17 Carnations: The Royals, the Nazis, and the Biggest Cover-Up in History

Andrew Morton examines the secret connections among Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, the Duke of Windsor, and Adolf Hitler before, during, and after World War II. The book covers Edward VIII's abdication, his marriage to American Wallis Simpson, a Nazi wartime plot to install him as a puppet king following a British invasion, and the subsequent cover-up by Churchill, General Eisenhower, and King George VI regarding the duke's relations with Hitler. Morton details alleged connections between Simpson and the German foreign minister, the discovery of classified correspondence between the Duke of Windsor and Nazi leadership, and the efforts to conceal these damaging letters and diagrams. He describes a heist ordered by King George VI, involvement of a Soviet spy, and disputes among British and American diplomats and politicians over the matter. Drawing on FBI documents, photographs, and materials from German, Russian, and British royal archives, as well as personal correspondence from Churchill, Eisenhower, and the Windsors, the book presents a historical account of these events and their cover-up.