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Philip Ziegler

King Edward VIII: A Biography Hardcover – January 23, 1991

by Philip Ziegler (Author)

152 ratings

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Print length

552 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Knopf
Publication date

January 23, 1991
Dimensions

6.75 x 2 x 9.75 inches
ISBN-10

0394577302
ISBN-13

978-0394577302
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Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This is quite certainly the best and now the definitive biography of the beleaguered Duke of Windsor. Ziegler is sympathetic, but does not mince words in reporting misdeeds. None yet can entirely supplant Frances Donaldson's standard King Edward VIII ( LJ 3/15/75), but Ziegler has the advantage of access to much recent research, and pulls it all together in an account that is judicious, informed, and above all highly readable. There have been so many Windsor books that librarians will look for reasons not to purchase another. This is not the one to reject. However, don't discard your biographies of the Duchess--she is, surprisingly, a secondary figure in this masterful study of the King and ex-King who gave up a throne for the woman he loved. Recommended for all libraries. BOMC alternate.
- Nancy C. Cridland, Indiana Univ. Libs., Bloomington
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Knopf (January 23, 1991)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 552 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0394577302
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0394577302
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.25 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.75 x 2 x 9.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #555,013 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,064 in Royalty Biographies
- #3,976 in Great Britain History (Books)

Customer Reviews:
152 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		69%
4 star		16%
3 star		7%
2 star		4%
1 star		3%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Helen Anderson

Wonder to see independent book stores!🥰🥰

Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2021

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Dear Lynn,
Thank you so much for your kind words on my receipt It's so nice to see that Merchants still take the time to thank the the customer! I am also pleased to see that they're still independent bookstores Even though it's on Amazon! I'm so pleased with the book Well worth the price! My Great Grandad came from Essex At the turn of the century And his daughter my grandmother Has always taught me the British way From tea to decorum..I have learned to Learn British history From her Follow the Royal Family I never really paid attention until Charles marry Diana..I was 8 when they married recall my Gran and Aunt waking waking me up to watch the wedding..I love history and learning about the past royal family . Read many books from Edward IV on up ! Love this book already from the pics..haven't read it yet because I'm in another book!! But again Thank you! It came in faster than I thought!! I'm excited to read! 🥰❤

Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2014

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The young Edward seemed to have it all. Handsome, courtly, wistful, his slight form, blonde hair and blue eyes were the stuff of fairy tales, the Prince who might have been pursuing Cinderella. Ziegler's fine biography must surely reveal the real, the definitive Edward. He puts the tapestry of Edward's life before you, but that tapestry begins to unravel as Edward reaches adulthood. Hopelessly ill-educated- Oxford not withstanding- Edward is a strange case of arrested development, too long a teenager. Even his letters are riddled with exclamation points and he babbles on like somebody sixteen. When he discovered sex he never looked back but seemed to prefer older married women- perhaps he was really looking for a mother. He soon developed into a womanizer playing the field for all it was worth, but his two great loves were Freda Dudley Ward and Mrs. Simpson.

Running through all of Edward's correspondence is a self-pitying whine which given his enormous largesse is hardly comprehensible. He constantly bemoans his wretched childhood with his martinet father wielding the whip. George V was a strict disciplinarian but highly supportive of his son. When Edward's little brother Johnnie died at thirteen of complications of epilepsy, Edward wrote his mother a cruel letter implying the little boy was better off dead. Queen Mary was terribly hurt by her oldest son's callousness but callousness is a part of Edward's character- he hurt many people and stepped on people he no longer wanted in his life.

Freda Dudley Ward had been the Prince's mistress some fifteen years and she was one of the people he shut out of his life by telling the switch board operator to block her calls. He did not tell her himself but he had met Mrs. Simpson and Freda became a throwaway. If ever there was an idee fixe, it was Mrs. Simpson to Edward. Perhaps a man so idolized around the world, a rock star for whom was prepared "a monstrous banquet of pleasure" would inevitably be forever spoiled to the point that he cared for no one's opinion except his own.

Author Ziegler has Wallis pegged as "shallow and greedy." "Even men she didn't want she didn't want anyone else to have." Perhaps because of the humiliation of her impoverished childhood money and material possessions came to mean everything. Edward had never met a person so un-awed by his position. Wallis neither respected the office nor the man and the Prince, used to being "swaddled in a protective cocoon" and no doubt a masochist, fell like a sack of potatoes and figuratively threw himself at Wallis' feet for life, happy in his surrender. That he should consider the harsh, domineering, often rude woman as the perfect woman really does boggle the mind and as long as their story is told probably will boggle many more minds down the road. What Wallis Simpson actually had that would precipitate the abdication is not a matter discussed in detail by Author Ziegler for the simple reason he is as much in the dark as the rest of us. But the fact she was plain and angular, about as far from the softly feminine Freda Dudley Ward as you can get, didn't figure in the equation. He wanted to be horse-whipped and she obliged him.

Ziegler's discussion of the Abdication crisis may leave you breathless, it was a brouhaha of immense proportions. Edward, however, proceeded on his merry way. He had to wait six months before he could wed Wallis which threw him into one of his dark depressions. Married and on the loose, the British government was at loggerheads about what to do with Edward. The Duke and Duchess' ill-advised visit to Nazi Germany which included private meetings with Hitler has suggested to many historians that Hitler wished to have Edward re-instated as king of a the newly fascist Great Britain. Author Ziegler suggests that Edward was less pro-Nazi than anti-communist and hoped Russia and Germany would slug it out.And he actually believed he had a role to play in reconciling England and Germany.

Edward was installed as the new governor of the Bahamas in Nassau more or less a ploy to plunk Edward where he could do no harm politically or otherwise. Both Duke and Duchess loathed the Island, but they did make some headway in relieving poverty; however the murder of a local magnate, Sir Harry Oakes, erased the slate. The Duke made some crucial errors in investigating the sensational murder and when their tour of duty was finished in the Bahamas he spent the rest of his life trying to secure a suitable job for himself. The last two decades of his life saw the pair drifting aimlessly from one watering hole to the next, as many have said, parasites.

In his last paragraph Author Ziegler sums up his feelings about Edward. His remarks actually brought tears to my eyes:

"the greatness of the sacrifice he made for her, the fortitude with which he battled for her over the thirty six years of their marriage, the steadfastness of his love until the day he died, are matters which should not be forgotten when any final judgment is assayed of the life and character, if not the reign, of King Edward VIII, later Duke of Windsor."

Whether the Duchess deserved such devotion is not our call. Don't miss this wonderful biography, which surely portrays the real Edward, his character laid before you with both compassion and strict adherence to the facts.

52 people found this helpful

Helpful

Keto Eater

He hated the pomp & circumstances!

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2019

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His book is very detailed. He obviously had access to volumes of personal data. Great insight to King Edward VIII’s statue (little man), personality and views.

2 people found this helpful

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M. Traylor

Historically interesting facts.

Reviewed in the United States on April 1, 2018

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Interesting but plods along.

One person found this helpful

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Janet C

Well researched if a little opinionated

Reviewed in the United States on May 31, 2012

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This account of the life of Edward VIII fills in some blanks about the king. His early life and family relationships are recounted in some detail and well supported by letters and documents. This sets a good foundation for the rest of the book where his abdication and post abdication life are discussed. Wallis Simpson appears a bit one dimensional but this is after all a book about the former King so perhaps that is appropriate. All in all a good supplement to the other books out there about his life.

7 people found this helpful

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RELUCTANT BOOMER

THE DRAMA OF KING EDWARD

Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2017

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VERY COMPREHENSIVE BIOGRAPHY - MORE THAN YOU WOULD EVER WANT TO KNOW - TRULY SAD AND MOVING AND
ALL-INCLUSIVE - LOTS OF FACTS AND LOTS OF PHOTOS AND A VERY SAD ENDING TO A HOLLOW LIFE

4 people found this helpful

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P Schelker

An exhaustive account of what all the royals thought and ...

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2014

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An exhaustive account of what all the royals thought and said about Edward VIII. Makes history come alive. Edward VIII's
impossible money demands are detailed.

6 people found this helpful

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toby

What a guy (sarcasm)

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2013

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The author provides an indepth look at this man and his wife. By the end of the book, I find "King Edward" a very shallow, selfish, egotistical individual. His spouse wasn't much better. Perhaps they deserved each other.

16 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

mr blue

Exhaustive but not exhausting.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 31, 2017

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Readability - compulsive; Fairness to principal character - scrupulous; Fairness to minor characters - good; Clarity - perfect; Evidence of original research - plentiful.
Highly recommended.

14 people found this helpful

L.c.

Good read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 20, 2018

Verified Purchase

Enjoyed tremendously, the history, the love affair and the royal family ties that edward was cut off from. It was a waste he could of achieved so much more in his lifetime, but if he didnt want the responsibility of being a rulin monarch then doubtful if he would have made a good one without wallis

3 people found this helpful

Key Perspective

Interesting and worth the effort but over long.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 26, 2020

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Interesting biography, comprehensive but could have lost 100 pages and been as readable.

2 people found this helpful

Boy Koboko

Fair and balanced account of Edward’s life

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 10, 2020

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A very comprehensive biography of Edward VIII, clearly meticulously researched. Definitely recommended reading for anyone interested in the more recent history of Royalty in the UK. The only reason I did not award it five stars was the author’s frequent tendency to use the language of the classically educated public schoolboy in place of simple English

Michael Ridge

Very well written and balanced account of the influences on ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 16, 2018

Verified Purchase

Very well written and balanced account of the influences on the Prince of Wales in the lead up to the Simpson affair, the narrative follows a comprehensive route through a complex situation. I now have a greater understanding of the events, and the back ground and pressures on Edward at the time, however I no more sympathetic to him than I was before I read the book.

4 people found this helpful

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King Edward VIII: A Biography Hardcover – January 23, 1991

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