Edward VIII Abdication
King Edward VIII announced that he was abdicating from the throne of England on December 11th, 1936 during a speech broadcast on BBC Radio. He was king for less than year and was forced to abdicate when he fell in love with Wallis Simpson, a divorcee. As King, and Supreme Governor of the Church of England, he could not marry a divorcee. Although he had asked for legislation so that he could have a morganatic marriage to Wallis Simpson, in which he could still be King but she would not be Queen, government refused.

In June 1937, the couple married, moved to France and were given the titles of Duke and Duchess of Windsor. In this photo, which was taken in September 1939, they are shown at their temporary home near Ashdown Forest, Sussex after their return from France at the start of World War II. This is their first visit to England after the abdication.