Royal weddings are typically events of national celebration as millions of people from across the world come together to mark the day. However, nothing could be further from the truth than when the former King Edward VIII married Wallis Simpson 88 years ago in 1937.
Almost six months after he created one of the biggest royal scandals in history by abdicating the throne, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, as they were now known, said ‘I do’ in a very intimate ceremony at Château de Candé in France. While the day was purposely kept out of the public eye, this was ensured even more when every member of the Royal Family refused to attend.
In a further insult, the date they chose for their wedding was seen as a deliberate swipe at Edward’s family.
The Duke and Duchess of Windsor’s wedding on June 3 took place less than a month after King George VI’s Coronation and was held on what would have been King George V’s 72nd birthday.
It was often claimed that the groom’s mother, Queen Mary, saw Edward’s decision to hold his wedding on his late father’s birthday so soon after his death as a slight.
The ceremony was not attended by any members of the Royal Family, with Bessie Montague Merryman, Wallis’s aunt being the only relative to attend the wedding.
Other notable guests included Randolph Churchill, the son of Sir Winston Churchill and Baron Eugène von Rothschild and his wife Baroness Rothschild.
The wedding also came less than a year after the former King announced his abdication in a broadcast from Windsor Castle on December 12.
The now infamous speech came the day after he signed his official abdication documents at Fort Belvedere in the presence of his three brothers, including the new King George VI.
He said: “A few hours ago I discharged my last duty as King and Emperor, and now that I have been succeeded by my brother, the Duke of York, my first words must be to declare my allegiance to him. This I do with all my heart.”
He continued: “But you must believe me when I tell you that I have found it impossible to carry the heavy burden of responsibility and to discharge my duties as King as I would wish to do without the help and support of the woman I love.”
