Poppy Baring
Toronto Daily Star, 7 January 1925
Poppy Baring (1901-1980) was almost married to two princes of England. Albert, the Duke of York, proposed marriage to her and was accepted, but the future king's mother wouldn't have it. She later had an affair with Prince George, the third son of George V, but the king told him that he couldn't marry her either.
Ms. Baring became known as one of the Bright Young Things of the 1920s, and later opened a dress shop and married a Eton cricketer.
Prince George eventually married Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark in 1934, but kept busy with a number of affairs (including with Kiki Gwynne). He was killed in a military air crash in 1942.
Prince Henry, mentioned in the caption, did marry Lady Mary Scott, though this didn't happen until 1935. She lived to be 102, passing away in 2004.
The caption also mentions that the Duke of York killed an enraged rhinoceros as it was charging at him. Given that the Duke of York eventually became King George VI, the course of British history would have been radically changed if the rhino had gotten him first. It would also have been changed if his mother had let him marry his first choice of spouse.
Created July 23, 2025.