The eldest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Edward was kept away from state affairs while his mother sat on the British throne, and so enjoyed a responsibility-free early adulthood, earning a reputation as a playboy and pleasure-seeking society man. His hedonistic lifestyle, enjoying such pursuits as gambling and shooting, indulging in fine food, and pursuing women, couldn’t have been further from his parents’ piety. While his marriage to Alexandra of Denmark seemed a happy one, and she bore him six children, five of whom survived to adulthood, he still conducted several affairs, with such discretion that it’s virtually impossible to know how many mistresses he kept. Within the gentry, men would even encourage their wives to get into Edward’s bed, in the hope of currying favor with him. One married woman he famously had a relationship was Lady Randolph Churchill, the mother of future Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
Prince Harry’s Crown Jewels and King Henry VIII’s Wives: Top 10 Royals Behaving Badly
The nearly-nude, self-censored photos of the young Prince Harry are hardly an embarrassment for the oft-spotlighted British Royal Family. Past royal dynasties have witnessed illicit affairs, illegitimate children and plenty of acrimonious marital breakdowns.