Lord Snowdon, Princess Margaret's former husband, dies aged 86

Society photographer Lord Snowdon, the former husband of Princess Margaret, has died at the age of 86.

Born Antony Armstrong-Jones, he photographed some of the most famous faces of the 20th century, from Diana, Princess of Wales to Jack Nicholson and Elizabeth Taylor, in a career that lasted more than six decades.

But he will be remembered as the man who married into the royal family, wedding the Queen's younger sister in 1960 – a union that ended in divorce 18 years later.

Margaret had ended her ill-fated relationship with divorced Group Captain Peter Townsend – a former Battle of Britain pilot – five years before she and Lord Snowdon tied the knot, choosing royal duty over love.

Last year it was revealed that she hastily announced her engagement to the man-about-town photographer after receiving a letter from Townsend to say he was marrying a 19-year-old Belgian woman.

Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon had two children and it is said he remained close to the monarchy. He is the only photographer to have had sittings with the Queen throughout her long reign.

The Eton-educated photographer died peacefully at home today, said Camera Press, the photographic agency he worked with for a number of years.

With his famous charm and a string of lovers over the years, Lord Snowdon's tangled affairs of the heart often hit the headlines.

He was a slightly Bohemian character who, in the anything-goes Swinging Sixties, led a glamorous lifestyle mixing with famous faces.

A celebrity photographer who rode a motorbike, had divorced parents and was born without a title, Lord Snowdon was dubbed the 'first royal rebel' for his dislike of convention.

He was also the first real commoner to wed a king's daughter for 450 years.

The early life of Princess Margaret has just been portrayed in Netflix drama The Crown - which began with an inside look at the start of the Queen's reign.

Actress Vanessa Kirby plays Margaret, whose affair with married Group Captain Peter Townsend, a former Battle of Britain pilot, is shown in the first series.

He later divorced his wife to pave the way for marriage to the royal, but the Queen refused to endorse the match.

Princess Margaret has not yet been seen meeting Lord Snowdon on the hit TV show, but that is expected to happen in series two with writer and creator Peter Morgan confirming the season will end in 1964.

Season one covered the period from 1947 up until 1955 and ended with Elizabeth and Philip’s marriage at breaking point as the Prince struggled to adjust his wife’s new role.

Princess Margaret, the Queen's younger sister, died in February 2002 aged 71. She had been ill for some time, suffered a third stroke and developed heart problems.

The Queen Mother died a month later at the age of 101.

After his divorce to Princess Margaret amid rumours of her extra-marital affair, Lord Snowdon married Lucy Lindsay-Hogg, the former wife of film director Michael Lindsay-Hogg.

The marriage ended in divorce in 2000, this time facing allegations that Lord Snowdon was having an affair. There have been a number of similar claims made over the years.

The photographer turned his lens on the worlds of theatre, fashion and high society when he began his career in the 1950s. He later became the royal photographer after his marriage to Princess Margaret.

He is known for his six-decade association with Vogue and in the early 1960s worked with the Sunday Times Magazine on documentary subjects from mental health to loneliness.

- Daily Mail