The love lives of Britain’s monarchs have long been a source of public fascination, but perhaps the most romantic royal tale of all concerns King Edward VIII, who chose a woman over the throne. Edward became king in 1936 after the death of his father, George V. His brief reign was punctuated by controversy, most notably his infatuation with a socialite named Wallis Simpson. Not only was Simpson an American, she was a married woman who had already once divorced. As gossips portrayed Simpson as everything from a scheming seductress to a German spy, the relationship plunged the monarchy into crisis. Forced to choose between love and crown, Edward abdicated the throne in December 1936. Simpson quickly divorced her husband, and she and Edward married in 1937. They spent the rest of their lives in retirement in France.