An Unpleasant Surprise for the King

Friday 13th November 1936

After an anxious night, Alec Hardinge had written to the King to warn him of trouble brewing. The King found the letter on his return from the Fleet visit in Portland, tired and cold. It was an unpleasant surprise. 

Not only did it contain what the King read as an ultimatum from the government - he knew that it would not have been sent without authority - but it also called on him to send Mrs. Simpson out of the country forthwith. To the King, this would have been tantamount to treating her like one of the embarrassing casual loves of his brother, the Duke of Kent, who had more-or-less been paid off. In his eyes, it was almost a declaration of war.