Edward VIII of Great Britain

Edward VIII
Edward in uniform as colonel of the Welsh Guards, 1919
King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, Emperor of India (more...)
Reign	20 January 1936 – 11 December 1936
Predecessor	George V
Successor	George VI
Born	(1894-06-23)23 June 1894 White Lodge, Richmond, Surrey
Died	28 May 1972(1972-05-28) (aged 77) 4 Route du Champ d'Entraînement, Paris, France
Burial	5 June 1972 Royal Burial Ground, Frogmore, Windsor, Berkshire
Spouse	Wallis Simpson (m. 1937)
House	Windsor (from 1917) Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (until 1917)
Father	George V
Mother	Mary of Teck
Signature
Military career
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy  British Army  Royal Air Force
Rank	See list
Awards	Military Cross

Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January 1936 until his abdication on 11 December the same year, after which he became the Duke of Windsor.

Edward was the eldest son of King George V and Queen Mary. He was named Prince of Wales on his sixteenth birthday, nine weeks after his father succeeded as king. As a young man, he served in the British Army during the First World War and undertook several overseas tours on behalf of his father.

Edward became king on his father's death in early 1936. However, he showed impatience with court protocol, and caused concern among politicians by his apparent disregard for established constitutional conventions. Only months into his reign, he caused a constitutional crisis by proposing marriage to Wallis Simpson, an American who had divorced her first husband and was seeking a divorce from her second. The prime ministers of the United Kingdom and the Dominions opposed the marriage, arguing a divorced woman with two living ex-husbands was politically and socially unacceptable as a prospective queen consort. Additionally, such a marriage would have conflicted with Edward's status as the titular head of the Church of England, which at the time disapproved of remarriage after divorce if a former spouse was still alive. Edward knew the British government, led by Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, would resign if the marriage went ahead, which could have forced a general election and would ruin his status as a politically neutral constitutional monarch. When it became apparent he could not marry Wallis and remain on the throne, Edward abdicated. He was succeeded by his younger brother, George VI. With a reign of 326 days, Edward is one of the shortest-reigning monarchs in British history.