Divorce is typically met with equal parts drama and disapproval in the British royal family, but it’s a decision a lot of royals have made. Specifically, a decision three out of four of Queen Elizabeth II’s kids have made, not to mention her grandson and her nephew. But the frequency of royal divorce is a relatively new phenomenon, and you’ll only find two (2) people who got divorced before Princess Margaret. Starting with *fancy royal drumroll*…
Henry VIII
I mean, Henry VIII legit created an entire new church to get out of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn in 1533. And people think Catherine got off “lucky” in the split considering Henry infamously had two of his later wives beheaded. Anyway, moving on!
Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Welcome to the first official royal divorce (Catherine was technically an annulment)… and please be advised it did not go over well. Basically, British Princess Victoria (Queen Victoria’s granddaughter) fell in love with her first cousin Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia, which…erm. Kay. Unfortunately for them I guess, the Duke’s Orthodoxy prevented them from marrying so Victoria begrudgingly married a different first cousin named Ernest Louis, who was the Grande Duke of Hesse in Germany. Truly, you’d think there’d be someone beyond her immediate relatives she’d be into, but apparently not! Anyway, this marriage was filled with infidelity and—after Queen Victoria’s death—was eventually dissolved in 1901. Princess Victoria eventually ended up marrying her other first cousin Duke Kirill, which resulted in them being briefly exiled from Russia.
Princess Margaret
Margaret married Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960, and their wedding was a huge deal. But allegations of infidelity plagued the marriage, and things only got worse when Margaret was photographed with her alleged lover Roddy Llewellyn (fans of The Crown know all about this). She and Antony ended up divorcing in 1978.
Prince Charles
Prince Charles entered into his marriage with Princess Diana in love with someone else (his now-wife Duchess Camilla, specifically), so…it’s not that surprising the relationship didn’t work out. Charles and Diana separated in December 1992, and then the Queen straight-up asked them to divorce in 1995 because things were getting super messy (think: cheating allegations, Diana’s Panorama interview—it was all just a lot). Unsurprisingly, Charles and Diana’s their divorce settlement was a whole thing, and we have the details over here.
Princess Anne
Princess Anne and her first husband Mark Phillips married in 1973, separated in 1989, and announced plans to divorce in 1992—the same year Charles and Diana split. So yeah, a lot going on in the royal family during this era.
Prince Andrew
Plot twist: 1992 was also the year that disgraced royal Prince Andrew and his wife Sarah Ferguson announced their split—though they didn’t get divorced until 1996. They’ve since remained very close, even through Andrew’s many scandals.
Lady Davina Windsor
Lady Davina Windsor (daughter of one of the Queen’s cousins) married Gary Christie Lewis—the first person of Māori descent to marry a member of the British royal family—back in 2004, and they parted ways in 2018. Buckingham Palace didn’t confirm the split until the next year, saying in a brief statement, “Lady Davina and Gary Lewis were divorced last year.”
David Armstrong-Jones
Princess Margaret’s son announced he’d be divorcing his wife Serena Armstrong-Jones in February 2020, after 27 years of marriage. Their spokesperson released a statement saying, “The Earl and Countess of Snowdon have amicably agreed that their marriage has come to an end and that they shall be divorced. They ask that the press respect their privacy and that of their family.”
Peter Phillips
Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips announced his separation from his wife Autumn Phillips in February 2020 (yep, same month as David Armstrong-Jones), and they divorced in summer 2021. Their spokesperson released a statement saying, “They continue to put the wellbeing and upbringing of their wonderful daughters Savannah and Isla first and foremost. Both Peter and Autumn are pleased to have resolved matters amicably with the children firmly at the forefront of those thoughts and decisions.”
Here’s to hoping everyone else’s royal marriages work out, yikes!
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