![]() And one year later, on May 6, Margaret marries photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones, who later becomes the Earl of Snowdon. Townsend marries Marie-Luce Jamagne in 1959. "I simply hadn't the weight, I knew it, to counterbalance all she would have lost." 1959–60: They both marry other people. "She could have married me only if she had been prepared to give up everything-her position, her prestige, her privy purse," he writes. ![]() Twenty-three years later, in 1978, Townsend releases his autobiography, Time and Chance, in which he expresses his ultimate peace with Margaret's decision. ![]() But, mindful of the Church's teaching that Christian marriage is indissoluble, and conscious of my duty to the Commonwealth, I have resolved to put these considerations before any others." In an official statement released on BBC Radio, she announces, "I have been aware that, subject to my renouncing my rights of succession, it might have been possible for me to contract a civil marriage. The princess ultimately decides to end her relationship with Townsend to maintain her place in the royal line of succession. October 31, 1955: Margaret announces the end of her engagement with Townsend. "It is only by seeing him in this way that I feel I can properly decide whether I can marry him or not," she writes. She tells Eden in a letter that she would need to meet him face-to-face again in order to arrive at her final decision. "Exclusion from the Succession would not entail any other change in Princess Margaret's position as a member of the Royal Family," per Prime Minister Anthony Eden.ĭespite these newfound freedoms, Margaret remains apart from Townsend for two years while he's stationed abroad in Brussels to serve as an air attaché. Margaret reaches the pivotal age of 25, making her eligible to freely choose whether-and now, whom-to marry.ĭue to amendments made preemptively by the queen and Parliament in the Royal Marriages Act in light of Margaret and Townsend's potential marriage, Margaret would now be exempt from the Church of England's rules prohibiting a marriage with a divorcé insofar as she is removed from the line of succession, in which she stood third behind nephew Prince Charles and niece Princess Anne. Keystone // Getty Images August 21, 1955: Margaret turns 25. As depicted in The Crown's first season, onlookers observe subtle suggestive exchanges between the two during the occasion-and per one reporter, Margaret is seen fixing up Townsend's shirt, spurring tabloid headlines speculating on the affair. June 2, 1953: Rumors of their affair emerge at the queen's coronation.ĭespite dating in secret for several years, rumors of their romance first circulate from their attendance at the queen's coronation, following the death of King George the previous year. The two still remain engaged, however, and continue their relationship in private. Margaret does not receive approval from the queen. Townsend asks Margaret for her hand in marriage, but they are unable to wed due to the 1772 Royal Marriages Act, which required that Parliament approve the marriage if the woman was under the age of 25. April 1953: Townsend proposes to Margaret. November 1952: Townsend divorces his wife.įollowing 11 years of marriage and two young boys, Townsend officially divorces his wife, Rosemary Pratt, Marchioness Camden, in order to commit to Margaret. Townsend also accompanies Margaret on a trip to Belfast in October, and he requests to have his room at Hillsborough Castle moved next to hers. That's when I really fell in love with him." In later years, Margaret reportedly tells a confidante, "We rode together every morning in that wonderful country, in marvelous weather. ![]() His duty was to protect the princess throughout the trip, so the two spent a lot of time together. Ahead, see the historical overview of Margaret and Townsend's tempestuous love story, from its sweet beginnings to its heartbreaking end.Ī married Townsend meets then-teenager Margaret for the first time while accompanying the royal family on a three-month tour to South Africa.
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