King George V dies in 1936, and in an unprecedented event, his successor King Edward abdicates the throne—throwing the monarchy into chaos. Edward shocks the people of England by choosing to marry the American divorcee/socialite Wallis Simpson and turning his back on the British empire.

Queen Elizabeth II inherits the throne and faces scandals and rumors involving her sister, her marriage, and even her way of leading. The Queen must forge her own path, walking a tightrope between old tradition and those, like her husband, who want to modernize the monarchy.