections to the continuance of his affair with Simpson.
The affair threw the country into turmoil in 1972, when Edward died without having produced an heir by his Queen; Edward's niece Elizabeth claimed the crown at first, but was challenged by Edward and Simpson's illegitimate son, George. The scandal very nearly brought down the monarchy, but Parliament decided to crown Elizabeth. Conservative MP Trenton Stokes famously stated the Parliamentary position on the matter when he muttered, "No b*stard is going to sit on the throne of England while I live".
Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crises Source: History Channel Labels: King Edward VIII, Abdication Crisis, Britain, Royal Family, Marriage.
~ This would be a minor affair. The question is what is going to happen in May 1940.
The king, with his strong Nazi sympathies, and fearing Churchill will foolishly rally thecountry to a continued was with Germany.
He insists Lord Halifax accept the job of prime Minister and make a peace initiative based on Hitler's Peace Offer.
The Butler-Ribbentrop Pact is quickly signed in Stocholm, bring the war with Britain and France to an end.
Illegitimate children cannot inherit the throne and it's only 1972.
~ Of course, someone could have answered Stokes by saying, "Whatsa matter, you never heard of William the Conqueror?" But seriously folks...in 1972 DNA testing had not yet appeared, making it even harder to crown an illegitimate child. It may have been a moot point, though, since Wallis never had a child at all, in wedlock or out of it.
~ German-British peace would make for an even bloodier Eastern Front. Who wins out between the full strength of Hitler vs. Stalin?
~ I know, but it is hte likely outcome of edward VIII still being around.
~ My understanding is that Edward VIII did not have "strong Nazi sympathies." What he did have, IOTL, was a paramour ad then wife whose family did have significant Nazi ties. In the revised timeline, perhaps Wallis Simpson's influence would have lessened once it was clear there was no chance of her becoming Edward's wife.
As for Edward (or Halifax as Edward's PM) signing a pact with Hitler--so did the Russians, and look what happened. Moreover, the mere fact that Hitler had signed a treaty with Stalin in 1939 would, in my view, make it unlikely that Edward would do so unless desperate.
~ Unfotunately Edward VIII did indeed have strong Nazi sympathies, as did another of his brothers, even if only because the British economy was such a mess - he made the speech at Merthyr Tidvil outside the closed steelworks - "something must be done". They were desperate. Hitler's idea was a pact with Britain - Edward isrestored to the throne in the event of invasion - freeing him for his masreplan of dominating Eurasia, as well as getting the Slavs abd the Bolsheviks.
~ Richard, in fact Edward VIII himself did say that the Nazis had offered to restore him to the throne when they defeated England. He said, "I rejected that offer with the contempt it deserved."
~ If Edward VIII had avoided the abdication crisis, he still wouldn't have been a good King...the job does involve a lot of work, and he wasn't much of a one for work. During his brief reign, the "boxes" (documents the Monarch is expected to go over in between weekly meetings with the PM) were utterly neglected. He might have buckled down...or he might not have.
~ I doubt if there'll be any problem in May 1940 at all. Edward got on fine with Churchill, who in 1937 wrote to congratulate him on the success of his visit to Germany, and thank him for his support of Churchill's desire for rearmamant.
As king in 1940, Edward may discreetly keep some channels open to Berlin, in case the war is lost, but I gather there is some evidence that George VI did the same, or tried to. Consdtitutional monarchy was too firmly rooted for him to just order a ceasefire even supposing he wanted to.
~ He did not have to. All he had to do was insist Halifax accepted the jpb of PM. rather than decline it.
~ George VI also wanted Halifax rather than Churchill, but couldn't make it happen.
© Today in Alternate History, 2013-. All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
