OUR TOP 5 FAVE ROYAL ROMANCES
The release this week of Madonna’s visually beautiful film W.E. – about the scandalous love affair between King Edward VIII and the American divorcee Wallis Simpson – got us thinking about our favourite royal romances.
SPONSORED POSTRoyal trysts, dynasties, allegiances and betrayals have capture the imagination for centuries. (The Tudors, anyone?) Their appeal shows no sign of dimming– vast crowds of loyal subjects lined the streets for Will and Kate’s wedding last year, and record numbers of viewers tuned in around the world for the coverage.
There’s no doubt that royalty (and even better, a Royal Wedding) is an ongoing curiosity.
Royal romances fascinate… not always for the right reasons.
Here are our top five.
Edward and Mrs Simpson.
She was known as “that woman”. An American divorcee who brought down the British throne. Edward VIII fell in love with Wallis Simpson while still Prince Edward, and when he was made King at the death of King George V in 1936 he was faced with a terrible dilemma. A work/life imbalance, as it were. Give up the woman he loved, or give up the throne? History knows the answer – almost a year later he abdicated for that woman, and it’s a famous love story that endures.
Charles and Diana… Sorry, we mean Charles and Camilla.
You cannot deny that Charles and Camilla’s love story will long be remembered. There are a few constants which make for a love story which becomes a myth which spans the ages – obstacle, power and tragedy. The Charles and Camilla story has all of these in magisterial helpings.
The pitfalls on the way to this marriage have been as challenging as any the Princess Royal may have encountered on an Olympic show jumping course. Great pals as children, their love outlived their respective marriages, and Camilla was finally accepted at court and made the Duchess of Cornwall upon marrying Charles in April, 2005. As Heloise wrote, almost a thousand years ago, they found the enduring strength to fulfil the services of true love, no matter the disapproval they still face.
Prince Rainier of Monaco and Princess Grace.
Hollywood could not have written a better script. Dashing European prince, known as the wealthiest bachelor in the world, falls for America’s sweetheart, known as the most beautiful woman in the world. The perfect 1950s fairytale. They married in 1956 and the actress and the Prince went to live in a pink palace on a hill in Monaco. They had three children, Prince Albert, Princess Caroline, and Princess Stephanie. In 1982, Princess Stephanie was driving with her mother when Princess Grace, at the wheel of the car, suffered a stroke, lost control of the car, and died. This fairytale had a terribly tragic ending that ensures it will have an enduring place in myth and legend.
Prince William and Kate.
Because they are young and gorgeous and always smiling at each other, this is one of the happiest royal love stories … even though we know it’s early days. Prince William and Catherine Middleton married only last year on April 29, when Kate became the Duchess of Cambridge. Like normal lovers, they met at university, fell in love, had a break-up, got back together and decided to get hitched. Unlike normal lovers an estimated 24 million people watched it on the telly. Awwwww!
Princess Mary and Prince Frederik of Denmark.
Of course! She’s ours. Well she was until the moment she met her handsome prince in a pub in Sydney during the 2000 Olympics and set off an international love affair that gave Australians their first Real Royal. The beguiling Tasmanian has provided the Danish royal family with four heirs and provided the weekly glossies with enough Mary fashion shots to wallpaper Fredensborg Palace. Prince Frederik seems down-to-earth enough to be claimed as an honorary Aussie. This one’s a sugar-glazed cherry Danish (and could almost be fattening).
Which is your favourite royal romance?
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