War hero, equerry, round-the-world traveller... and Princess Margaret's lover: How there was much more to Group Captain Peter Townsend than his status as the royal husband that never was

War hero, equerry, round-the-world traveller...

and Princess Margaret's lover: How there was much more to Group Captain Peter Townsend than his status as the royal husband that never was Townsend and Margaret were in love but she was not able to marry him READ MORE: The royal scandal linked to William and Kate's Windsor retreat: Four-bed Adelaide Cottage was once home to Princess Margaret's lover By Ffion Haf and Rebekah Absalom and Harry Howard, History Correspondent Published: 06:58, 20 June 2024 | Updated: 06:58, 20 June 2024 e-mail View comments He was a war hero, a former equerry to the King and the man Princess Margaret was not allowed to marry. And although the latter fact was perhaps the least interesting thing about the fascinating Group Captain Peter Townsend, it is the reason his name still resonates today. The former RAF pilot, who died 29 years ago today from stomach cancer , served King George VI from 1944 to 1952 after fighting in the Second World War .

He met the young Princess Margaret when, as the King's equerry, he was living at Adelaide Cottage - now the home of Prince William and Kate - at Windsor. Margaret and her elder sister, the future Queen Elizabeth II, would take tea in the gardens with their mother, Townsend and his wife Rosemary and the couple's young sons. Townsend and Margaret are believed to have become romantically involved before his formal split from his wife in 1952 - but they were deterred from marrying because of his status as a divorced.