Royal Apartment

Ahhh, you meant that the rooms themselves were garish and extravagent, not the virtual display as a medium.  I understand now.

Oh yes, all that gilt and armour and such is certainly garish.     Not exactly rooms I'd enjoy relaxing in after a long day's work, but then again, they aren't intended for comfort - but rather to insprire awe, and to convey the power, prestige and wealth of the British nation to those who are received there. 

Interesting thought, however.  The rooms were furnished and adorned in the way that would have conveyed those grand impressions to the style and sensibiliies of the populace a few hundred years ago.  Today, those same furnishings and adornments might instead be conveying indulgence, irrelevence, out-of-touch, etc. 

.... or worse.  Have you ever seen a Reno Nevada Ho House or Gambling Casino?  ... That sort of extremity.

... Why I bring this up is after obtaining photos of the Duke after Abdication, his homes, and the interiors of Kensington Palace and St. James' Palace -- these were all well situated, attractive and quite modest in feeling.  You could LIVE there.

... I wonder if anyone has photos of the interior of the Fort Belvedere home that the Duke handed back to his family without recompense.  Maybe someday I'll know.

: )  EEWC

.... or worse.  Have you ever seen a Reno Nevada Ho House or Gambling Casino?  ... That sort of extremity.... Why I bring this up is after obtaining photos of the Duke after Abdication, his homes, and the interiors of Kensington Palace and St. James' Palace -- these were all well situated, attractive and quite modest in feeling.  You could LIVE there. ... I wonder if anyone has photos of the interior of the Fort Belvedere home that the Duke handed back to his family without recompense.  Maybe someday I'll know.

I quite agree the Duke and Duchess of Windsor had excellent taste.  But it's unfair to compare the Duke's homes post abdication (or Kensington Palace, private areas of St. James', Fort Belvedere) to the State Apartments at BP or Windsor.  The former were all furnished and used as private residences, the latter for grand public entertaining and court ceremonial. 

A better comparison would be to the present Queen's private apartments at BP and Windsor, or even Balmoral.  However, while Her Majesty has an extraordinary number of positive characteristics and attributes, style in home furnishings does not appear to be among them!   

Also regarding Fort Belvedere, that was a Crown property granted on a grace-and-favor basis to Edward by George V; there was no need for recompense on that property after the abdication.  Besides, Edward was no pauper - George VI had to privately purchase both Balmoral and Sandringham from him, and he received a substantial tax-free financial settlement.  He and the Duchess were able to enjoy leisure and luxury for the rest of their lives.

He and the Duchess were able to enjoy leisure and luxury for the rest of their lives.

Quite the opposite.  George reneged on the financial settlement. In 1938 he granted Edward 25,000 pounds per year, pension, for life, at the point the Duke was so desperate for funds he agreed to any terms at all.

In 1972, the year he died, Edward was receiving the equivalent of the salary of a retail store manager in the USA.  If the French Government hadn't given them a place to live, free, I don't know what the Duke would have done.  As it was, he had to spend a great deal of time pandering to rich friends.

You see, the story they tell is not the story he tells.  And you can see from his agonized eyes, that he is telling HIS TRUTH.

  And you can see from his agonized eyes, that he is telling HIS TRUTH.

This is a bit off-topic, but I think that the agonized look in his eyes, yes partly due to the troubles of his life. But at the occasion of that photo, a plaque was being unveiled to mark the century of Queen Mary's birth, I suppose that he was also very sad at that event, probably remembering the less than harmonious relationship between mother and son.

Posting moved to other thread.

I do not have a photo of Edward VIII where he does not have a tortured expression on his face.
And believe me, I have gathered a great number of photos.

--That one of him beside Queen Maud of Norway in a carriage going to his King's 1935 Jubilee is another one.
--Trooping the Color in 1936 is another one; announcing the abdication that November is another one.
--Standing beside his new bride in France in 1937 is another one.  She's relaxed, but he's dour.
--The one of his inspecting Hitler's troops in the 1937 visit two years before the war, is another one.  Here.
You can just SEE the disgust written all over his face. He said in his autobiography, that he went
"to REASON with the man."



David was naive, idealistic, repressed; and he couldn't believe that his family would withhold the Truth from him.
He was wrong about that.  They knew all about Wallis; they let her IN anyway.  They calculated his loneliness
would get to him.

This is getting a bit off-topic and should be continued on the Duke and Duchess of Windsor thread. If you have the patience to wade through the 50+ pages you will find several photos of a smiling, relaxed Duke of Windsor there as well.

He and the Duchess were able to enjoy leisure and luxury for the rest of their lives.

Quite the opposite.  George reneged on the financial settlement. In 1938 he granted Edward 25,000 pounds per year, pension, for life, at the point the Duke was so desperate for funds he agreed to any terms at all. In 1972, the year he died, Edward was receiving the equivalent of the salary of a retail store manager in the USA.  If the French Government hadn't given them a place to live, free, I don't know what the Duke would have done.  As it was, he had to spend a great deal of time pandering to rich friends.

Ahem.  According to Edward's biographer Philip Ziegler, George VI paid Edward £300,000 for his life interest in Balmoral and Sandringham in 1937 (equal to about £12 million in today's money).  AND George gave him £25,000 per year, later reduced to £21,000 per year (the equivalent of nearly £1 million per year today - tax free). 

AND, although Edward had "conveniently forgotten" to mention this during negotiations, by 1937 he had managed to amass a private fortune of £1 million during his decades as Duke of Cornwall (£33 million in today's money).

Poor Edward had to survive on only £45 million in assets, plus an allowance of another £1 million per year.  How horrible!  And as you mention, he didn't even have to pay for a residence since the French gave him one rent free! 

If Edward had to pander to rich friends in his later years, it's because he had squandered a massive fortune on high living and mismangement in the preceeding three decades.  According to the Peerage.com, he lost a fortune in a costly and futile attempt to drill oil on his ranch in Alberta, Canada, which forced him to write his memoirs and two other books through the help of ghost-writers in order to raise funds.

As Robert Half wrote "The search for someone to blame is always successful."