February 9, 2002. Copyright 2002. Graphic News. All rights reserved. PICTURE CAPTION: GN13423 -- British Royalty. Pic: circa 1933. Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of York with their children Princess Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth II) and Princess Margaret. MUST CREDIT: Popperfoto -------------------------- MARGARET -- THE CONTROVERSIAL PRINCESS By Julie Mullins LONDON, February 9, Graphic News: Princess Margaret Rose was born at Glamis Castle, Scotland, on August 21, 1930, the younger daughter of the future King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, now the Queen Mother. MargaretÕs life changed irrevocably when she was just six years old on the abdication of her uncle, Edward VIII. Three years later, when the Second World War broke out, the royal family refused to be evacuated, spending the war years at Windsor Castle. On VE Day the young princesses joined their parents and Winston Churchill on the balcony of Buckingham Palace before slipping downstairs to mingle with the crowds celebrating outside. By the time her elder sister Elizabeth was crowned Queen in 1953, it was clear that Margaret had fallen in love with her fatherÕs dashing former equerry Group Captain Peter Townsend. But the romance was complicated by the fact that Townsend was a divorced man and any marriage to Margaret was considered unacceptable by the Church of England and the political establishment. Elizabeth attempted to defuse the crisis by asking her sister to wait and Townsend was given a posting in Belgium, effectively removing him from the scene. By the time he returned from Brussels in 1955, Margaret had turned 25 -- old enough to marry without the SovereignÕs permission -- and there was intense press speculation that an engagement was imminent. Marrying a divorcee, however, would have meant giving up her royal privileges and eventually Margaret announced that she had decided not to marry Peter Townsend. Instead she plunged into the centre of a social whirl, mixing with the celebrity-packed in-crowd of the late 50s. In May 1960 Princess Margaret married society photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones, later created Earl of Snowdon. They had two children, David, Viscount Linley and Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones. But the couple pursued increasingly different lifestyles and officially separated in March 1976, divorcing two years later. At the time, divorce within the royal family was considered unthinkable and the split created shockwaves in Britain. Always a heavy smoker, Margaret was heavily criticised for her party lifestyle and for spending too much time at her holiday home on the island of Mustique. Speculation about her private life flared again over her relationship with Roddy Llewellyn, a young socialite 17 years her junior, but the affair petered out after a few years. She continued to perform her royal duties -- she was president of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children -- and remained an enthusiastic patron of the arts as president of the Royal Ballet. MargaretÕs health had been giving cause for concern for some time. In 1985 she had part of a lung removed and in 1998, she suffered a mild stroke while holidaying in Mustique and was flown back to Britain for treatment. The following year she severely scalded her legs and feet while taking a bath, injuries which took many months to heal. She was readmitted to hospital early in January 2001 after suffering a second stroke while spending the Christmas holiday at Sandringham with the royal family. A permanent loss of her short-term memory had affected her ability to hold a conversation, she found difficulty in eating and was unable to walk without support. In May Margaret insisted on attending the Chelsea Flower Show and looked frail as she was pushed around the gardens in a wheelchair. She also attended the Duke of EdinburghÕs 80th birthday celebrations at Windsor in a wheelchair and had her left arm in a sling Òfor comfortÓ after her two strokes. Margaret looked the frailest member of the Royal Family when she appeared in public at the Queen MotherÕs 101st birthday celebrations in August 2001. Again, she was confined to a wheelchair, had her left arm in a sling and was wearing heavy dark glasses -- her eyes were over-sensitive to light as a result of the strokes. Margaret celebrated her 71st birthday later that month with a small family gathering at Balmoral in Scotland where she was continuing to receive nursing care. While her own personal relationships often ended unhappily, the marriages of her children, Viscount Linley and Lady Sarah Chatto, have proved more stable and have given Princess Margaret three grandsons, Samuel, Arthur and Charles. /ENDS Sources: The British Monarchy, BBC, Press Association