The King Who Had to Go: Edward VIII, Mrs Simpson and the Hidden Politics of the Abdication Crisis

by Adrian Phillips

Overview

The relationship between Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson created a constitutional crisis that has fascinated the public for decades. In this fascinating behind-the-scenes account of the royal abdication crisis of 1936, Adrian Phillips reveals the previously untold story of the hidden political machinations and insidious battles in Westminster and Whitehall that settled the fate of the King and Mrs Simpson.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781785903472
Publisher:	Biteback Publishing, Ltd.
Publication date:	09/04/2018
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	835,324
Product dimensions:	5.05(w) x 7.75(h) x 1.25(d)

About the Author

Adrian Phillips worked as an investment analyst in London and Frankfurt, with a particular interest in the political background to financial markets, for twenty-five years before taking a postgraduate Master in modern history at Birmingham University, specialising in the policy machinery at 10 Downing Street during the 1930s.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements ix

Principal Characters xiii

Prologue xxvii

Hidden Scandal 1

Chapter 1 The Boy Will Ruin Himself 3

Chapter 2 The Prime Minister and the Super-Civil Servant 19

Chapter 3 Almost Impossible to Appeal to Reason 33

Chapter 4 A Job Is Assigned to the Prime Minister 61

Hidden Crisis 71

Chapter 5 Provoking an Outburst 73

Chapter 6 A Real Jolt 87

Chapter 7 Queen or Nothing 111

Chapter 8 The Underworld Gangster Element 123

Chapter 9 The Battle for the Throne 141

Open Crisis 153

Chapter 10 A Fireside Chat 155

Chapter 11 Obsessed to Get Away 165

Chapter 12 A Pistol at His Head 181

Chapter 13 My First Blunder 203

Chapter 14 The Long and Sinister Shadow 219

Chapter 15 Sunday Morning at Hendon Aerodrome 231

Chapter 16 A Microcosm of the Cabinet 239

Over the Edge 253

Chapter 17 Rather a Facer 255

Chapter 18 Mission to a Madhouse 271

Chapter 19 Beyond Recovery 283

Chapter 20 Lying Like a Gentleman 299

Chapter 21 A Court of Her Own 311

Chapter 22 Plenty of People Ready to Knock Her on the Head 329

Afterword 343

Appendices 347

Bibliography 353

Endnotes 363

About the Author 385

Index 387

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“Adrian Phillips has pulled off a remarkable coup. By sedulous research he has been able to shed fresh light on the intricate political manoeuvres surrounding one of most studied episodes in our history – the 1936 abdication crisis. The King Who Had To Go is an elegant and compelling book.” -- Piers Brendon, author of The Dark Valley: A Panorama of the 1930s and Edward VIII: The Uncrowned King



“The King Who Had to Go provides a dramatic and persuasive account of an important episode in British constitutional history. Based on an impressive range of sources, and written with flair, it makes a compelling case for Edward VIII’s inadequacy as a monarch.” Richard Toye, Professor and Head of History, University of Exeter