From Martin's 'The Woman He Loved'

[cruisedirector]

From the hardcover edition of The Woman He Loved: The Story of the Duke & Duchess of Windsor by Ralph G. Martin.

Comments

[celandineb]

I always enjoy reading your selected quotes!

[cruisedirector]

Thank you! I couldn't decide whether to include "the smallest pecker I have ever seen" since I was posting with an eye to stuff about Bertie, but in the end I could not resist. *veg*

[miss_morland]

Really interesting -- thanks!

nor did it help to find himself recognized and cheered by crowds wherever he went in London. 'Good old Edward! We want you back!'

Though I realise David's Nazi sympathies (and his other various failings) might not have been known to the public at that time, this still kind of infuriates me. :-(

[cruisedirector]

I think there was a widespread perception that Edward VIII had been forced out due to Baldwin et al's puritanism, not because there were real constitutional issues at stake -- stupid constitutional issues in some cases, admittedly, but things that needed to be worked out. Edward was clearly trying to overstep his role, not so much in wishing to marry Wallis RIGHT NOW even if it meant circumventing English divorce law, but in trying to create a legal precedent for morganatic marriage which did not exist in Britain, to address the public directly in a radio address without Parliamentary permission, etc. I think most people heard the same story I always did, which was that he was forced out for wanting to marry the divorced woman he loved, which sounds very unfair to him if it were true.

[dementordelta]

Ohhh these were great! Thanks for putting all these together!

[cruisedirector]

Thank you for the book! I actually read the entire thing, when I was expecting to skim all the post-abdication stuff (the Hitler plot would make a much better movie than the love story).

[itsthewa]

Thank you so much for posting this! It was fascinating.

[cruisedirector]

You're very welcome -- I enjoyed the book a lot and I take notes anyway! *g*