Princess Margaret's historic divorce from photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones hit the headlines on several occasions, but her lady-in-waiting has now revealed the private way she dealt with the breakdown of her 16-year marriage.
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Lady Anne Glenconner discussed how the late Queen Elizabeth II's sister helped her in her own volatile marriage with Colin Tennant, aka Lord Glenconner, in her new memoir serialised in the Mail. In 1971, Anne became her childhood friend Margaret's lady-in-waiting, and she revealed that she "learned a lot about stiffening one's spine and getting on with it" from the royal.
WATCH: The Queen and Princess Margaret star in unseen childhood footage
Detailing the "true courage" Margaret showed during the "terrible times" she suffered behind the scenes, she said: "I know she went through some terrible times, facing up to them with great resolution and not a shred of self-pity.
"She hated the idea of divorce, and resisted for a long time, but I watched as Tony placed her in an impossible position, demeaning her and goading her into making it inevitable.
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Princess Margaret's lady-in-waiting and childhood friend made a rare comment about the royal's divorce
"The Princess simply concentrated on getting through all manner of upsetting things, knowing that later they would never seem as distressing as they once had. This resolution struck me as a form of true courage."
She added that the Princess, later the Countess of Snowdon, was very pragmatic and carefully controlled her emotions. "Crying was not her style; she hated it. Once, when I didn't open a door quickly enough for my husband, he blew up — and Princess Margaret saw me start to cry.
The couple got married two months after announcing their engagement
"She just said: 'Stop that at once, Anne. It's absolutely no use.'"
Margaret and Antony got married at Westminster Abbey on 6 May 1960, just over two months after the couple announced their surprise engagement following a low-key two-year relationship.
The former couple welcomed two children together, David Armstrong-Jones and Lady Sarah Chatto, before their split in 1978 – making history as the first royals to divorce since King Henry VIII in 1540. Princess Margaret never remarried, but she was later linked to Roddy Llewellyn after meeting him at Anne's house on the Scottish Borders.
MORE: 7 royals who remarried after divorce: From Prince Charles to Princess Anne
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