Research Catalog

Title

The people's king : the true story of the abdication / Susan Williams.

Author

Williams, A. Susan.

Publication

London ; New York : Allen Lane, 2003.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xxiv, 374 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations; 23 cm

Summary

• A story of love, devotion to duty and betrayal, of the radical young Edward VIII who, but for the plotting of his enemies, might have reigned for his lifetime. Through letters and diaries, the author demonstrates the huge popularity of the king and the tragic events that led to his abdication.
• "The People's King tells the story of what really happened, drawing on government documents kept secret for nearly seventy years and on other new evidence, including thousands of letters sent to Edward by his subjects. It recounts the last weeks of his reign in 1936, beginning with his decisive tour of the Welsh Valleys, when he declared that 'something must be done' for the poor and unemployed. His love for Wallis was a closely guarded secret. But within a week it would dominate the headlines of newspapers around the world, throwing Britain and its Empire into a crisis that shook their very foundations." "Susan Williams reveals there was huge popular support for King Edward and that many ordinary people were happy for him to marry Wallis - even though Prime Minister Baldwin claimed that public opinion would never allow it. She shows how the king was rushed into abdicating, against the good advice of his loyal champion, Winston Churchill. We find out who fomented the crisis and why neither parliament nor the people were consulted. We discover, too, the continuing repercussions within the Royal Family of an event so momentous that it changed the face of the British monarchy."--Jacket.

Subject

• Windsor, Edward, Duke of, 1894-1972
• Windsor, Edward, Duke of, 1894-1972 > Abdication, 1936
• Windsor, Edward, Duke of, 1894-1972
• 1936
• Abdication
• Historiography
• Kings and rulers
• Great Britain > Kings and rulers > Biography
• Great Britain > History > Historiography. > Edward VIII, 1936
• Great Britain

Genre/Form

• History
• Biographies.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 338-352) and index.

Contents

Something must be done; my own beloved Wallis; the spirit of the age; king to marry Wally; I had declared myself; the battle for the throne; the people want their king; tell us the facts, Mr Baldwin!; cavaliers and roundheads; don't abdicate!; our cock won't fight; God bless you both; rat week; we have had such happiness.

ISBN

• 0713995734
• 9780713995732

LCCN

2008353255

OCLC

• ocm52455544
• 52455544
• SCSB-14123563

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library