"Should Edward, Duke of Windsor have been executed?" Topic

For treason. Watching the crown, if even half of what they pin on him is true, than any other person not protected by his statue would have been shot/hanged very fast. The only reason he wasn't was the fact he was royal.

were any british subjects executed during ww2?

For political reasons, I would say no. The accompanying trial, much less executing a member of the royal family, would have caused too much of a political crisis at the moment in their history when the British people needed to be united. Maybe he should have had "an accident" -- but then again do you really want a type of government who operates in such a extralegal and clandestine fashion towards its own citizens?

To execute a former king would require justification to the public. How are you going to do that without releasing a lot of information that should not be released?
I would not rely on The Crown for strict historical accuracy.

No. Too much trouble than it's worth. Did the right thing to sideline him. In my opinion a very conceited, egotistical and shallow human being. Better off without him.

What was feasible and what SHOULD have been done are to different things. Plotting to take back the crown with nazi help, giving nazis war secrets. People have been hung, drawn and quartered for less.

Not enough evidence to condemn him in a court of law. Edward was playing with fire, but the responsible adults took away the matches and sent him to his room (in the Bahamas) where even there he couldn't stay completely out of trouble.

He was too prominent a figure to simply be disappeared, so sidelining him was the best action to take.

Sure. Didn't you know? Anyone can be executed after a one-sided sensational drama entertainment media production.

It's called the court of public opinion. It trumps all other evidence, testimony, Laws, traditions, rules and regulations. :)

Plus, thanks to wonderful hindsight, we can now label anyone who spoke to the Nazis as a Nazi, and blame anyone that had any contact with Hitler for all the things Hitler would do later on.

Can we do the same for those who had any dealings with Stalin, Mao and a few others? Oops, I forget.

Dan
PS. And I guess that, for even voicing the above, I should be put on the firing squad too, for crimes against humanity or sensitivity or whatever.

I haven't watched The Crown, but there is plenty of evidence that Teddy was chummy with Herr Hitler – that he was evacuated to so far out of danger in WWII rather hints that the suggestion that Hitler would have liked to have used him as a puppet ruler of the UK was given credence in government circles.

We watch the Crown religiously (my wife loves The Crown, so a dutiful husband I do too) – while they do take liberties with history, on the question of the Duke of Windsor it at least appears he was sympathetic to the Nazis – as noted by CC, as were a lot of people prior to 1939 – and he certainly made a well photographed State visit to Germany in 1937

That all being said, not enough there to have him executed – or indeed for anything but polite exile

I've watched both series and can agree that as TV entertainment it is top notch. However as a factual record – I think we should hold fire.

I do wonder (in years to come) how the public will react to Queen Elizabeth's reign – will it be as a factual record – there is enough documented record after all. Or will the films and series (The Crown) be what is remembered?

As I have said – The Crown is great entertainment – but don't take all you see as fact.

Tony

It's called the court of public opinion. It trumps all other evidence, testimony, Laws, traditions, rules and regulations.

Kind of like on the net …

No, but the truth about him and his Wife's unsavoury companions should be made as widely known as their rather sordid affair.

How do we know he wasn't executed? After all, it is said that Churchill had a double….

I will reserve judgment until I see the Hess file.

Old Peculiar: "No, but the truth about him and his Wife's unsavoury companions should be made as widely known as their rather sordid affair."

It is known. To anyone who wants to read the facts.

Or do you mean the entertainment media's version should be widely known? Well, isn't that what the show is doing? Which is great entertainment to those who can tell what's factual and what is sensational drama. Those who can't tell the difference … are the ones most likely to ask for his posthumous execution. :)

Dan

There WERE a number of suspicious air crashes involving both British and Free French transport aircraft which conveniently eliminated a number of British pro-appeasement identities and French rivals to De Gaul. And no inconvenient survivors either.

''The Crown'' is being shown to all schoolchildren and they simply must believe its true , it is really !!! And of course Unity and Diana Mitford were Aliens …

Its a TV show, I'd be surprised if its 1% historically accurate.

No

Gunfreak, if even half of what they say on TV is true, I need to watch out for dragons, aliens, vampires and especially zombies.

If you want to know what real people really did--"They conceal information like that in books." (Hector Garcia, LAKE PLACID.)

Oh. And real non-fiction books have footnotes and bibliographies so you can double-check the author. Anyone else remember WATERLOO: NEW PERSPECTIVES?

I doubt if watching modern drama provides anywhere near enough evidence for anything. In fact the truth is probably in inverse proportion to made up fantasy.