Diana, Princess of Wales (Diana, Princess of Wales), née Diana Francis Spencer (July 1, 1961, Sandringham, Norfolk - August 31, 1997, Paris) - from 1981 to 1996, the first wife of Prince Charles of Wales, heir to the British throne. Popularly known as Princess Diana, Lady Diana or Lady Di. According to a 2002 poll conducted by the BBC, Diana was ranked third on the list of the hundred greatest Britons in history.
Diana was born on July 1, 1961 in Sandringham, Norfolk to John Spencer. Her father was Viscount Althorp, a branch of the same Spencer-Churchill family as the Duke of Marlborough, and.
Diana's paternal ancestors were of royal blood through the illegitimate sons of King Charles II and the illegitimate daughter of his brother and successor, King James II. The Earls Spencer have long lived in the very center of London, in Spencer House.
Diana spent her childhood in Sandringham, where she received her primary education at home. Her teacher was governess Gertrude Allen, who also taught Diana's mother. She continued her education in Sealfield, in private school near King's Line, then at Riddlesworth Hall Preparatory School.
When Diana was 8 years old, her parents divorced. She stayed to live with her father, along with her sisters and brother. The divorce had a profound impact on the girl, and soon a stepmother appeared in the house, who disliked the children.
In 1975, following the death of her grandfather, Diana's father became the 8th Earl Spencer and she received the courtesy title "Lady", reserved for the daughters of high peers. During this period, the family moved to the ancient ancestral castle of Althorp House in Notthrogtonshire.
At the age of 12, the future princess was accepted into a privileged girls' school at West Hill, in Sevenoaks, Kent. Here she turned out to be a bad student and could not graduate. At the same time, her musical abilities were beyond doubt. The girl was also interested in dancing.
In 1977 a short time attended school in the Swiss city of Rougemont. Once in Switzerland, Diana soon began to miss home and returned to England ahead of schedule.
Princess Diana's height: 178 centimeters.
Personal life of Princess Diana:
In the winter of 1977, before leaving for training, I met my future husband for the first time - when he came to Althorp to hunt.
In 1978 she moved to London, where she first stayed in her mother’s apartment (who then spent most of her time in Scotland). As a gift for her 18th birthday, she received her own apartment worth £100,000 in Earls Court, where she lived with three friends. During this period, Diana, who had previously adored children, began working as a teacher’s assistant in kindergarten Young England in Pimilico.
The wedding of Charles and Diana, which took place on July 29, 1981, attracted a lot of public and media attention. In 1982 and 1984, the sons of Diana and Charles were born - the Princes and the Princes of Wales, who are next in line to inherit the British crown after their father.
By the early 1990s, relations between the spouses were upset, in particular due to Charles's ongoing relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles (later, after the death of Diana, who became his second wife).
Diana herself had a close relationship with her riding instructor, James Hewitt, for some time, which she admitted in a 1995 television interview (a year earlier, Charles made a similar admission about his relationship with Camilla).
The marriage broke up in 1992, after which the couple lived separately, ending in divorce in 1996 on the initiative of the Queen.
Shortly before her death, in June 1997, Diana began dating film producer Dodi al-Fayed, the son of Egyptian billionaire Mohamed al-Fayed, but apart from the press, this fact was not confirmed by any of her friends, and this is also denied in the book of Lady Diana’s butler, Paul. Barrel, who was a close friend of the princess.
Diana was actively involved in charitable and peacekeeping activities(in particular, she was an activist in the fight against AIDS and the movement to stop the production of anti-personnel mines).
She was one of the most popular women of her time in the world. In Great Britain she has always been considered the most popular member of the royal family, she was called the “Queen of Hearts” or “Queen of Hearts”.
On June 15-16, 1995, Princess Diana made a short visit to Moscow. She visited the Tushino Children's Hospital, to which she had previously provided charitable assistance (the princess donated medical equipment to the hospital), and the Primary secondary school No. 751, where she solemnly opened a branch of the Waverly House Foundation for helping disabled children.
On June 16, 1995, a ceremony was held to present Princess Diana with the International Leonardo Prize at the British Embassy in Moscow.
Death of Princess Diana
On August 31, 1997, Diana died in Paris in a car accident along with Dodi al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul. Al-Fayed and Paul died instantly, Diana, taken from the scene (in the tunnel in front of the Alma bridge on the Seine embankment) to the Salpêtrière hospital, died two hours later.
The cause of the accident is not entirely clear; there are a number of versions (the driver was intoxicated, the need to escape at speed from being pursued by paparazzi, as well as various conspiracy theories). The only surviving passenger of the Mercedes S280 with the number "688 LTV 75", bodyguard Trevor Rees Jones, who was seriously injured (his face had to be reconstructed by surgeons), does not remember the events.
On December 14, 2007, a report was presented by the ex-Commissioner of Scotland Yard, Lord John Stevens, who stated that the British investigation confirmed the findings that the amount of alcohol in the blood of the car driver, Henri Paul, at the time of his death was three times higher than the French limit. legislation In addition, the speed of the car exceeded the permissible speed in this place twice. Lord Stevens also noted that the passengers, including Diana, were not wearing seat belts, which also played a role in their deaths.
Princess Diana was buried on September 6 at the Spencer family estate of Althorp in Northamptonshire, on a secluded island.
Who did Princess Diana interfere with?
Diana was repeatedly called "the most photographed woman in the world" (some sources share this title between her and Grace Kelly).
Many books have been written about Diana various languages. Almost all of her friends and close collaborators spoke with their memories. There are several documentaries and even feature films. There are both fanatical admirers of the memory of the princess, who even insist on her holiness, and critics of her personality and the pop cult that has arisen around her.
As part of the album Black Celebration (1986) by Depeche Mode, the composition “New Dress” was released, in which the author of the words and music, Martin Gore, played out in an ironic form the extent to which the media paid close attention to the life of Princess Diana.
2. April 23, 1983. Princess Diana holding Prince William at Government House in Auckland New Zealand, during an official visit.
3. September 24, 1985. Princess Diana and Prince Charles introduce their three-year-old son Prince William to kindergarten headmistress Jane Mynors.
4. January 15, 1987. Diana, Princess of Wales accompanies her son William on his first day of school.
5. September 1989: Princess Diana with sons Harry and William during Prince Harry's first day at school, Notting Hill, London.
6. March 1, 1991. Princess Diana and her son Prince William in Cardiff during his first official introduction.
7. September 1995: The Prince and Princess of Wales at Eton College with Principal Dr Andrew Gailey during Prince William's first day at the institution.
8. August 16, 1997. The Prince of Wales and his sons Princes William and Harry at Muick Falls on the Balmoral Estate, Scotland, during the summer holidays.
9. August 31, 1997. Prince Charles and his two sons, Princes William and Harry, leave church on the Balmoral estate after morning service. On this day they learned that Princess Diana had died in a car accident in Paris.
10. September 6, 1997: Princess Diana's sons Prince William and Prince Harry with their father Prince Charles and uncle Earl Spencer outside Westminster Abbey on the day of Diana's funeral.
11. March 24, 1998. Prince William greets the crowd during his visit to a school in Burnaby, Canada. William and Harry visited Canada for a six-day visit, their first official trip since the death of their mother Princess Diana.
12. June 2000. Two photographs to mark Prince William's eighteenth birthday. William was one of Eton's group of "prefects". In total, it consisted of 21 students who were responsible for 1,280 boys at Eton. "Prefects" were allowed to wear any frock coat of their choice. They were responsible for discipline among students. The Institute of Prefects was established at Eton in 1811.
13. August 4, 2000. Members of the Royal Family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during celebrations of the Queen Mother's centenary. From left to right: Princess Anne, Peter Philips, Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice, Prince Andrew, Princess Margaret, The Queen Mother, Prince Edward, Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of Edinburgh, Sophie Wessex, Prince William, Prince Charles, Prince Harry.
14. December 7, 2000. Prince William prepares timber to strengthen a bridge during his expedition to Tortel, southern Chile.
15. September 23, 2001. Prince William greets those gathered outside St Andrew's University in Scotland on his first day of study at the institution.
16. April 5, 2002. Prince Charles and his son Prince William follow the Queen Mother's coffin in a funeral procession.
17. June 4, 2002. Princes Harry and William attend Queen Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee celebrations in front of Buckingham Palace.
18. June 17, 2003. Stamps featuring Prince William, issued by Royal Mail to mark William's 21st birthday. They went on sale four days before the prince's birthday.
19. June 21, 2003. A man dressed as Osama Bin Laden to celebrate Prince William's birthday at Windsor Castle. British Home Secretary David Blunkett ordered an immediate investigation after an unknown person broke into a closed event at Windsor Castle, where about 300 guests were present.
20. April 9, 2005. Prince Charles and his wife the Duchess of Cornwall, the former Camilla Parke Bowles, and Princes William and Harry leave Guildhall in Windsor after Prince Charles's wedding.
21. June 23, 2005. Kate Middleton and Prince William on graduation day from St Andrew's University.
22. October, 2005. HRH Prince William during his army training course at Westbury in Wiltshire. Buckingham Palace has announced that William will join the army next year as a military officer at Sandhurst Military Academy.
23. Her Majesty the Queen with her grandson Prince William during the parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
24. February 10, 2007. Prince William and Kate Middleton watch a rugby match at Twickenham Stadium in London. The second photo shows them at the Cheltenham Festival, March 13, 2007.
25. July 1, 2007. Prince William and Prince Harry attend a concert in memory of Princess Diana at Wembley Stadium in London, which was held on the late princess's 46th birthday.
26. April 11, 2008. Prince William and Kate Middleton after their graduation ceremony from the Royal Air Force Academy in Lincolnshire. Twenty-five-year-old William completed an intensive course and received the rank of pilot.
27. June 18, 2009. Princes William and Harry at Shawberry Air Force Base, where they were both trained to fly a helicopter. William trained as a search and rescue helicopter pilot, and Harry trained as a military aircraft pilot.
28. January 18, 2010. Prince William and Sir Paul Reeves, the former Governor-General, greet each other in Maori fashion during the Prince's visit to New Zealand, Prince William's first overseas visit.
29. June 15, 2010. Princes William and Harry hold an African python during a visit to the Mokolodi Science Center in Gaborone, Botswana. The princes visited Africa for a six-day visit, visiting Botswana, Lesotho and South Africa.
30. November 16, 2010. Prince William's engagement was officially announced at St. James's Palace in London.
FULL NAME: Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer)
DATE OF BIRTH: 07/01/1961 (Cancer)
PLACE OF BIRTH: Sandringham, UK
EYE COLOR: Blue
HAIR COLOR: blond
FAMILY STATUS: Married
FAMILY: Parents: John Spencer, Frances Shand Kydd. Spouse: Prince Charles. Children: William Duke of Cambridge, Prince Harry of Wales
HEIGHT: 178 cm
OCCUPATION: Princess of Wales
Biography:
From 1981 to 1996, the first wife of Prince Charles of Wales, heir to the British throne. Popularly known as Princess Diana, Lady Diana or Lady Di. According to a survey conducted in 2002 by the BBC, Diana was ranked 3rd in the list of the hundred greatest Britons in history.
Born July 1, 1961 in Sandringham, Norfolk to John Spencer. Her father was Viscount Althorp, a branch of the same Spencer-Churchill family as the Duke of Marlborough and Winston Churchill. Diana's paternal ancestors were of royal blood through the illegitimate sons of King Charles II and the illegitimate daughter of his brother and successor, King James II. The Earls Spencer have long lived in the very center of London, in Spencer House.
Diana spent her childhood in Sandringham, where she received her primary education at home. Her teacher was governess Gertrude Allen, who also taught Diana's mother. She continued her education in Sealfield, at a private school near King's Line, and then at Riddlesworth Hall preparatory school.
When Diana was 8 years old, her parents divorced. She stayed to live with her father, along with her sisters and brother. The divorce had a profound impact on the girl, and soon a stepmother appeared in the house, who disliked the children.
In 1975, following the death of her grandfather, Diana's father became the 8th Earl Spencer and she received the courtesy title "Lady", reserved for the daughters of high peers. During this period, the family moved to the ancient ancestral castle of Althorp House in Northamptonshire.
At the age of 12, the future princess was accepted into a privileged girls' school at West Hill, in Sevenoaks, Kent. Here she turned out to be a bad student and could not graduate. At the same time, her musical abilities were beyond doubt. The girl was also interested in dancing. In 1977, she briefly attended school in the Swiss city of Rougemont. Once in Switzerland, Diana soon began to miss home and returned to England ahead of schedule.
In 1978, she moved to London, where she first stayed in her mother’s apartment (who then spent most of her time in Scotland). As a gift for her 18th birthday, she received her own apartment worth £100,000 in Earls Court, where she lived with three friends. During this period, Diana, who had previously adored children, began working as an assistant teacher at the Young England kindergarten in Pimlico.
Diana first met Charles, Prince of Wales, at the age of sixteen, in November 1977, when he came to Althorp on a hunting trip. He dated her older sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale. One weekend in the summer of 1980, Diana and Sarah were guests at one of the country residences, and she saw Charles playing polo, and he showed serious interest in Diana as a potential future bride. Their relationship developed further when Charles invited Diana to Cowes one weekend for a ride on the royal yacht Britannia. This invitation followed immediately after a visit to Balmoral Castle (the Scottish residence of the royal family). There, one weekend in November 1980, they met with Charles's family.
Over the course of five years of married life, the spouses' incompatibility and an age difference of almost 13 years became obvious and destructive. Diana's belief that Charles had an affair with Camilla Parker Bowles also had a negative impact on the marriage. Already in the early 1990s, the marriage of the Prince and Princess of Wales fell apart. The world media first hushed up the event and then made a sensation out of it. The Prince and Princess of Wales spoke to the press through friends, and each blamed the other for the collapse of their marriage.
Diana presenting the trophy to Guillermo Gracida Jr. at a polo tournament at Guards Polo Club in 1986
The first reports of difficulties in the relationship between spouses appeared already in 1985. Prince Charles has reportedly rekindled his relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles. And then Diana began an extramarital relationship with Major James Hewitt. These adventures were described in Andrew Morton's book "Diana: Her true story", published in May 1992. The book, which also showed the suicidal tendencies of the unfortunate princess, caused a storm in the media. In 1992 and 1993, recordings of telephone conversations were leaked to the media, which negatively reflected on both royal antagonists. Tape recordings of conversations between the Princess and James Gilbey were provided hotline newspaper "Sun" in August 1992, transcripts of intimate conversations were published in the newspaper in the same month. Next, in November 1992, tapes with recordings surfaced intimate details relationship between the Prince of Wales and Camilla, also picked up by the tabloids. On 9 December 1992, Prime Minister John Major announced the couple's "amicable separation" in the House of Commons. In 1993, the Trinity Mirror newspaper (MGN company) published photographs of the princess in tights and cycling shorts while working out at one of the fitness centers. The photographs were taken by the owner of the fitness center, Bruce Taylor. The princess's lawyers immediately demanded an indefinite ban on the sale and publication of photographs around the world. Despite this, some newspapers outside the UK managed to reprint them. The court upheld the claim against Taylor and MGN, prohibiting further publication of the photographs. MGN eventually apologized after facing a wave of public criticism. It was said that the princess received £1 million in legal fees and £200,000 was donated to causes she headed. charity organisations. Taylor also apologized and paid Diana £300,000, although it was alleged that members of the royal family helped him financially.
In 1993, Princess Margaret burned “particularly personal” letters Diana wrote to the Queen Mother, deeming them “too personal.” Biographer William Shawcross wrote: "No doubt Princess Margaret felt she was protecting her mother and other members of the family." He suggested that Princess Margaret's actions were understandable, although regrettable from a historical perspective.
Diana blamed Camilla Parker-Bowles, who had previously had a relationship with the Prince of Wales, for her marital problems, and at some point she began to believe that he had other affairs. In October 1993, the princess wrote to a friend that she suspected her husband of love affair with his personal assistant (his sons' former nanny) Tiggy Legg-Brooke, and that he wants to marry her. Legg-Bourke was hired by the prince as a young companion for his sons while they were in his care, and the princess was resentful of Legg-Bourke and dissatisfied with her attitude towards the young princes. On December 3, 1993, the Princess of Wales announced the end of her public and social life.
At the same time, rumors began to appear about the Princess of Wales's affair with James Hewitt, a former riding instructor. These rumors were made public in Anna Pasternak's 1994 book entitled "The Princess in Love", which was made into a film of the same name by director David Green in 1996. Julie Cox starred as the Princess of Wales, and Christopher Villiers portrayed James Hewitt.
On 29 June 1994, in a television interview with Jonathan Dimbleby, Prince Charles appealed to the public for understanding. In the interview, he confirmed his extramarital affair with Camilla Parker Bowles, saying he rekindled the relationship in 1986 when his marriage to the princess was "irretrievably broken down." Tina Brown, Sally Bedell-Smith and Sarah Bradford, like many other biographers, fully supported Diana's 1995 BBC Panorama confession; in it she said that she suffered from depression, bulimia and subjected herself to self-torture many times. The show transcript records Diana's confessions, confirming many of the problems she told interviewer Martin Bashir about, including "cuts on her arms and legs." The combination of illnesses from which Diana herself said she suffered led some of her biographers to suggest that she had borderline personality disorder.
On August 31, 1997, Diana died in Paris in a car accident along with Dodi al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul. Al-Fayed and Paul died instantly, Diana, taken from the scene (in the tunnel in front of the Alma bridge on the Seine embankment) to the Salpêtrière hospital, died two hours later.
The cause of the accident is not entirely clear; there are a number of versions (the driver was intoxicated, the need to escape at speed from being pursued by paparazzi, as well as various conspiracy theories). The only surviving passenger in the Mercedes S280 with license plate 688 LTV 75, bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones (Russian)English, who was seriously injured (his face had to be reconstructed by surgeons), does not remember the events.
On December 14, 2007, a report was presented by the ex-Commissioner of Scotland Yard, Lord John Stevens, who stated that the British investigation confirmed the findings that the blood alcohol content of the car driver, Henri Paul, at the time of his death was three times higher than the French legal limit. legislation In addition, the speed of the car exceeded the permissible speed in this place twice. Lord Stevens also noted that the passengers, including Diana, were not wearing seat belts, which also played a role in their deaths.
Princess Diana, 1988 (the year considered the official start of the break between Charles and Diana).“I sit at my desk today and desperately need someone who will hug me, encourage me, help me become stronger and hold my head high,” Princess Diana wrote in her diary in 1993. She felt absolutely alone throughout her marriage to Charles, and even more so afterward. Just think about it: Princess Diana would be alive today if she had been born into a family at least a little similar to the one into which Kate Middleton was lucky enough to be born. In a family where parents are a reliable support and unconditional love, and not a tangle of vices and vain ambitions.
Papa John Spencer
“What can you say about your daughter’s upcoming wedding to Prince Charles? You are happy?" ─ asked the excited TV journalist. The corpulent John Spencer involuntarily grunted with pleasure several times into the camera and, laughing not too aristocratically, replied: “Oh, yes, of course!”
This blitz interview took place on February 24, 1981, near the fence of Buckingham Palace, on the day of the official announcement of the engagement of Diana and Charles. Earl Spencer was in seventh heaven - his life's project was close to fruition.
The fact that 19-year-old Diana was an infantile child, and Prince Charles a sophisticated (including in love) 31-year-old man, did not matter. Edward John Spencer himself married at 30, and his wife was also 12 years younger, so the difference between Charles and Diana did not bother him. Nor was the unhappy ending of her own misalliance frightening: Frances endured 13 toxic years next to him and at 31 she ran away to another, accusing her husband of domestic tyranny and beatings (alas, the poor thing had no evidence, although Diana admitted in one of her interviews that she had seen how a father hits his mother in the face).
The main thing that John Spencer saw in Diana was that she was his last chance to become related to the Windsors.
According to the original plan, Charles was supposed to get the eldest of the daughters - the lively and prettier Lady Sarah. As for Diana, she was being prepared for Andrew. Everything was so serious that the girl had a portrait of Elizabeth II’s youngest son on her bedside table, and her family nicknamed her “Duchess” (“Duch”) - a title she would receive if she married Andrew, Duke of York. For the same reason, the Spencer family practically spat on Diana's education. The future Duchess of York had no use for it.
But everything went wrong.
Sarah was already taken seriously as the most likely candidate for Charles's bride when she allowed herself to comment to the press: “I don’t care who I marry, a garbage man or a prince, as long as there is love between us.” The girl just wanted to convey to the public that she was not with the prince because of the titles. But it turned out crooked, and Charles crossed Sarah off his list with the words “You just did something incredibly stupid.”
The Spencers urgently needed a spare bride. And the portrait of Andrew on Diana's nightstand was replaced with a photo of Charles.
Grandma Ruth Fermoy
Lady Fermoy hoped that her granddaughter would be more prudent than her mother to appreciate the family's efforts. Lady Fermoy decisively erased her own daughter from her life. The ungrateful girl dared to divorce Diana's father. And this is after so many efforts made by Ruth to marry 18-year-old Frances to the most eligible bachelor - the future Earl Spencer. Their wedding was attended by all members of the royal family, including Elizabeth II. And the wedding took place in Westminster Abbey (Frances then became the youngest bride ever married in this place). All for the sake of your beloved daughter? The true motives became clear when Frances tried to achieve joint custody of the children after the divorce. Ruth mercilessly sided with her son-in-law, slandering her daughter in court. In her opinion, communication with her mother could harm the girls' future. But the family had special plans for them. Francis was no longer allowed into the house, and the children were told that their mother had left them for another man. No one thought what damage such information would cause to the psyche of children.
Lady Fermoy showed the only gesture of prudence after the official announcement of the engagement of Diana and Charles. “Dear, you must understand that their sense of humor, their way of life is different, and I don’t think they will suit you,” she told her granddaughter. But it's too late. Diana was poisoned by the illusions of her own chosenness. And all she did was refuse to invite her grandmother to the wedding. She was content with the invitation from Elizabeth Sr.
Even before her death in 1993, Ruth Fermoy acted not as Diana's own grandmother, but as an adherent of the royal family. Already knowing that the end was near, she asked for forgiveness from Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother for having a hand in Diana's marriage to Charles. Ruth complained that she should have warned everyone from the very beginning “about the bad temper” of her granddaughter, who clearly took after her mother.
Mom Frances Shand Kid
Yes, they were often compared with each other - the mother also married very early and to a man who was 12 years older, they were both unhappy in their marriage and both came to the idea of divorce by the age of 30. But that's where the similarities ended. “Mom had a cool character. If my mother had been in my place, Camilla would have ended up somewhere outside the UK immediately after the wedding, maybe even at the South Pole,” Diana joked. Frances was selfish. And she knew how to make sacrifices for personal good. Even if the victims were their own children. “I couldn’t understand: how could you leave your children? It’s better to die than to leave your child,” the princess later said. But for Frances it was never a question of life and death. At 31, she set out to arrange her personal life, knowing that she was leaving four children without a mother.
Diana honestly tried to improve her relationship with her mother the entire time she was married to Charles. She invited her to the wedding. She invited me to all important events in her life. And when Frances herself had a heart attack in 1988 Once again waters (her second husband left her for a younger woman), Diana dragged her mother to “lick her wounds” to her place in Kensington Palace. In 1990, the princess took her mother on vacation to the Hawaiian Islands. But friendship and understanding never happened between them. And when it became clear that Diana and Charles’s marriage was rapidly heading towards divorce, Frances stepped aside to see how things would end. And then she started making strange comments to the press. She was glad in an interview that Diana was freed from the title of “Princess of Wales” (it was not entirely clear which aspect brought her joy - that Diana became free, or that she was deprived of the title of princess). Then she spoke rudely about her when she found out who her lover was. Did she have the right to criticize Diana for wanting to arrange her future? A few months before her death, Diana once again quarreled with her mother during telephone conversation and stopped communicating with Frances completely.
Brother Charles Spencer
At Diana’s funeral and now, 20 years after her death, her younger brother Charles Spencer repeats in a broken voice: “How I wish I could help her!” And he immediately receives a response from the princess’s former chef: “This makes me sick. Where were you when she really needed you? You were never on her side." Darren McGready is not alone. “I’m not going to sit and be silent while Diana’s younger brother rewrites history,” the princess’s former butler Paul Burrell supports his colleague. In 2002, he handed over to the court Diana’s correspondence with Charles Spencer, dated 1993 - these letters became the best evidence of “brotherly” hypocrisy.
In December 1992, Diana and the Prince of Wales officially announced their decision to separate. Diana desperately needed the opportunity to escape away from London, gather her strength and “reboot.” The best place she saw Garden House, the house in which she was born and lived the carefree years of her childhood. Her father had already died by that time, her brother lived in Althorp, the Spencer family castle. Meanwhile, Garden House was empty, and Diana was absolutely sure that Charlie would not refuse her request for temporary shelter in home. At the beginning of 1993, she wrote to him about this. And in response she received an estimate - how much it would cost her to live on the estate, and what he expected from her besides rent. However, while Diana was digesting the contents of the first letter, 2 weeks later the second one arrived. My brother changed his mind. And her presence in Garden House was now seen as undesirable. But he, of course, can help her find something else to rent. “I’m very sorry that I won’t be able to help my sister,” Charles Spencer ended the message. He returned Diana's angry answer to her without opening the envelope.
However, why did Diana suddenly decide that her brother would be on her side? 4 years before these events, Charles had already shown how cynical he could be towards his sister, who did not live up to the expectations of her relatives. When it became obvious that things were heading towards divorce, wasn't it her brother who asked Diana to return the same "Spencer tiara" that adorned her head on her wedding day? It was difficult to make it hurt more. This tiara meant more to Dee than her favorite piece of jewelry. By the standards of the royal family, Diana was practically without a dowry. And this tiara was a kind of symbol of her independence, the only impressive jewel that she brought with her into marriage. There was a short quarrel between Diana and her brother. As it turned out, Charles decided to give this tiara to his future wife so that she could decorate her wedding dress with it. Double slap. Diana put the tiara in a cardboard box and took it downstairs to the butler, telling Charles Spencer that he could call for it at any convenient time.
“For 20 years now I’ve been asking myself: what could I have done? What a pity that I didn’t have time to help her” ─ Lady Di’s brother sheds tears in front of the lenses of ABC TV channel already in 2017.
“What hypocrisy! Charles Spencer forgot that some of us were there when he turned his back on Diana,” and these are the words of Elizabeth II’s former press secretary, Dickie Arbeiter, who, on duty, communicated with Diana throughout the years of the princess’s life at Court.
“I have always interfered with everyone, I was unnecessary... Of the entire host of relatives and acquaintances around me, only my boys love me, and it’s me, with all my shortcomings and advantages,” Diana once said sadly. Even if the princess was not always honest, these words are the pure and very bitter truth.
So bye The Royal Family On the occasion of the 20th anniversary, she once again “takes the rap” for the death of the “princess of human hearts,” her blood relatives are rewriting history with enviable zeal and earning millions from souvenirs and an attraction called the “Princess of Wales Memorial” in family estate Althorp (admission, of course, is paid - 18.50 English pounds). The memory of Diana is perfectly monetized. Especially on anniversaries. So, in honor of the 15th anniversary of the princess’s death, an exhibition of her outfits was organized in Althorp. And now there is an exhibition there best photos Lady Di, made by Mario Testino. Diana's body is buried on an island where the general public has no access, but everyone can admire the place from afar and look at the almost sacred waters washing the shores of the tomb of the people's princess. Of course, also for money. Recently, Earl Spencer invested several million pounds sterling in the reconstruction of Althorp and the princess's grave. Knowing that even during his sister’s lifetime he did nothing for her sake for nothing, one can imagine what kind of profit Charles Spencer expects to make in this anniversary year.
Lady Diana. Princess of human hearts Benoit Sophia
Chapter 2. GENEALOGY OF “CINDERELLA”, or THE WHOLE TRUTH ABOUT DIANA SPENCER’S PARENTS
They often said about Diana: incredible, a simple teacher became a princess! Yes, that's the story modern Cinderella! Of course, the rise of a modest girl is like a fairy tale. But is this fairy tale about the people's princess so simple, and can the family of monarchs easily accept a simpleton from the street into their ranks? If you believe this, you might want to check out the pedigree of the shy "Cinderella."
The mother of the future Princess of Wales, Frances Althorp, traced her descent from the Irish politician, member of the British Parliament Edmund Bourke Roche, who lived in the 19th century. For his services to the prosperity of the British Empire, Queen Victoria granted Mr. Edmund Roche the title of baronet, after which he began to be called the first Baron Fermoy.
The third Baron Fermoy, Edmund's youngest son James Roche, married Frances Wark in 1880, the daughter of a wealthy American stockbroker. As historians testify, in those days, marriages between the scions of the British aristocracy and the “dollar princesses” of the New World were common, when two components were mixed: title and money. In this case, the arranged marriage ended after eleven years. Taking three children, the woman returned back to New York. Her father Frank Wark left thirty million pounds each to his grandchildren Maurice and Francis, on the condition that the heirs... renounce their British titles and accept American citizenship. But the brothers refused to accept such conditions. However, when Frank Work died in 1911, they found a way to get most of the inheritance and live a comfortable life. An amazing fate befell Maurice; a young man fought during the First World War; by virtue of family circumstances was forced to take the title of fourth Baron Fermoy and return to Great Britain in 1921.
Edmund Bourke Roche - 1st Baron Fermoy
The experience of American life made him a stranger among his own. But the education received at Harvard, sincerity and lack of snobbery, and military training made his image attractive in the eyes of many young ladies of high society. However, sympathy for him was strong with different sides, which confirms his repeated election to the House of Commons.
Maurice managed to become friends with Albert, Duke of York, youngest son King George V. The royal friend managed to secure such a privilege: the Fermoys were given a lease on the Park House guest house located on the territory of the royal Sandringham estate. Here, on January 20, 1936, Frances, the second daughter of Maurice, who later became the mother of Diana, would be born. The girl was born on a fateful day: the day of the death of King George V.
The British crown went to the late monarch's eldest son, Edward VIII. Who, as we know from history, was madly in love with the American Wallis Simpson. He dreamed of marrying his chosen one, but she was a divorced woman, and such a marriage could not take place in the royal family. The same story - an affair with the officer's ex-wife Camilla - will be experienced by the heir to the British throne, Prince Charles, and the beautiful Diana, by the will of fate, will be drawn into this ill-fated love triangle.
British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin threatened King Edward with legal resignation if he did not give up his unequal marriage. The prime minister's statement forced the monarch to choose: either the throne or love. Edward rushed to seek advice from his friend William Churchill, but received evasive answers. As a result, the monarch chose love and abdicated the throne on December 10, 1936 in favor of his younger brother Albert.
Edward, Prince of Wales and Wallis Simpson in 1935. It was the desire of the future king to marry the divorced Wallis that led to his abdication in December 1936
Duke of York Albert Frederick Arthur George, who ascended the throne as George VI, favored his close friend Maurice Fermoy. It is not surprising that the king's friend was desirable in the eyes of many beauties of high society. Lady Glenconner once remarked:
Maurice was such a red tape guy. Even I was a little afraid of him.
In 1917, during his next trip to America, the successful womanizer met the pretty American Edith Travis and fell in love with her. They gave birth to illegitimate daughter; many years later, she published a book of memoirs, Lilac Days, telling about the passionate feelings of her parents Maurice and Edith.
Maurice's wife was a luckier and more prudent girl named Ruth Gill, whom the loving Briton met in Paris - where the daughter of a Scottish colonel studied piano at the conservatory. However, before meeting Maurice, Ruth dated his younger brother Francis. Realizing that the older brother would inherit the family title and position in society, the young musician immediately went over to Maurice.
She was 23 years old and he was 46 when they got married. This significant event occurred in 1931. Ruth was not only ambitious, but also a smart girl who knew very well what she wanted to get out of life. She learned to play by the rules of high society and easily turned a blind eye to her husband’s love affairs. And she wisely used her passion for music, becoming a patron of the brainchild she created in 1951 - the Festival of Art and Music in King's Lynn.
Maurice Rocher, 4th Baron Fermoy - Diana's maternal grandfather
Diana's grandmother managed to become friends with the Queen Mother, becoming the monarch's best friend. Perhaps, when it came to approving her granddaughter for the role of Princess of Wales, the royal family expected to see in Diana the qualities of her grandmother Lady Ruth Fermoy? But instead of patience and accommodating behavior, over the years, only one thing appeared in Diana - a willful desire for freedom. However, there were reasons for this...
The family of Maurice and Ruth had two daughters - the eldest “bug-eyed” (as she was called) Mary and the youngest “attractive, cheerful and sexy” (as defined by school friends) Frances. Years later, a member of Prince Charles' staff admitted:
When Frances looks at you with her bright blue eyes, she seems grander than the queen herself!
Among the girl's admirers was John, the eldest son of the seventh Earl Spencer, George VI's equerry, Viscount Althorp. Perhaps he would not have paid attention to the fifteen-year-old exalted baby if not for her domineering mother Lady Ruth Fermoy, who immediately set the goal of getting John as her son-in-law. She did everything to make the man interested in her daughter: she arranged “casual” dates, found common interests between them, slipped in nice gifts supposedly on behalf of Frances...
Viscount Althorp, without a doubt, was a profitable match for the pretty youngest daughter Baron Fermoy. And soon he believed that Frances was a charming girl, without whom he could not live.
And so, a few months after Frances turned seventeen, John announced his separation from his fiancée, Lady Anne Coke, and his engagement to Frances Roche Fermoy. In June 1954, a wedding ceremony took place in Westminster Abbey, which was attended by almost 2,000 guests, including Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
The mothers of many families dreamed of a groom like John. Of course - the eldest son of Earl Spencer, heir to thirteen thousand acres in the counties of Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and Norfolk, owner of the family castle Althorp House, stuffed with priceless works of art!
Wedding of Diana's parents in June 1954
The British, who boast of their ancestry, never fail to emphasize their superiority over others. The Spencers also had their own big advantage. It turns out, and as the author of the book “Diana: The Lonely Princess” D. Medvedev tells us, “The first mentions of the Spencers appeared 250 years before the arrival of the famous Hanoverian dynasty, which began in 1714, King George I, and 430 years before the accession of the present the ruling dynasty of Windsor (until 1917 - Saxe-Coburg-Gotha). The Spencers not only served the monarchy, they were among its creators. They lent money to King James I, contributed to the fall of his grandson James II and the elevation to the throne of George I. They were more than once related to the royal dynasties and famous families of the United Kingdom. As a result of genealogical intricacies, Diana was a distant relative of British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, seven US presidents, including George Washington and Franklin Roosevelt, and also - which is quite surprising! - eleventh cousin of her own husband, Prince Charles."
However, on individual sites you can find more extensive information about the pedigree of Lady Di, and among her ancient relatives there are: Rurik of Novgorod; Igor Kyiv; Svyatoslav Kyiv; Prince of Kyiv Vladimir the Great; daughter of Prince Vladimir, wife of the Polish king Boleslav the Brave, Maria Dobronega; as well as many, many famous representatives of the noble ducal and count families of Bavaria, Bohemia, Austria and England, as if they formed one highly branched family tree. The newfangled theory that the world is ruled by representatives of the same families easily fits into this situation, and some researchers see in this a planetary conspiracy, a Masonic plan, and even... a reptilian conspiracy.
Wikipedia, popular among Internet users, reports that Diana “was born on July 1, 1961 in Sandringham, Norfolk, in the family of John Spencer. Her father was Viscount Althorp, a branch of the same Spencer-Churchill family as the Duke of Marlborough and Winston Churchill. Diana's paternal ancestors were of royal blood through the illegitimate sons of King Charles II and the illegitimate daughter of his brother and successor, King James II. The Earls Spencer have long lived in the very center of London, in Spencer House.”
Despite the low self-esteem of the representative of the Spencer family, Diana, the self-esteem of this entire strong family was fundamentally high, which was confirmed by the motto on the coat of arms: “God preserves the just.” And the British establishment respected the Spencers’ claims to be “right” and somewhat chosen.
Diana's father John Althorp was of noble birth, but unlike his brothers in traditionally prim British society, he was an open person, preferring to show their emotions rather than hide them. His friend, Lord St. John Fawsley, assured that John was not afraid to speak openly about his feelings and preferred to live life to the fullest. This is what she said about her father, the Viscount. eldest daughter Sarah:
My father had an innate ability to find a way to human hearts. If he was talking to someone, he really began to be carried away by the feelings of the interlocutor. He knew how to love people! I don’t think this quality can be learned: you either have it from birth or you don’t...
Albert Edward Jack Spencer, Viscount Althorp is Diana's paternal grandfather. Photo from 1921
This character was formed in John as a kind of opposite to the character of his father - the conservative and despotic Viscount Jack Spencer, who disdained everyone who was lower than him in the class caste. Even with his servants he communicated with gestures, pursing his lips contemptuously. It is not surprising that this heavyset and rude man was feared by many, including his son.
Due to his gentle nature and excessive openness, John was drawn to strong women; Frances turned out to be just like that - confident and strong-willed. One of his relatives confessed:
Johnny loves to communicate with strong and strong-willed ladies. There is a feeling that they are a real tonic for him.
Jack Spencer, who stifles any initiative of his son, making him dependent in everything, immediately disliked his young daughter-in-law. Of course, Frances repaid Jack in kind. Moreover, she not only hated her father-in-law, but also disdained his beloved, protected and cherished brainchild - the family castle of Althorp. The young woman openly stated:
The castle evokes a depressing melancholy, as if you are always in a museum that is closed after the departure of regular visitors.
Saving his strength for the decisive fight with his daughter-in-law, the father-in-law warned that he was expecting his first-born, to whom he could pass on the title (girls in British society do not inherit the title). Nine months after the wedding, the first child was born - daughter Sarah, whom the happy young mother immediately dubbed “the honeymoon child.”
Earl Spencer, who on the eve of the birth ordered that firewood be prepared in Althorp for future bonfires in honor of the birth of his grandson, angrily ordered everything to be curtailed until better times.
Francis and John Spencer
Two years later, Frances gave birth to her second child, and again it was a girl. She was given the name Jane. On January 12, 1960, a boy, John, was finally born into the family of Viscount Althorp, whose life lasted only eleven hours. As it turned out, the baby had lung dysfunction, which actually deprived him of his chances of survival.
Count Spencer, dissatisfied with what was happening and deprived of all sympathy, began to persistently demand the birth of an heir. But on the warm evening of July 1, 1961, a girl, Diana Francis, was born. And only in May 1964, the long-awaited heir to the Spencer family, Charles, was born.
Diana turned two years old
From the book The Tragedy of Tsushima author Semenov Vladimir Ivanovich From the book by Faina Ranevskaya. The love of a lonely mocker author Shlyakhov Andrey LevonovichChapter Nine. From “The Wedding” to “Cinderella” From strange lyrics, where every step is a secret, Where there are abysses left and right, Where glory is underfoot, like a withered leaf, Apparently, there is no salvation for me. Anna Akhmatova. “From strange lyrics...” 1943 was a turning point for the warring country.
From the book I Am a Miscarriage by Stanislavsky author Ranevskaya Faina GeorgievnaChapter Nine FROM “WEDDING” TO “CINDERELLA” From strange lyrics, where every step is a secret, Where there are abysses left and right, Where glory is underfoot, like a withered leaf, Apparently, there is no salvation for me. Anna Akhmatova. “From strange lyrics...” 1943 was a turning point for the warring country. Before
From the book by Faina Ranevskaya author Geyser Matvey MoiseevichChapter Eight AROUND “CINDERELLA” One of the few ancient fairy tales that continues to live today is “Cinderella, or the Crystal Slipper” by Charles Perrault. Among the many interpretations of it in theater and cinema, the Soviet film with the same name occupies a special place. In,
From the book Pushkin Circle. Legends and myths author Sindalovsky Naum Alexandrovich From the book by Onassis. Curse of the Goddess author Markov Sergey AlekseevichCHAPTER TWO, which tells about the parents, cloudless childhood and romantic adolescence of the hero, which ended unexpectedly 1Onassis was now out of my head. I thought about him and his daughter constantly (like he himself about money) - sometimes even on dates with
From the book by Lewis Carroll author Demurova Nina Mikhailovna From the book Baron Ungern. Daurian crusader or Buddhist with sword author Zhukov Andrey ValentinovichChapter 1 Pedigree... When in 1956 the Soviet leader N.S. Khrushchev was informed that the government of the Federal Republic of Germany was going to appoint a representative of one of the branches of the ancient Ungern family as the first ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the USSR, his answer was categorical: “No! We had one Ungern, and
From the book Chaliapin author Dmitrievsky Vitaly NikolaevichChapter 1 THE TRUTH OF LIFE AND THE TRUTH OF ART In the summer of 1896 in Nizhny Novgorod The All-Russian Industrial and Art Exhibition opened, timed to coincide with the traditional Nizhny Novgorod fair. Merchants, industrialists and financiers arrived in the ancient Russian city and gathered
From the book Lady Diana. Princess of Human Hearts author Benoit SophiaChapter 2. GENEALOGY OF “CINDERELLA”, or THE WHOLE TRUTH ABOUT DIANA SPENCER’S PARENTS They often said about Diana: incredible, a simple teacher became a princess! Yes, this is the story of a modern Cinderella! Of course, the rise of a modest girl is like a fairy tale. But is this fairy tale so simple?
From the book by Faina Ranevskaya. Women are, of course, smarter author Shlyakhov Andrey LevonovichChapter 5. RAIN SPENCER - THE HATEED STEPMOTHER On June 9, 1975, the seventh Earl Spencer died, after his death John Althorp Spencer finally inherited the title and estate. The family moved from lovely Park House to Althorp Castle. Diana was beside herself with happiness. - Now I
From the book Russian Mata Hari. Secrets of the St. Petersburg court author Shirokorad Alexander BorisovichChapter 19. DIANA'S LOVERS, or AN ENGLISH LADY PREFERING MUSLIMS Princess Diana had sisters, but she called her favorite “sister” a man - her butler Paul Burrell, whom she met in 1980, when she was first invited to the palace as
From the book Diana and Charles. A lonely princess loves a prince... author Benoit SophiaChapter Nine From “The Wedding” to “Cinderella” From strange lyrics, Where every step is a secret, Where there are abysses left and right, Where underfoot, like a withered leaf, is glory, Apparently, there is no salvation for me. Anna Akhmatova. “From strange lyrics...” 1943 was a turning point for the warring country. Before
From the author's book From the author's bookChapter 5. Raine Spencer - the hateful stepmother On June 9, 1975, the seventh Earl Spencer died, after his death John Althorp Spencer finally inherited the title and estate. The family moved from lovely Park House to Althorp Castle. Diana was beside herself with happiness. “Now I
From the author's bookChapter 19. Diana's lovers, or the English lady prefers Muslims Princess Diana had sisters, but she called her favorite “sister” a man - her butler Paul Burrell, whom she met in 1980, when she was first invited to the palace as