Wallis Simpson Bessie Wallis Windsor, The Duchess of Windsor (Bessie Wallis Windsor, formerly Simpson, formerly Spencer, née Warfield) (June 19, 1896 - April 24, 1986), but widely known simply as Wallis Simpson, was the wife of The Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor. The desire of Edward, who was then King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, to marry Wallis, a twice divorced American, caused a constitutional crisis in the United Kingdom and the then British Commonwealth which ultimately led to his abdication to marry "the woman I love". The Duchess of Windsor remains a controversial figure in British history. She was seen as the woman who took a highly popular king from his people. Her private life has remained a source of much speculation. Both the Duke and Duchess of Windsor have also been accused by some critics of being Nazi sympathisers.
