WHAT IF... KING EDWARD VIII HADN’T ABDICATED?

In 1934, King George V wrote: “After I’m dead, the boy will ruin himself in 12 months.” He was talking of his son and heir. Sure enough, less than a year after George passed away on 20 January 1936, Edward VIII had thrust the British monarchy into a constitutional crisis over his desire to marry an American socialite named Wallis Simpson, who had already been divorced once and was seeking a second. Simpson was deemed a wholly inappropriate match for the king, but Edward was not willing to give her up.

Three options were