A collection of 60 photographs showing the Duke and Duchess of Windsor meeting Nazi leaders in 1937 has sold at auction for £6,830. The images, compiled by the duke's equerry Sir Dudley Forwood, depict the former King Edward VIII and his wife Wallis Simpson with Adolf Hitler and other high-ranking Nazis during an unofficial visit that has long been a source of controversy.
Royal historian Carolyn Harris said the duke's motives were 'peaceful' and linked to his desire for acceptance after abdicating the throne in 1936 to marry the American divorcee. 'He was eager to carve out a new role for himself and ensure that his wife was treated as a full member of the Royal Family,' she explained.
The British government opposed the trip, preferring the couple to keep a low profile. However, the duke jumped at the invitation from Germany, seeing it as an opportunity to play a diplomatic role. According to royal biographer Andrew Morton, the official reason was to inspect housing conditions, but the real aim was to give Wallis the experience of a state visit, where she was treated with the dignity denied her by the British Royal Family.
Timothy Medhurst of Duke's Auctions described the images as 'a unique piece of history compiled at a time when the Nazi war machine was preparing for European conquest.' The duke later contacted Hitler in 1939, hoping to negotiate peace, but his ties with Nazi Germany made him 'a liability' during World War Two, leading to his appointment as Governor of the Bahamas.
Despite later regrets, Morton noted that the duke remained sympathetic to Hitler and held anti-Semitic views even after the war. The couple's actions upset American trade unions and Jewish organisations, and their continued public attention in the Bahamas caused anxiety for the British government.
