Edward told to stay away from coronation

Published on Sunday 5 August 2007 00:43

THE Duke of Windsor was "advised" not to attend the Queen's coronation ceremony in 1953 by the then prime minister Sir Winston Churchill, it has emerged.

Newly-released official documents reveal he told Cabinet colleagues about his correspondence with Edward, who had abdicated as king in 1936, choosing his love for American divorcee Wallis Simpson over royal duty.

The Duke, then living in France, was told to tell the press a former monarch could not attend the coronation of a new sovereign. Details of the discussions from minutes taken at Cabinet meetings, from 1951-54, have been made available at the National Archives at Kew, London.

Cabinet Secretary Sir Norman Brook noted that in 1952 Churchill had: "Advised [the Duke] not to come to coronation. He will say to press that it would not be consistent with usage for coronation to be attended by any former ruler."

It is not clear if the prime minister was asking the Duke to follow royal protocol or if Churchill was speaking from personal opinion. But the Duke did not attend.

The archives also reveal that the date of the coronation prompted fears about a clash with the Derby horse racing meet in Epsom, Surrey - a favourite of the Queen's - or falling on an unlucky day.

Churchill told his colleagues that May 29, 1953, was a Friday but he believed it was "thought unlucky", while June 3 was Derby Day. "Why not June 1," he concluded.

But the Cabinet thought staging the coronation on a Monday would see the unpopular move of having to hold preparations on Sunday. Churchill ended the debate with "argument points to June 2".