twice-divorced american. i have found it impossible to discharge my duties as king without the help of the woman i love. can king george, the shy man with a stutter, mend a broken monarchy? his brother edward has not gone quietly into exile. and a looming war threatens global chaos. glory of a british coronation. nowhere in the world is there anything half so wonderful. it will be one of the days in history that schoolchildren will learn about. immediately before the coronation, it must have been momentous for george. this was a huge ceremony that had been prepared for his older brother. but it was he who was taking it all on. george s coronation occurred on the same day that it would have occurred for his brother edward. nothing was changed except the person doing it. here is somebody with a complete sense of inadequacy. he d always been the moon to his brother s sun. before he was king, george was living a relatively normal, free, under-the-radar life. happily m
he was always known as bertie in the family. but when he becomes king, his whole life is completely changed. he is intensely aware that he has been sort of tasked with this incredibly difficult job. so one of the first things he does is change his name to george. stressing the continuity between his reign and that of his father, george v. the new king george vi is extremely worried on taking over the throne because the abdication looms large. his brother edward was the most popular man in the english-speaking world. and now george has got to stand up to the plate. george is a believer in the principle of monarchy. he feels the british monarchy is really important to britain s national identity, and it holds the nation together. edward s abdication suggests that kingship isn t quite as stable as it has always