Despite how King George VI unexpectedly became king, he was a symbol of continuity and stability during the Second World War, which began just three years into his reign, Harris says.

King George VI was an unlikely monarch – acceding to the throne in 1936 after the abdication of his older brother King Edward VIII, who reigned for less than a year.

King George VI , Queen Elizabeth and Princess Elizabeth view a military parade at Buckingham Palace on March 26, 1944. Photo: Popperfoto via Getty Images.

After his older brother, King Edward VIII abdicated the British throne on Dec. 10, 1936, King George VI officially ascended the throne as the next King of England. The father of the current ...

Moira Hodgson’s review of the books “George VI and Elizabeth” by Sally Bedell Smith and “The Windsors at War” by Alexander Larman (Books, May 6) puts forth that Brtain’s King George VI ...

George VI’s ceremony had seating for 7,700 at Westminster Abbey, the Central Somerset Gazette reported in May 1937. The processional was lined with a 173-foot-long carpet of blue chenille.

Sally Bedell Smith’s latest book, “George VI and Elizabeth,” offers a different lesson. The author of such works as “Diana in Search of Herself,” “Prince Charles” and “Elizabeth ...