Shortly after her death, the News of the World, the same publication that had published the photos of the couple in the 1970s, published an article supposedly written by Llewellyn about his love for the princess, which later turned out to be fake.In her long and reluctant reign, Empress Elisabeth became, like Princess Diana or Robert Mueller, the object of collective obsession the more she sought to avoid it. But though Margaret had died, the tabloids’ obsession with her love life didn’t. Llewellyn, who had remained friendly with her through the end, attended her memorial service. Beginning in the 1980s, Margaret began to suffer severe health problems exacerbated by her smoking habit. The tabloid kept pursuing the couple, and Llewellyn’s brother even sold photos of them together to pay off his debts.Įventually, the affair fizzled, and Llewellyn married another woman. Margaret and Llewellyn continued their relationship, withstanding public scorn and criticism for their affair. In a 2018 documentary, Anne Tennant recalls that the queen approached her, saying “I’d just like to say, Anne, it was rather difficult at moments, but I thank you so much for introducing Princess Margaret to Roddy ‘cause he made her really happy.”Īfter the divorce, Lord Snowdon quickly married Lucy Lindsay-Hogg, with whom he had been conducting an extramarital relationship for years. After Margaret’s death, she reportedly thanked Anne Tennant for introducing Margaret to her lover. “I much regret any embarrassment caused to her Majesty the Queen and the royal family, for whom I wish to express the greatest respect, admiration and loyalty.”īut privately, Queen Elizabeth actually approved of Llewellyn and Margaret’s relationship. “I am not prepared to comment on the events of last week,” he said in a statement issued after the couple announced their separation. READ MORE: Why the Royal Family Used to Forbid Marriage After DivorceĪs for Llewellyn, he realized that he was playing a role in a much bigger drama.
She was the first senior member of the royal family to get a divorce in 77 years, challenging the world’s vision of what being a royal could mean. Margaret herself had given up her relationship with Peter Townsend, a divorced war hero, because of the family’s taboo on marriage after divorce. Until her marriage dissolved, the royal family had looked down on divorce. Margaret’s divorce was a scandal unto itself. That month they announced their separation and their marriage officially ended two years later. Princess Margaret with her husband Earl of Snowdon in the Bahamas on March 14, 1976. I think that's the best news you've ever given me.” Napier, in turn, told Margaret, using coded language since he was speaking on an insecure phone line. He told Margaret’s personal secretary, Lord Napier, that he was leaving the princess. When the “compromising” images-tame by today’s standards-were made public in 1976, Lord Snowdon used them as an excuse to escape the strained marriage. By the late 1970s, husband and wife were distant. While she went through the usual round of official functions, Lord Snowdon worked full-time as a photographer for the Sunday Times, and was openly unfaithful to her. Though her family had cheered on her relationship with a commoner, the reality of their marriage was different from what Margaret, who had grown up in a rarefied royal environment, expected. Lord Snowdon had conducted multiple extramarital affairs, and Margaret felt lonely within her marriage.
In reality, Margaret was deeply unhappy in her marriage, and her relationship with Llewellyn was a rare spot of solace.
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