In the years before the Second World War \u2013 and even after fighting had broken out \u2013 King George VI had to confront admirers of Adolf Hitler uncomfortably close to home. Alexander Larman investigates what made members of the upper classes of Britain incline towards appeasement, and how far they were willing to go in their support of the Nazis <\/p>

I never thought Hitler was such a bad chap
The Duke of Windsor, speaking to Lord Kinross, c1965<\/footer><\/blockquote> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>
Even today, 80 years after the Second World War<\/a>, these words retain the power to shock. But when the Duke of Windsor reportedly uttered them to Lord Kinross in the 1960s, few in the upper tiers of the British establishment would have been surprised by the sentiments.<\/p>\n
The former Edward VIII<\/a> has been described as the \u201ctraitor king\u201d on account of his perceived fascist leanings, of which his belief that Adolf Hitler<\/a> was \u201cnot such a bad chap\u201d was almost the least egregious. Edward\u2019s sympathies were well-known enough by 1940 for Winston Churchill<\/a> to write an initial draft of a letter \u2013 later diplomatically toned down \u2013 to the other prime ministers of the Commonwealth that stated:<\/p>\n
\u201cThe activities of the Duke of Windsor on the continent in recent months have been causing [His Majesty] and myself grave uneasiness as his inclinations are well known to be pro-Nazi, and he may become a centre of intrigue.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the podcast | Alexander Larman reveals how figures within the royal orbit were either linked with, or sympathetic to, Nazi Germany in the Second World War era<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>
The Duke and Duchess of Windsor<\/h3>\n
The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Wallis Simpson<\/a>, had visited Germany in October 1937, a trip organised by the Nazi-sympathising industrialist Charles Bedaux as a quid pro quo for having hosted their wedding at his French chateau earlier that summer. The Windsors had met\u00a0 Hitler, and were given a curated tour of Germany as an energetic, forward-looking country, led by a near-messianic figure.<\/p>\n
The duke came away from the visit with a positive impression of the f\u00fchrer \u2013 who hosted him for a private audience at his holiday home at Berchtesgaden \u2013 and wrote a letter of thanks on 23 October in German for the \u201cwonderful time\u201d they had had.<\/p>\n
Read more | Edward VIII: Nazi sympathiser, playboy prince, peace-loving reformer?<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>
He stated that \u201cthe Duchess of Windsor and I would like to thank you sincerely for the great hospitality you have shown us, and for the many options you gave us to witness all that has been done for the working people of Germany. Our trip through Germany has made a great impression on us, and we won\u2019t forget the attentiveness you surrounded us with and the warm welcome we received everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
Had he known that hosting the British aristocracy had been a Nazi speciality since Hitler\u2019s rise to power, Edward might have felt less unique. Yet given the pro-appeasement sentiments that many of the upper classes held in the approach to war, coupled with an admiration for the British fascist leader Oswald Mosley<\/a>, Edward should have known that he was among fellow travellers.<\/p>\n
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