George VI was sovereign of the United Kingdom and its overseas dominions from 1936 to 1952. His figure, in a way, has been pigeonholed between two others: that of his brother, the controversial Edward VIII, and that of his daughter, the current queen. Isabel II. However, his role goes further: he and his wife rescued the Crown from a serious crisis due to the abdication of Edward VIII and paved the way for the stable reign of Elizabeth II.
An heir and a spare, “an heir and a spare.” The saying, very relevant in monarchies, was fulfilled on December 14, 1895. That day Prince Albert Ferdinand Arthur George was born, great-grandson of Queen Victoria and the second of the children of George and Mary of Teck, Dukes of York. When Alberto – who was nicknamed “Bertie” – was born, his parents were already destined to be kings due to the death of Jorge’s older brother three years earlier.
The English royal family at that time was still called Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and was dominated by the petite but imposing figure of Victoria, ruler of the vastest and richest empire in the world. Bertie, third in the line of succession, had the blessing of his almighty great-grandmother and began to be educated as a royal prince.
In the palace, discipline was ironclad: his father, the future George V, is described by historians as “a sergeant.” The brothers were treated with military rigor by their father and with Anglo-Germanic coldness by their mother, María de Teck.
Since he was a child, Bertie idolized his older brother. David seemed to have everything to become the charming prince he was destined to be: attractive and witty, he exuded self-confidence. Bertie, on the other hand, was circumspect and insecure. His life was marked by a stuttering that undermined him. He was also left-handed (something frowned upon at the time) and bowlegged. Despite his handsome face, his withdrawn attitude contrasted with that of his brother. However, his will was strong. He got ahead.
In part, he succeeded because he had no other choice: at the age of fourteen he entered the Osborne Naval School, where he survived thanks to his discretion, his skill in games and his kind nature. What was most difficult for him was to keep up academically, since his education up to that date had been, in the words of historian and biographer Philip Ziegler, “disastrous.”
In his second year at Osborne his grandfather, Edward VII, died and his father was crowned. The ceremony impressed him. He also placed his brother David, who became Prince of Wales, on an even higher pedestal.
Bertie graduated from Dartmouth Naval Academy and embarked as a cadet for six months. The First World War caught him in the Navy, and in 1915 he participated in the great naval battle of the conflict, Jutland. However, a gastric condition kept him from the front line. His next destination would be aviation, a discipline that he learned, like so many other things, because it was his obligation.
In the following years he would make a key decision in his life: he asked to marry Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, daughter of the Earl of Strathmore, belonging to one of the oldest families in Scotland. Elizabeth, attractive, smiling and intelligent, thought long and hard before accepting him. They married in 1923. He was the best support for her husband’s insecurities, as well as the one who best controlled his irritable character, inherited from her father.
George V, by the way, unreservedly praised his son’s choice. Already at that time the differences with his heir, David, were evident. As was also his love for Bertie, whom he admired for his responsible and hard-working nature. In 1920 he had granted him the title of Duke of York.
The new duke dedicated himself to royal duties, which mostly took place within Great Britain, in mining and industrial areas. A moderate conservative, he believed that, to guarantee social peace, it was necessary for the working classes to see their quality of life improved.
In 1926, the couple’s first daughter, Isabel, was born, whom they called “Lilibeth.” That same year, the duke went for the first time to the consultation of Lionel Logue, a speech therapist who would be essential in mastering his speech problem.
In 1930, Margaret Rose, the second of their daughters, was born. The Yorks lived in a mansion in Piccadilly (now a luxury hotel) and were a truly united and happy family.
In 1936, George V died suddenly and his brother David became Edward VIII. The new king, a very popular character, was still single and childless. This greatly worried the duke, who feared that the weight of the Crown would fall on his eldest daughter. He, too, could not understand that his brother was unable to leave Wallis Simpson, a divorced American, which made marriage impossible to contemplate.
Edward VIII was never crowned. In December 1936 he announced his resignation from the throne in a historic BBC broadcast: he found himself unable to carry out his task “without the support and help of the woman I love.” Bertie was horrified: at his brother’s lack of sense of duty and at the prospect of becoming monarch. He didn’t feel ready.
In a way, it was true: he had been removed from the affairs of state and his knowledge of international relations was scant. But he underestimated his ability and common sense, and the support of his family would prove capital.
He was crowned in May 1937 as George VI. Two state visits, to France and the United States, before World War II, would be key in the coming conflict. The first established the Franco-British alliance, while in the second a firm friendship emerged between the kings and President Roosevelt.
In England, meanwhile, Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain advocated conciliation with Germany. The king supported him and even offered to make an appeal to Hitler through his cousin, Philip of Hesse. But in September 1939 George VI became the monarch of a country at war.
Ironically, the conflict that he did not want consolidated his reign: with his conduct during those years he earned the admiration of the people. Neither he nor his wife agreed to leave London. They traveled regularly to the neighborhoods devastated by German bombs, comforting the neighbors. Buckingham was also attacked. The monarch visited the troops on numerous occasions. Like so many other Britons, he suffered a tragic loss: his brother, the Duke of Kent.
During the war she forged a strong friendship with the new Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, who would guide her daughter early in her reign. George VI was one of the instigators of the national unity government, which Churchill led. His dealings with Labor ministers served him well when, after the conflict, that party won the elections.
His work during the war earned him the respect of politicians on both sides of the spectrum. However, George VI remained an insecure character, stalked by the figure of his brother and the charisma of Churchill. However, the kings were the protagonists when, in September 1945, a crowd cheered them at Buckingham to celebrate the end of the conflict.
A chain smoker, George VI died in 1952 as a result of lung cancer. In the last years of his reign he saw how India, the jewel of the empire forged by his great-grandmother, acquired independence. The world he knew as a child was fading, but the Crown, which he inherited was battered, survived: her daughter Isabel was now a mother and, above all, she had the sense of duty of her father. Continuity was assured.
