'It was a different time, the 1950s, and the shadow of Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson likely had a part,' said Taddeo, referring to Margaret's uncle, the former king who abdicated the throne in 1936 to marry Simpson, a twice-divorced American.

In later years, Margaret reportedly told a confidante, 'We rode together every morning in that wonderful country, in marvelous weather. Peter Townsend married Rosemary Pawle in 1941 and the couple divorced in 1952. A brigadiers daughter, she took an old-fashioned view and protected the Royal Family from scandal by declining to divorce Townsend and name the princess as the other woman. It was widely argued that she held a striking. Despite dating in secret for several years, rumors of their romance spread following their attendance at the Queen's coronation, following the death of King George the previous year. The romance between the young Princess and Group Captain Townsend, a shy, handsome hero from the Battle of Britain who worked as the Queen's equerry, captured the public's imagination.

The two grew close, often riding and spending time together, according the 2005 BBC documentary 'Princess Margaret: A Love Story. In Time and Chance, Peter Townsend tells his side of the story in intensely personal terms and places the episode within the whole context of his full and varied life, a story which includes great heroism in World War II as well as his part in one of the most publicized love stories of the twentieth century.How Princes William and Harry reacted to Diana's death, 'The Crown' season 6: Everything we know so far. The romance between Princess Margaret and Group Captain Peter Townsend in the 1950s rocked the British Establishment, pulled at the heartstrings of a nation and brought sorrow to two intensely human individuals. Then she simply said: 'That is exactly how I feel, too.' It was, to us both, an immensely gladdening disclosure, but one which sorely troubled us.' She listened, without uttering a word, as I told her, very quietly, of my feelings. It was then that we made the mutual discovery of how much we meant to one another. 'One afternoon, at Windsor Castle, when everyone had gone to London for some ceremony, we talked, in the red drawing-room, for hours-about ourselves. THE REMARKABLE LIFE OF PETER TOWNSEND, THE MAN CONSIDERED TO BE THE GREAT LOVE OF PRINCESS MARGARET'S LIFE, EQUERRY TO KING GEORGE VI AND HERO OF THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN.

Time and chance by peter townsend