Princess Margaret's son, David Armstrong-Jones, has announced that he and his wife of 25 years are getting a divorce. This announcement comes only days after the Queen's grandson, Peter Phillips, announced his own divorce following a period of separation. This has royal watchers speculating that other members of the family may be using the fall-out following Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's decision to step back from the royal family and move to Canada to make their own life changes public.
David is Margaret's son with her ex-husband Antony Armstrong-Jones, who was more commonly referred to as Tony.
So far, friends of the couple say the split is down to the amount of time that David spends away from home, not due to anyone's involvement with another party.
A spokesperson for the couple said, "The Earl and Countess of Snowdon have amicably agreed that their marriage has come to an end and that they shall be divorced. They ask that the press respect their privacy and that of their family."
David and Serena were married in October 1993. The two met after Serena's father hired David to build furniture for his home. David is the owner of LINLEY, a luxury brand of British gifts and furniture.
As a child, David found his home a wonderful place to be. His father was a professional photographer. David told Vanity Fair, "My father’s rooms, as a child, were a very exciting place to be."
He explained why, saying, "not only because of the beautiful models who were coming to be photographed for Vogue or The Sunday Times but also because of the very avant-garde furniture that he had made. He made designs for the investiture of the Prince of Wales in 1969 at Caernarfon Castle. He did this famous dais, where the Queen sat on this very modern, slate, throne-like sort of thing, and all the dignitaries sat on bright-bright-red chairs, which you could then buy."
David's parents were Princess Margaret and Tony, also referred to as Lord Snowden. The pair had a famously disagreeable marriage that was often plagued with fights and alcoholism. In the early days of their relationship, it was a total secret. As biographer Anne de Courcy explained to Town & Country, "Nobody knew about their relationship, there wasn't a whisper about it."
Anne also said, "She would see him in secret at his studio and yes, he would join her at parties, but no one could pinpoint which man she was interested in. The press focused more on the ones who were seen to be eligible. They didn't think of Tony who was often in the background."
Margaret and Tony announced their engagement in February 1960, and their wedding in May was the first royal wedding to be broadcast on TV. David was born the following year.
David attended Bedales School alongside his cousin Andrew and has fond memories of the time: "Bedales was perfect for my sister and me. Very open. Very few rules. No uniforms. Co-educational. And very little of ‘You have to do this like this.’ You very much controlled your education."
David has owned his business for years, and thinks of himself as a furniture builder, not a designer. He and his wife Serena appeared to have a wonderful marriage, and they maintained a home open to guests. He told Vanity Fair, "People turn up. Because people who know this place like coming back. They just say, ‘I’m coming next week,’ which is nice."
When Tony died in 2017, David took over the title Earl of Snowden, and Serena became the Countess of Snowden. Two also have two children together, Charles and Margarita.
The family of four generally stays out of the spotlight, though David gives interviews about his business from time to time.
In one, he discussed his wedding ring in great detail. "Designed by my father, it’s made from gold mined in Wales, because of our Welsh heritage. And then it’s my father’s crest on the flat surface. It’s a stag. He gave it to me on my wedding day, in 1993, when I married Serena."
Though he keeps a low profile, David is a pretty busy member of the family. In addition to running his business, he is honorary chairman for Europe, the Middle East, Russia, and India of the auctioneer business Christie's. He took over the role from his father in 2015.
Prince Charles also chose David as No. 2 in The Prince's Foundation in 2018. The Prince's Foundation is Charles's merger of all of his charity commitments. Royal watchers were surprised by the choice, as many assumed Charles would choose Prince Harry or Prince William instead. But a friend of his explained: "David is very, very close to the Queen and Prince Charles. He goes to Sandringham at Christmas and turns up at Balmoral in the summer."
The same friend also said, "Serena spends most of her time in Gloucestershire. He lives in Kensington. It's been a slow drift apart. I think the impetus for the split is with her but she is very sad about it. It is going to be tough for David. Everyone is surprised. Even if things weren't perfect between them, they are both very family oriented. Their main focus now will be on ensuring that their two children and them remain a family unit even if they are no longer living together as a couple."
