After the abdication, Edward and Wallis lived largely in exile, banned from returning to Britain without the king’s permission. Their lives continued to generate headlines, particularly after their controversial 1937 visit to Nazi Germany, where they met Adolf Hitler and were photographed giving the Nazi salute.
Why Prince Philip Drew the Comparison
Speaking on GB News, Seward explained that Philip saw clear parallels between the Sussexes and the Windsors.
“Prince Philip was very canny about people,” Seward said. “He didn’t always see the bad in them, but he couldn’t get away from the similarities between Meghan and Harry, and Edward and Mrs. Simpson. That’s why he used to call her the Duchess of Windsor — not to her face, though. He used to call her DOW.”
Seward, who expands on these insights in her book My Mother and I, described Philip as “wary” of Meghan’s influence on the royal family. Though he recognized her charm and intelligence, he reportedly feared she might prove divisive — much like Wallis Simpson decades earlier.