User:Darmokand/sandbox2

Edward VIII abdication crisis
The Instrument of Abdication signed by Edward VIII and his three brothers
Date	20 Jan, Edward becomes King 16 Nov, Edward-Baldwin meeting
Caused by	Ascension and subsequent actions of King Edward
Resulted in	Edward abdicated on 10 December 1936
Lead figures
Stanley Baldwin Prime Minister (Conservative) Clement Attlee Leader of the Opposition (Labour) Archibald Sinclair (Liberal) Cosmo Gordon Lang Archbishop of Canterbury Winston Churchill (Conservative) Lord Beaverbrook Media magnate King Edward VIII Constitutional Monarch Wallis Simpson Edward's future spouse

Timeline of events

• 20 January 1936 - Edward VIII succeeded his father, George V, as King-Emperor of the British Empire.
• 27 October - Simpson divorce hearing
• 13 November - Baldwin holds meeting. Hardinge letter to Edward warns "The silence in the British Press ... is not going to be maintained
• 16 November - Edward informs PM Baldwin of intention to marry Simpson.
• 19 November - Edward tours depressed mines, makes "Something must be done" speech
• 1 December - Bishop Blunt's sermon on the King
• 3 December - Edward proposes King's Broadcast in meeting with Baldwin. Wallis Simpson leaves Britain.
• 4 December - Cabinet meeting discusses King's broadcast proposal. (Minutes)
• 6 December - Cabinet meeting discusses King's request for a bill granting Simpson a divorce. (Minutes).
• 10 December - Edward signs abdication papers
• 11 December - Edward makes a broadcast about abdication
• 12 December - Edward made Duke of Windsor
• 3 May 1937 - Simpson divorce finalized
• 3 June 1937 - Edward marries Wallis
• October 1937 - Edward and Wallis visit Germany
• July 1940 - Edward appointed Governor of the Bahamas

Shortly thereafter, German embassy in London sends message to Hitler: "An alliance between Germany and Britain is for him [the King] an urgent necessity."