'The situation is grave' - the Irish documents about Edward VIII's abdication the UK wanted to keep private

"Three decades after the king gave up the throne to marry Wallis Simpson in 1936, the British government requested that a conversation involving Éamon de Valera not be published The British government asked Irish officials to withhold any documentation relating to the 1936 abdication of King Edward VIII from public release, 32 years after he stepped down so he could marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson."

"The British government asked Irish officials to withhold any documentation relating to the 1936 abdication of King Edward VIII from public release, 32 years after he stepped down so he could marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson. Confidential files released as part of the State Archive revealed the UK's sensitivity to any documentation releases in respect to the royal family."

British officials requested that a conversation involving Éamon de Valera from 1936 not be published. The request targeted documentation related to King Edward VIII's 1936 abdication, which occurred so he could marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson. The appeal to withhold records was directed at Irish officials and came 32 years after the abdication. Confidential files in the State Archive show that the UK remained sensitive about releasing material connected to the royal family. The records indicate continuing official caution over archival disclosures tied to the monarchy decades after the abdication.

Read at Independent