Queen Elizabeth II still hold grudges to her uncle, the Duke of Windsor Edward VIII, after he abdicated the throne in 1936. It was recently revealed that there were instances that the Queen was advised to extend an olive branch to her uncle and his wife, Wallis Simpson, but Her Majesty said "no."
Journalist Kenneth Rose's diaries are set to be published later this month after he died in 2014. In the diaries, Rose cited the Queen's former assistant private secretary Edward Ford as saying that he urged the monarch on several occasions to publicly heal the rift between her and his uncle Edward VIII and his wife, Wallis Simpson, by inviting them to Ascot races. The Queen, however, said "no."
Edward VIII ascended to the throne after his father, King George V, in 1936. But, when he manifested his intent to marry American socialite and twice-divorced Wallis Simpson, he was forced by Parliament and his family to choose between the woman he loved and the Crown. In the end, King Edward VIII chose Simpson and decided to abdicate his throne to his brother and Elizabeth II's father, George VI, to avoid a constitutional crisis.
Edward VIII and Simpson, later, became Duke and Duchess of Windsor in 1937 after their wedding in France. Simpson, however, did not receive the title of Royal Highness, which is usually given to close members of the Royal Family.
King Edward VIII's abdication forever changed the line of succession as George VI became the new king and his firstborn child, Elizabeth, became the new heir apparent to the throne. The relations between the Duke of Windsor and the rest of the royal family became strained since.
The former King and Simpson moved to Paris after his abdication and returned only several times to the U.K. Edward was allowed to return alone on the days of the funerals of his brother, King George VI in 1952 and his mother, Queen Mary, in 1953.
Though reports indicate that Queen Elizabeth II resented his uncle for abdicating the throne, she did visit him when the Duke's health deteriorated. In 1971, the Duke was diagnosed with throat cancer. In May 1972, Queen Elizabeth II visited the Windsors while on a state visit to France. She and Edward VIII were able to talk. A few days later after the visit, the Duke died at his home in Paris.
His body was returned to Britain and was buried in the Royal Burial Ground behind the Royal Mausoleum of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert at Frogmore. Fourteen years later, Simpson died and was buried alongside her husband.
