The Women of Windsor: Their Power, Privilege, and Passions

274 Pages·2007·1.68 MB·English

by  Catherine Whitney

(cid:1)
THE

W
OM E N

W
INDSOR

OF
POWER, PRIVILEGE,
Their
PASSIONS
and
�
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Her Royal Highness the Princess Margaret

Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal, Princess Anne

Catherine Whitney

Dedicated to the women of my family

Vera, Ruth

Rubye, Bertie

Barbara, Janet

Orphalee, Patty

Catherine, Mary, Margaret, Joanne

Sherry, Marci, Deborah

Michelle, Deana, Martha, Kelly, Jessica

Rachael
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CONTENTS
Acknowledgments viii

Cast of Characters ix

Introduction: An American at the Palace xii

Prologue: Drama Queen 1

Chapter 1: Merry Mischief 7

Chapter 2: We Four 27

Chapter 3: Clash of the Titanesses 39

Chapter 4: The Most Dangerous Woman in Europe 55

Chapter 5: Heir Presumptive 73

Chapter 6: Lilibet’s Prince Charming 83

Chapter 7: Mrs. Mountbatten Ascends 99

Chapter 8: Sister Dearest 109

Chapter 9: Royal Family Values 121

Chapter 10: Being Anne 133

Chapter 11: Always a Rosebud, Never a Rose 147

Chapter 12: Crash of Symbols 155

Chapter 13: To Di For 163

Chapter 14: The Princess of Wails 177

Chapter 15: The Queen’s Horrible Year 187

Chapter 16: Palace Coup 197

Chapter 17: Royal Is as Royal Does 209

Epilogue: Kingdom Come 217

The Windsors 223

The Windsor Line of Succession 225

Notes 227

Bibliography 241

Index 245
About the Author
Credits
Cover
Copyright
About the Publisher
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Writing about the women of Windsor has been
like slowly unwrapping a precious and surprising gift. It is very satisfy­
ing to uncover the human element beyond the standard accounts of
these fascinating historical characters. I owe this opportunity to my
friend and agent, Jane Dystel, president of Dystel & Goderich Literary
Management. This book has been Jane’s passion for many years. She
rightly noted that while volumes have been written about the Royal
Family, an in-depth personal portrait of these four women and their
joint roles in history had not been rendered. Were it not for Jane, this
book would never have been written.
I am also grateful to Lucia Macro, my editor at HarperCollins, who
has enthusiastically supported the book throughout the process. The
Women of Windsor couldn’t ask for a better home than HarperCollins.
Many people helped me along the way. In particular, I am thankful
to Janet Schuler and Joanne Laha for their invaluable assistance with
the research, to Paul Whitney for creating the clever family tree and
for procuring a wonderful collection of photographs, to Michael Bour­
ret for his persistence in obtaining rights, and to my friends in En­
gland, France, and the United States who vetted the most sensitive
portions of the manuscript. Finally, my deepest appreciation goes to
my partner, Paul Krafin, for his important input and support.
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CAST OF CHARACTERS
THE FEATURED WOMEN OF WINDSOR
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother

Queen Elizabeth II

Princess Margaret

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Princess Anne

THEIR FATHERS AND HUSBANDS
Lord Strathmore (Bowes-Lyon)

King George VI

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Antony Armstrong-Jones (Lord Snowdon)

Mark Phillips

Commander Timothy Laurence

THEIR PARAMOURS
Group Captain Peter Townsend

Roddy Llewellyn

Peter Cross

THEIR NEMESES
Edward, Duke of Windsor

Wallis (Simpson), Duchess of Windsor

THEIR MENTORS AND MEDDLERS
Lady Cecilia Strathmore

Queen Mary

King George V

Lady Mabell Airlie

Lord Louis Mountbatten

Winston Churchill

Sir Alan Lascelles