Iconic clans collide: KENNEDYS VS WINDSORS

Behind the state visits and photo op pleasantries lay a friendship that could be as bitter as it was beautiful

In the United Kingdom, they have the House of Windsor; across the Atlantic, the closest thing Americans have to a “royal” family are the Kennedys.

The lives of the two families have intersected many times over the years, with the latest interactions taking place in the US late last year.

But while there has been much mutual respect for each other over the years, behind the scenes there have also been some prickly moments between the two dynasties. Here’s a look at their encounters.

KING GEORGE VI & JOSEPH P. KENNEDY

The Windsors and Kennedys first crossed paths in 1938, when the Kennedy patriarch was appointed as the American ambassador to the UK, and moved to London with his wife Rose and their nine children.

The son of a wealthy politician, millionaire businessman Joe had made his fortune as a stock market investor and real estate mogul, and cemented his social standing by marrying the daughter of Boston mayor John F. Fitzgerald.

During the family’s first few months in Britain, he and Rose proved popular with aristocrats and wealthy families, and were invited to balls, regattas and other society events.

The highlight of their social calendar was spending a weekend with the King and his wife, Queen Elizabeth, at Windsor Castle in April 1939. Rose chronicled the stay in her diary, calling it “one of the most fabulous, fascinating experiences of my life”.