On this day 89 years ago, on December 10, 1936 (October 27, 1936), King Edward VIII abdicated. Edward VIII made a farewell broadcast to the nation from Augusta Tower in Windsor Castle. On January 20, 1936, King George V died and his eldest son Edward VIII succeeded to the throne. He met a divorced American woman, Mrs. Simpson, and was preparing to marry her. British Prime Minister Baldwin, with the consent of the Archbishop of Canterbury and the various dominion governments, advised Edward to give up the marriage. Edward refused to budge and announced his abdication on December 10, 1936. On the evening of the 11th, the former king made a farewell broadcast to the nation from Augusta Tower in Windsor Fort, where he announced his decision. Edward spoke with a sincere voice full of emotion. He was deeply sorry for taking this welcome action and explained why he did it: "Please take my word for it, although I hope I can continue to carry on the heavy responsibilities of the king and fulfill the duties of the king, none of this would be possible without the help and support of the woman I love." His younger brother, the Duke of York, succeeded King of England as George VI, father of the current Queen Elizabeth II. After Edward abdicated, he was named Duke of Windsor and married Mrs. Simpson in June 1937. In 1940, Hitler's Germany attempted to kidnap the Windsors in order to achieve German-British cooperation. But the conspiracy failed. The Duke of Windsor was sent to the Bahamas in Central America as governor. After the war, he moved to France. He died in Paris in 1972. The two swam together in the Adriatic Sea