The story was quite a scoop. In October 1970, as a 23-year-old reporter for the Daily Mail, I was in Paris when the young Prince of Wales made an unannounced visit to his great-uncle, the former Edward VIII, who was living in exile there.
The ex-king – then Duke of Windsor – and his wife, the former Mrs Wallis Simpson, were determined to regain their royal status and Prince Charles, as he was then known, arrived at the Duke’s home on the Route du Champ d’Entrainement, accompanied by the British ambassador, Sir Christopher Soames.
“This was a surprise visit,” a member of Windsor’s staff told me. “I don’t think the Duke expected it, but he was very, very pleased.”
The memory of that visit came back to me after I read in the Mail on Sunday yesterday that another duke who had forced himself into exile, Prince Harry, was keen to be rehabilitated.
The Duke of Sussex is said to be consulting former aides about how to find a route back to royal life. He turns 40 in two weeks and his father the king is undergoing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer. Harry seems to have realised that life in California is not enough for him, much as he loves his wife and two children.
Prince Harry and Prince William attend the unveiling of a statue of their mother, Princess Diana, in The Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace, London on July 1, 2021
Edward became a royal outcast in December 1936, when he gave up the throne after just 11 months to marry American divorcé Wallis Simpson. Above: The couple arrive in Britain for a visit as guests of the Queen in 1967.
In October 1970, 21-year-old Prince Charles met his great-uncle, the former Edward VIII, at his home in Paris. Above: Prince Charles accompanied his mother, the Queen, when she met the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson, just ten days before his death
Charles’ meeting with his great-uncle, the former King Edward VIII, was dramatized in the third series of The Crown. Edward was played by Derek Jacobi and Charles by Josh O’Connor (above)
But the parallels with the past are not encouraging.
The Duke of Windsor never received forgiveness from ‘the Firm’ and 18 months after that meeting with Charles he died in France of throat cancer at the age of 77.
Earlier this year palace sources suggested that King Charles was prepared to consider rapprochement with his youngest son. He has always been a spiritual man, has consulted religious leaders and is keen to put past feuds and insults behind him.
It was his initiative, in 1970, to extend an olive branch to the Windsors in Paris. His first idea was to invite them to England for a weekend visit. When that proposal was flatly rejected by the higher courtiers, he proposed to visit himself, saying: ‘It seems pointless to continue the feud.’
But he had not reckoned with the deep hostility that his grandmother, the Queen Mother, felt toward the Duke and Duchess, blaming them for the early death of her husband, who reluctantly ascended the throne as George VI after the abdication.
Her daughter the Queen was equally adamant. Devoted to her father’s memory, she knew that George had always opposed any plans to bring the Windsors back into line.
William and Harry, pictured in 2021, arrive at the unveiling of a statue commissioned by their mother Diana, Princess of Wales
The Duke and Duchess of Windsor at their Paris home during the filming of a scene for A King’s Story, the 1965 documentary about his life
Edward abdicated in December 1936 so he could marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson. Above: The King gives his abdication speech
During World War II, the Duke and Duchess were sent to govern the Bahamas, and while there they made repeated demands of Prime Minister Winston Churchill, begging for greater official recognition. Angry at what he saw as his brother’s betrayal, George refused, until his own death from cancer in 1952. He knew that allowing the Windsors to return would bring endless headlines about their ostentation, their partying, and their politics: that toxic sideshow would make his own role impossible.
Today, Prince William sees the same risks in pardoning Harry and Meghan. Their ability to generate negative royal publicity is limitless, whether through books, TV shows or interviews with famous celebrities.
The death of the Queen two years ago has left the Royal Family vulnerable, especially given the serious illnesses of both the King and Princess of Wales. Harry’s return would hit them all like a wrecking ball.
Charles may be willing to consider it, but William is not. And as heir to the throne, it is William who makes the decisions.
The abdication notice signed by Edward VIII at his home at Fort Belvedere. His brothers Albert, Henry and George also signed the document
On June 3, 1937, Edward married Wallis Simpson in a French chateau, as a businessman, with whom the divorced American woman was in love, looked on.
The lifelong aversion between Wallis and the Queen Mother is mirrored by the deep divisions between Meghan and Princess Catherine. After that vicious accusation of racism by the Duchess of Sussex during her televised interview with Oprah Winfrey – and amplified by Harry in his autobiography, Spare – how can the couple ever return to royal life… and how could they ever be trusted if they did?
Harry clearly hopes that a way will be found. His announcement that the paperback edition of Spare will contain no new material and that he will not give any interviews to promote it should be seen as an offering of peace.
His wife, who was so fierce in her hatred of all things royal, might revise her book
options. Her Netflix deal appears to be on hold, her Spotify contract was terminated amid humiliating recriminations (one senior executive dismissed Meghan and Harry as “fraudsters”), and her lifestyle brand, American Riviera Orchard, has so far proven fruitless.
While Harry may want to return for emotional reasons, she may have more business ambitions. But for both of them, as for the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, the door to the palace is likely to remain firmly shut.