# Wallis Simpson and Antiamericanism in UK. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 27, 2019, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614 "2019-05-27T20:14:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2019, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/61 "2019-05-28T20:34:44Z")
> [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > Dollar Store type of thing > [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > Nah, in this context it means the down-market version. Thanks. I didn’t know that. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2019, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/62 "2019-05-28T21:31:15Z")
> [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](#): > > Maybe you’re paying too much attention to Internet noise. That’s not very reliable. > > The Daily Express polls has her at 52% approval, and only 14% disapproval. Donald Trump (or moat elected people) would kill for ratings like that. (You want to see a real disliked royal, look at numbers for that bitch Camilla.) You may feel you’re cracking a joke, but I seriously object to any woman being described in the above term. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2019, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/63 "2019-05-28T22:36:34Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Poundland? Not as much fun as Poundtown. ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2019, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/64 "2019-05-28T22:44:37Z")
I’m not racist about inter-war Royals, but … At the moment I’m reading a lot of correspondence of inter-war right-winger British colonials, so these were Edward’s own people in their admiration of Hitler and the idea of fascism as a bulwark against communism. They were all massively anti-semitic as many British were, and in the way that they defined who were “their people” and who were the problem, the Jews were lumped in with the Bolsheviks as essentially synonymous, but they also included many aspects of American life they did not like, particularly jazz music, Hollywood, new money, brashness, ostentatious materialism and a host of other pet peeves. Whether these were separate Bad Things, the consequences of Judeo-communism or a deliberate plot to upset the middle class’s Saturday morning depends on which particular thread of madness you want to unravel and probably its best not to look too hard for anything resembling an underlying logic. Among these people Wallis Simpson was not liked. Her Americanness was seen as dragging down the almost godly dignity of the monarchy. Her personal history spoke to the unpredictability and selfishness of Americans, wanting to do things for their own gain and satisfaction rather than considering how it may affect others, or to deal with private matters in private. Edward remained greatly admired for taking a stand on principle, but such a shame it had to be about an American, and a divorcee at that. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/65 "2019-05-29T02:18:35Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > aspects of American life they did not like, particularly jazz music, Hollywood, new money, brashness, ostentatious materialism and a host of other pet peeves. The English were very class-conscious. _Anything_ that was popular was déclassé . And vulgar (the upper classes also learned Latin). ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/66 "2019-05-29T03:07:17Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > It strikes me that the only person who seems to have a problem with Meghan Markel is you. I mean, seriously, you’re criticising her baby bump? > > I can’t see that she has done anything wrong. Poor woman. I’m not criticizing her biological bump, just the fact that she very much seemed to be padding it. > [@Nava](#): > > That can be caused just by the baby changing position. The uterus is not a rigid sphere and the baby doesn’t just kick: it kicks, rotates, elbows, headbutts, butt-butts and variously buggers about. This may very well be true. I am not an ob-gyn or maternity stylist or any kind of expert on this issue. I do find it surprising that a pregnancy that looks like this [this](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.extratv.com%2F2019%2F01%2F16%2Fmeghan-markle-lo-getty-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fextratv.com%2F2019%2F01%2F16%2Fmeghan-markle-stuns-in-35-maternity-dress-by-h-and-m%2F&docid=RD5ns-TZtMNylM&tbnid=4WPSQufF_vYrEM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjatdbG2L_iAhXHqp4KHW4UDCIQMwiJAigWMBY..i&w=371&h=700&client=safari&bih=939&biw=1362&q=meghan%20markle%20pink%20maternity%20outfit&ved=0ahUKEwjatdbG2L_iAhXHqp4KHW4UDCIQMwiJAigWMBY&iact=mrc&uact=8) can look like [this](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03/28/16/11576950-6859385-image-a-21_1553789071345.jpg)one week later. But again, not an expert, and it’s hardly her greatest sin. > [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Gestalt, you’re assuming that the vast majority of people know and care about the trivia you list. They don’t. It just doesn’t matter that much. This may very well be the case. I am an unabashed royalist and a very amateur royal-watcher and like to keep up with things like Lady Gabriella’s wedding and what the York girls are up to. > [@Corry\_El](#): > > Which I think is illustrated by the discussed drifting over to Meghan Markle. That’s happening right now and people can’t agree here ‘what typical Brits think of her’. But it’s funny to bash Markle as a proto-Kardashian. Interest in outlying members of the royal family isn’t a whole lot different that being interested in the Kardashians, both are basically entertainment. Edward’s abdication was a much bigger deal at the time than what you think of the wife of the guy 6th in line now for a less important throne. Absolutely. I actually enjoy her presence in the royal family, because I find it endlessly entertaining. And I agree that, particularly as the Cambridges rise in prominence, the Sussex family will become more and more peripheral. > [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](#): > > Maybe you’re paying too much attention to Internet noise. That’s not very reliable. > > The Daily Express polls has her at 52% approval, and only 14% disapproval. Donald Trump (or moat elected people) would kill for ratings like that. (You want to see a real disliked royal, look at numbers for that bitch Camilla.) I don’t think it’s accurate to compare her approval rating to that of an American president. [By this poll](https://yougov.co.uk/ratings/politics/popularity/royalty/all), the queen is at 70%, Cambridges both are above 60%, and even Prince Phillip, who has been retired from official duties for a while now, ranks above her. And that’s the most generous poll towards her I’ve seeen lately. It’s not a particularly difficult job, and she went in knowing what was expected. Unlike Diana, she was not a young, sheltered, naif, but rather a college-educated, wordly woman in her late thirties entering her second marriage. In my opinion, once you become a working royal, you represent The Firm, and there are certain rules (none of which are written down by the way, just seem to Be Known, so I probably can’t give you a cite, beyond the fact that most royals, particularly HMTQ, follow these rules). Don’t say anything overtly political or controversial, don’t do anything to embarrass the Firm, don’t draw undue attention to yourself, particularly at events that should be focused on a charity or another individual. Don’t conspicuously consume (although in private one can be as lavish and spendthrift as one wants), and when you do, try to buy British. Don’t engage in any PDA beyond perhaps taking the arm of your significant other in a formal setting. For women: dress appropriately and conservatively, when wearing a dress cross your legs at the ankle or not at all, wear hose with dresses, even if sheer. In the space of less than a year, she has managed to violate almost all of these terms. In terms of her fashion choices, I’m going to compare her to Kate Middleton, which is perhaps unfair, because Kate Middleton (KM) is 5’10" with the face and body of a supermodel, and Meghan Markle (MM) cannot help the fact that she does not have all those factors in her favor. However, KM, while hardly a penny-pincher when it comes to outfits, spends (and spent less in the first year of her marriage) than MM, looks fantastic in almost everything she wears, and spends primarily on British designers. Her most popular one seems to be McQueen, who I think pioneered those coat-dresses she always wears. She also wears McCartney, Erdem, Burberry etc fairly frequently, and of course foreign designers on occasion. MM has spent more than KM, somehow has trouble dressing her pregnant figure well (I know that’s not easy, but she also has access to some of the world’s best stylists), and seems to have a preference for foreign designers (from what I can tell, notable, Givenchy). [This](https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiO0fr-3L_iAhWMrJ4KHW8GA44QjRx6BAgBEAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cosmopolitan.com%2Fuk%2Ffashion%2Fcelebrity%2Fa16023919%2Fkate-middleton-pink-princess-dress-tour-sweden%2F&psig=AOvVaw3Qf4nJi4qq34Le_qO0MjeK&ust=1559184471949227) is how KM dressed to a formal dinner while on a state visit in her third trimester. McQueen, I believe bespoke. [This](https://www.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article14047204.ece/ALTERNATES/s510b/2_PAY-Duke-and-Duchess-of-Sussex-in-Morocco-Day-Two.jpg)is what MM wore in the same situation. Bespoke Dior. And again, this is not to mention her extravagant, highly papped baby shower in New York, her constant hand-holding with Prince Harry, her five friends article in People magazine where anonymous friends gushed over how wonderful she was, her banana messaging incident, her absurdly self-promoting and floridly composed [essay](https://www.elle.com/uk/life-and-culture/elle-voices/articles/a32612/meghan-markle-fame-comes-responsibility/) about her travels (admittedly written before she was a Royal, but still reflective of her personality), etc. And again, all in less than a year. Has any other non-blood Royal managed to make so many gaffes in such a short period of time? I mean Diana took a while to drag the Royal Family through the mud, and I believe Fergie took a bit of time too, and sure KM had a lot of upskirt incidents, but probably less than a dozen in the 8 years they’ve been married? Yeah, this is all shallow and unfair and so forth — but looking appropriate and well put together is essentially her job. And her job comes with enormous perks. She gets to live in luxury most of us can only dream of, much of it taxpayer funded (like [extensive renovation of their windsor home](https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a25319207/meghan-markle-prince-harry-frogmore-cottage-renovations/), almost all at taxpayer cost, with speculation at as much as 3 million dollars). She gets absurdly nice clothes and jewelry and fancy trips and tons of exposure and her name in the history books. And all she has to do is represent HMTQ appropriately. If she were a not an HRH working royal, I wouldn’t care so much. And overall, I do find her more entertaining than anything else. It does disappoint me slightly though, to see someone who is representing QEII not do so appropriately. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/67 "2019-05-29T03:11:24Z")
I now feel considerably stupider than I did a few minutes ago. Was this necessary in a thread regarding the historical facts surrounding the abdication of Edward VIII? ---
**Author:** ![Gestalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90ced4/32.png) [@Gestalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gestalt)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/68 "2019-05-29T03:42:24Z")
People were objecting to the statements I made and I wished to further explain myself. I apologize if you feel stupider for reading something about someone you find uninteresting or irrelevant. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/69 "2019-05-29T05:16:32Z")
Here’s the Wikipedia entry on Poundland: > **[Poundland](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poundland)** > > Poundland is a British variety store chain founded in 1990. It once sold most items at the single price of £1, including clearance items and proprietary brands. The first pilot store opened in December 1990 following numerous rejections by landlords who had reservations about allowing a single-price store to operate, fearing it could adversely affect the local competition. An estimated 7 million customers shopped in Poundland every week in 2016, many being female shoppers in the C1, C2, D and... and here are some pictures of what the stores are like: > **[Poundland Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images](https://www.gettyimages.com/photos/poundland?sort=mostpopular&mediatype=photography&phrase=poundland&license=rf,rm&page=1&recency=anydate&suppressfamilycorrection=true)** > > Find Poundland stock photos and editorial news pictures from Getty Images. Select from premium Poundland of the highest quality. I think that pound stores are less common in the U.K. than dollar stores are in the U.S. Also, both of them are actually not accurately named anymore. They have items costing several pounds or several dollars. It’s like the stores that were called five and dime stores in the U.S. Eventually, just by inflation, the items sold there cost considerably more than ten cents. Incidentally, if you’re visiting the U.K. and want to visits some stores with bargains, go to some charity shops: > **[Charity shop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charity_shop)** > > A charity shop (British English), thrift shop or thrift store (American English and Canadian English) or opportunity shop or op-shop (Australian English and New Zealand English) is a retail establishment run by a charitable organization to raise money. Charity shops are a type of social enterprise. They sell mainly used goods such as clothing, books, music albums, shoes, DVDs, toys, and furniture donated by members of the public, and are often staffed by volunteers. Because the items for sale... I think that they are more common there than the U.S. equivalent, which are thrift stores. When I visit the U.K., I check out the used books shelves at the charity shops I happen to walk by. They often have a few used paperbacks that I’m interested in. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/70 "2019-05-29T05:25:26Z")
> [@Gestalt](#): > > This may very well be true. I am not an ob-gyn or maternity stylist or any kind of expert on this issue. I do find it surprising that a pregnancy that looks like this [this](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.extratv.com%2F2019%2F01%2F16%2Fmeghan-markle-lo-getty-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fextratv.com%2F2019%2F01%2F16%2Fmeghan-markle-stuns-in-35-maternity-dress-by-h-and-m%2F&docid=RD5ns-TZtMNylM&tbnid=4WPSQufF_vYrEM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjatdbG2L_iAhXHqp4KHW4UDCIQMwiJAigWMBY..i&w=371&h=700&client=safari&bih=939&biw=1362&q=meghan%20markle%20pink%20maternity%20outfit&ved=0ahUKEwjatdbG2L_iAhXHqp4KHW4UDCIQMwiJAigWMBY&iact=mrc&uact=8) can look like [this](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03/28/16/11576950-6859385-image-a-21_1553789071345.jpg)one week later. But again, not an expert, and it’s hardly her greatest sin. Not only are you clearly not an expert in what uteruses are like, but you also don’t understand much about photography. Take those two pictures on the same day, the second one would not display the belly as prominently simply because of the picture angle; the angle of the light also makes a difference. Have you never noticed that boobs and butts look more prominent the more you’re looking at them from the side? So do bellies. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/71 "2019-05-29T05:27:42Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > It’s that good old double standard. The wife of the King had to be beyond reproach. Not discreet - pure. As long as he was doing some back-room shagging, nobody cared what he did or with whom. But when that whom could be Princess of Wales and eventually Queen, it mattered. I don’t doubt a number of royal brides over the years were not qualified to wear white, but I’m betting none were a regular and well-worn “dance stop” on the bachelor party circuit. > > We also forget that while divorce existed, it was incredibly unacceptable in some social circles back then. > > [I've danced with a man, who's danced with a girl, who's danced with the Prince of Wales - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27ve_danced_with_a_man,_who%27s_danced_with_a_girl,_who%27s_danced_with_the_Prince_of_Wales) Strangely enough though, one of the most notorious Princesses of Wales (and later Queen Consorts) [Caroline of Brunswick](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_of_Brunswick), was extremely popular, even though she had a scandalous private life. Granted, a lot of it had to do with the fact that her [husband](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_IV_of_the_United_Kingdom) was just as _unpopular_ and treated her like dirt. So his abuse ended up making her a figure of sympathy. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/72 "2019-05-29T05:30:41Z")
> [@Gestalt](#): > > I’m not criticizing her biological bump, just the fact that she very much seemed to be padding it. > > This may very well be true. I am not an ob-gyn or maternity stylist or any kind of expert on this issue. I do find it surprising that a pregnancy that looks like this [this](https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.extratv.com%2F2019%2F01%2F16%2Fmeghan-markle-lo-getty-1.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fextratv.com%2F2019%2F01%2F16%2Fmeghan-markle-stuns-in-35-maternity-dress-by-h-and-m%2F&docid=RD5ns-TZtMNylM&tbnid=4WPSQufF_vYrEM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjatdbG2L_iAhXHqp4KHW4UDCIQMwiJAigWMBY..i&w=371&h=700&client=safari&bih=939&biw=1362&q=meghan%20markle%20pink%20maternity%20outfit&ved=0ahUKEwjatdbG2L_iAhXHqp4KHW4UDCIQMwiJAigWMBY&iact=mrc&uact=8) can look like [this](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03/28/16/11576950-6859385-image-a-21_1553789071345.jpg)one week later. But again, not an expert, and it’s hardly her greatest sin. Differences in angles, lighting, outfits, etc. ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/73 "2019-05-29T06:29:34Z")
> [@Gestalt](#): > > I’m not criticizing her biological bump, just the fact that she very much seemed to be padding it. Yes, you ARE criticizing her biological bump. You seem to have no clue at all about uteri OR photography, and your comparisons of those photos is roughly similar to scrutinizing photos of the Twin Towers looking for clues to where they planted the explosive charges (seriously, to somebody who does know something about ob-gyn, your comparisons are that ludicrous). A lot of the “rules” you quote seem to be drawn more from lists of what certain people think the rules ought to be, rather than what the Firm actually expects. “No PDA” and “always wear hose” are very conservative holdovers from a bygone era, yet the Queen seems to be quite fond of Meghan Markle. (Also, if you followed the royals half as much as you claimed, you’d know her affection for Givenchy is largely due to their current artistic director, Clare Waight Keller, born in Birmingham and educated at the Royal College of Arts, London. In other words, she’s a thoroughly British designer.) ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/74 "2019-05-29T08:32:03Z")
L[deleted redundant post] ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/75 "2019-05-29T16:35:57Z")
There is actually a decent movie ( **W.E.** , written and directed by Madonna, released in 2011) about Wallis and Edward. It goes into great detail about their relationship, his abdication, the perception by the public and the rest of the royal family, etc. It has a really great score by Abel Korzeniowski. The movie stars Abbie Cornish and Jame D’Arcy. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/76 "2019-05-29T16:41:45Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Strangely enough though, one of the most notorious Princesses of Wales (and later Queen Consorts) [Caroline of Brunswick](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caroline_of_Brunswick), was extremely popular, even though she had a scandalous private life. Granted, a lot of it had to do with the fact that her [husband](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_IV_of_the_United_Kingdom) was just as _unpopular_ and treated her like dirt. So his abuse ended up making her a figure of sympathy. One of the great scenes in “Prince Regent” series is when Caroline is arriving in London, and makes some comment to her escort about how much fun she could have with all the young men at court trying to “woo” her… at which point her escort, a much older gentleman, no realizing she was hoping for it, says “Oh, no, your majesty. You will be the Queen of England. It would be treason for them to even suggest such a thing!” and the resulting look on her face was priceless. > [@](#): > > In terms of her fashion choices, I’m going to compare her to Kate Middleton, which is perhaps unfair, because Kate Middleton (KM) is 5’10" with the face and body of a supermodel, and Meghan Markle (MM) cannot help the fact that she does not have all those factors in her favor. I thought Meghan had the face of a Hollywood star…? From the photos I’ve seen, I don’t think Wallace qualified much in the looks department either. That does not seem to have mattered to Edward. From what I’ve read in the media, the general dislike of Camilla has also cooled off quite a bit in the last decade. The snide comments and nasty jokes have been a lot less frequent. Recall that during the Civil War, while the British intellectual class thought that getting rid of slavery was admirable, the south had provided cotton to the British textile industry and Britain consequently provided some support to the CSA. After the war, the USA sued Britain and IIRC they actually settled on reparations. As Punch put it: \*Tho’ with the North we sympathize, It must not be forgotten, That with the South we’ve strong ties, That are composed of cotton. \* One of Henry VIII’s complaints about Anne of Cleves (and contributing to the inability to consummate, and annulment) is the remark he was alleged to have made that “her breasts were not those of a maid.” ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/77 "2019-05-29T17:29:05Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > From what I’ve read in the media, the general dislike of Camilla has also cooled off quite a bit in the last decade FWIW she does appear to have been doing the traditional royal things (opening things, unveiling memorials, turning up to all sorts of\*\* charity dos and making small talk to make people feel special) reasonably well without much hooha from the media. All part of the great tabloid tradition of rotating the guns around different members of the family in turn, and either ignoring or by contrast praising the others. ---
**Author:** ![Malden\_Capell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malden_capell/32/5274_2.png) [@Malden\_Capell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malden_Capell)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/78 "2019-05-29T18:06:55Z")
> [@Gestalt](#): > > My understanding is that Meghan Markel is despised among Britishers (although perhaps not among Americans) for multiple reasons, some of which seem “American”–like her blantant Kardashianism. Really? Maybe it’s my bubble, but I’ve almost only ever seen acceptance. Either people don’t care about the royals in general or have a mild respect for them, but Megan is seen as at least an injection of new blood. The only dislike I’ve seen is from racist people who call Harry a race traitor, and those sort of people are not mainstream. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2019, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/79 "2019-05-29T18:23:18Z")
> [@Malden\_Capell](#): > > Really? Maybe it’s my bubble, but I’ve almost only ever seen acceptance. With a smidgen of “Crikey, Harry’s done well there!” in some circles. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2019, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614/80 "2019-05-30T01:51:19Z")
The comparisons between Mrs. Simpson and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex are wrong. A better comparison is between Simpson and Princess Margaret’s fling with [Peter Townsend](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Townsend_(RAF_officer)) or Prince Andrew’s with [Koo Stark](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koo_Stark) – acceptable for a lover on the side perhaps, but definitely not appropriate as the spouse of a member of the Royal Family. Of course, Simpson got it even worse because Edward was the Prince of Wales and later King, it was the 1930s, and while Simpson was said to be quite charming in person, that certainly wasn’t her public image. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wallis-simpson-and-antiamericanism-in-uk/834614.md?page=5)