Princess Margaret and Peter Townsend: A Timeline of Their Royal Love Affair

The forbidden romance between Princess Margaret (b. August 1930 – February 2002) and Captain Peter Wooldridge Peter Townsend (November 1914 – June 1995) was revisited in its final chapters throughout the fifth season of The Crown—though their love story in real life was sadly more doomed.

In 1947, Margaret—the daughter of King George VI and the Queen Mother and younger sister to Queen Elizabeth II—first met and fell in love with Townsend, a Royal Air Force Pilot and soon-to-be divorcee 15 years her senior who served as an equerry for the king. Their resulting romance came at a time when marrying a divorcee was not only frowned upon, but also forbidden by the church of England. And since Margaret was not yet 25 years old, she required marriage approval from her sister, the queen, who ultimately refused to give it on account of the captain's marital history.

Still, Margaret’s love for a time transcended royal agendas—and she continued her romance with Townsend for several more years.

Ahead, see the historical overview of Margaret and Townsend's tempestuous love story, from its sweet beginnings to its heartbreaking end.

1947: They meet.

A married Townsend meets then-teenager Margaret for the first time while accompanying the royal family on a three-month tour to South Africa. His duty was to protect the princess throughout the trip, so the two spent a lot of time together.

In later years, Margaret reportedly told a confidante, "We rode together every morning in that wonderful country, in marvelous weather. That's when I really fell in love with him." Margaret reportedly told a confidante.

In October, Townsend also accompanies Margaret on trip to Belfast, where he requests have his room at Hillsborough Castle moved next to hers.

November 1952: Townsend divorces his wife.

Following 11 years of marriage and two young boys, Townsend officially divorces his wife, Rosemary Pratt, Marchioness Camden, in order to commit to Margaret.

April 1953: Townsend proposes to Margaret.

Townsend asks Margaret for her hand in marriage; however, they are unable to get married due to the 1772 Royal Marriages Act, which required that Parliament approve the marriage if the woman was under the age of 25. Margaret does not receive approval from the queen.

June 2, 1953: Rumors of their affair first emerge at the queen's coronation.

Despite dating in secret for several years, rumors of their romance spread following their attendance at the Queen's coronation, following the death of King George the previous year. At the occasion, onlookers observe subtle suggestive exchanges between the two—and per one reporter, Margaret was seen fixing up Townsend's shirt at the event, spurring tabloid headlines speculating on the affair.

August 21, 1955: Margaret turns 25.

Margaret reaches the pivotal age of 25, marking her eligible to freely choose whether to—and whom—to marry.

Due to amendments made preemptively by the queen and the Parliament in the Royal Marriages Act in light of Margaret and Townsend's potential marriage, Margaret would now be exempt from the church of England's rules prohibiting a marriage with a divorcee insofar as she is removed from the line of succession, of which she stood third behind nephew Prince Charles and niece Princess Anne. "Exclusion from the Succession would not entail any other change in Princess Margaret's position as a member of the Royal Family," per Prime Minister Anthony Eden.

Despite these newfound freedoms, Margaret has also been apart from Townsend for two years while he's been stationed abroad in Brussels to serve as an air attaché. She tells Eden in a letter that she would need to meet him face-to-face again in order to arrive at her final decision. "It is only by seeing him in this way that I feel I can properly decide whether I can marry him or not," she writes.

October 31, 1955: Margaret announces the end of her engagement with Townsend.

The princess royal ultimately decides to end her relationship with Townsend to maintain her place in the royal line of succession. In an official statement on BBC Radio, she announces, "I have been aware that, subject to my renouncing my rights of succession, it might have been possible for me to contract a civil marriage. But, mindful of the Church's teaching that Christian marriage is indissoluble, and conscious of my duty to the Commonwealth, I have resolved to put these considerations before any others."

Twenty-three years later, in 1978, Townsend releases his official autobiography, Time and Chance, in which he expresses his ultimate peace with Margaret's decision. "She could have married me only if she had been prepared to give up everything—her position, her prestige, her privy purse," he writes. "I simply hadn't the weight, I knew it, to counterbalance all she would have lost."

Townsend marries Marie-Luce Jamagne in 1959. And one year later, on May 6, Margaret marries photographer Antony Armstrong Jones, who later becomes the Earl of Snowdon. Margaret and Jones eventually divorce in 1978 due to their extramarital affairs, but maintain a friendship up until the end of Margaret's life in February 2002.

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