Elizabeth & Margaret: The Intimate World of the Windsor Sisters

This biography follows Queen Elizabeth II and her sister Margaret as they navigate life in the royal spotlight. The sisters were extremely close until their uncle Edward VIII abdicated the throne, fundamentally altering their dynamic. Margaret was required to curtsey to her sister, and Elizabeth's stoical amusement at Margaret's behavior masked underlying tensions. Margaret struggled to find her place within the royal system and its expectations. A significant conflict arose when the Queen informed Margaret that the Church and government would not permit her to marry divorcee Group Captain Peter Townsend, forcing Margaret to choose between her title and royal allowances or her relationship with Townsend. The book traces the sisters' relationship from their sheltered childhood through their hidden wartime lives and into their divergent paths following their father's death and Elizabeth's ascension to the throne. Andrew Morton examines how these two distinctly different sisters—one devoted to duty and responsibility, the other resistant to it—shaped the Crown, the royal family, and its adaptation to changing values throughout the 20th century.