| Summary |
King Edward VIE of Great Britain did what few men had done before; he willingly renounced his throne. He did so when his Government told him that he could not marry the woman he loved and still remain King. Was this a classic example of a man tom between his duty and his love or was there a deeper meaning? He chose his love over his duty. In my opinion, however, the King believed that he had no choice. He never wanted his duty and in fact sought a way out of it for years. This thesis was written to examine King Edward Vffl's life and to explain his decision to abdicate in 1936. Edward was bom to be King, and he spent the first forty one years of his life being groomed for his destiny. He was, however, a very unhappy child. He was acutely aware of his misery and his search for happiness was never-ending. Despite his unhappiness his parents, who remained distant from him, instilled a strong sense of duty into their son. This was evident during World War One when the Prince refused to stay out of harms way by visiting the troops at the front. Shortly after the war, however, Edward's need of personal happiness began to clash with his sense of duty as his love life developed. The only three women he ever loved were married. Some have argued that these women were, to him, the mother figure that he never had. This argument has merit. Edward's first two loves, Freda Dudley Ward and Thelma Furness, never dreamed of marrying him. Thus, even though he loved them, they were little more than extended affairs which caused no concern for his family. Wallis Simpson, however, was different. She vacationed with him, hosted parties at his estate, and as time went on she proved to be indispensible to Edward. As the relationship between the King and Mrs. Simpson grew more serious first his staff objected, then his family objected, and in 1936, his Government objected. Thus, Edward VIII abdicated, and as this thesis will show, there were many reasons for, and consequences of, his actions. |
