The brutal wartime murder of wealthy philanthropist and businessman Sir Harry Oakes in his home in the Bahamas sent shock waves through the affluent tropical community and beyond. The murder investigation tested the administrative and forensic mettle of the islands’ governor, the Duke of Windsor, to the limit. It soon became clear that those limits were quickly reached, his decisions becoming the stuff of speculation and controversy that lasted long after his tenure ended. A guessing game quickly ensued involving islanders, historians and journalists. The game was called Who Killed Harry Oakes?
The indefatigable historian Andrew Lownie, who has done so much to expose Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his behaviour as a man and a representative of his country, takes a deep and unflinching dive into the murky world of the Duke of Windsor and his island exploits in his book ‘Traitor King’, and gives his take on the Wallis Simpson clip below. Listen, too, to the Duchess of Windsor articulating the party line - nothing to see here, move along.
The Morton Files is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
on Wallis Simpson’s Recollections
It is fascinating to have this rare insight into Wallis Simpson as she talks to her ghostwriter about her thoughts on the Harry Oakes murder case.
This taped interview for her autobiography should have been an opportunity to tell the full truth about some key moments and figures in her life with a trusted figure. What is interesting is that she does not always do that, an accusation repeatedly made by her various ghostwriters, one of whom, Cleveland Amory, resigned in disgust, saying he could no longer be associated with such a ‘dishonest’ book.
Simpson is at great pains to play down the friendship with Harry Oakes and distance the couple from the murder investigation and subsequent trial. She stresses how it was a matter for the Attorney General and pointed out how in fact the royal couple were abroad for the trial. She justifies the Governor bringing in two Miami cops to conduct the investigation on the grounds that there was no fingerprint machine in the Bahamas and prints needed to be lifted quickly because of the island’s humidity.
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.