Biography

Table of Contents

s. Page
no no.
1. Childhood of Princess Diana 3
2. Family & Marriage 5
3. Accomplishments of Princess Diana 7
4. Problems & Separation 11
5. Divorce 13
6. Princess Diana Biography in Fashion 15
7. Death 19
8. Styles 26
9. Inquiry into Dina’s death 26
10 Timeline for Princess Diana 28
11. Princess Diana Quotes 31

Consumer Behaviour 1
 Biography

D
iana, Princess of Wales, (1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was the first wife of
DCharles, Prince of Wales. Their sons, Princes DWilliam and DHarry,D[3] are
Dsecond and third in line to the Dthrone of the United Kingdom and fifteen other
DCommonwealth Realms.

A public figure from the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles, Diana remained
the focus of worldwide media scrutiny before, during and after her marriage. This continued
in the years following her death in a car crash and in the subsequent display of public
mourning. Contemporary responses to Diana's life and legacy are mixed but popular interest
with the Princess endures.

CHILDHOOD OF PRINCESS DIANA

Diana Frances Spencer was born at Park House, Sandringham in Norfolk, England on 1 July
1961. She was the youngest daughter of Edward John Spencer, Viscount Althorp and his first
wife Frances Spencer, Viscountess Althorp (formerly the Honorable Franc es Burke Roche).

The Spencers are a very old English family. They have been the friend s and helpers of the
Royal Family for hundreds of years. The romantic link to the Royal Family began with Sarah,
Duchess of Marlborough (1660-1744), who was determined that her favorite granddaughter,
the first Lady Diana Spencer, would marry the Prince of Wales. The prime minister, however,
objected and forbade the marriage. It took the Spencers of Althorp another two-and-a-half
centuries for one of their daughters to marry a
Prince of Wales. And by historical coincidence,
her name was also Lady Diana Spencer…

Diana had two elder sisters, Sarah Spencer and

Jane Spencer, and the younger brother, Charles
Spencer. Diana’s early years were spent almost
“next door” to the Sandringham House of Royal
Family. Her first meeting with the man she would
eventually marry took place, as she recalled,
“when I was still wearing nappies. I’ve known him
all my life.”

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Princess Diana childhood was darkened with her parents’ separation when she was only six,
when her mother left with another man, the wallpaper heir Peter Shand Kydd. The divorce
was very painful for the children, especially for the youngest Diana and Charles. The custody
of the children was awarded to the father of Diana, Lord Spencer.

Diana was not an easy child. One of her nannies recalls: “Some children will do as they are
told immediately. Diana wouldn’t. It was always a little battle of wills.” Diana will remain
with a will of her own until the end of her life.
Childhood of Princess Diana – The years at school
Like the children in many rich or old families in England, the Spencer children went to the
boarding school. Diana never rose to any noticeable academic heights, but she came to excel
in many other ways. Miss Lowe, her teacher, particularly remembered Diana for her
“kindness to the smaller members of the community, her general helpfulness, her love of
animals, and her excellence at swimming and indeed her considerable prow ess in general
physical activities.”

Diana was very good at music and sport. She played tennis fairly well, she won the diving
prize, she excelled at netball. At Riddlesworth she won the Pets Corner cup, the prize for the
best-kept pet. West Heath rewarded her social work with a special award for service.
Diana’s grades were not enough, however, to continue her education at the age of sixteen.
Later she made an attempt to stay at prestigious Swiss finishing school to improve her
French. But she quickly became homesick and flew home with a firm intention to start
working.

After leaving school she got a job as a nanny and part

time cook. Later she took a assistant teaching post at a
kindergarten school in Knightsbridge, London. It was
whilst working as an assistant here that she was first
introduced to her future husband Charles

FAMILLY & MARRIAGE

Diana's family, the Spencers, had been close to the
British Royal Family for decades. Her maternal
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grandmother, Ruth, Lady Fermoy, was a longtime friend of, and a lady-in-waiting to Queen
Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

The Prince's love life had always been the subject of press speculation, and he was linked to
numerous women. Nearing his mid-thirties, he was under increasing pressure to marry. In
order to gain the approval of his family and their advisors, including his great-uncle Lord
Mountbatten of Burma, any potential bride had to have an aristocratic background, could not
have been previously married, should be Protestant and, preferably, a virgin. Diana fulfilled
all of these qualifications.

Reportedly, the Prince's former girlfriend (and, eventually, his second wife) Camilla Parker
Bowles helped him select the 19-year-old Lady Diana Spencer as a potential bride, who was
working as an assistant at the Young England kindergarten in Pimlico. Buckingham Palace
announced the engagement on 24 February 1981. Mrs. Parker Bowles had been dismissed by
Lord Mountbatten of Burma as a potential spouse for the heir to throne some years before,
reportedly due to her age (16 months the Prince's senior), her sexual experience, and her lack
of suitably aristocratic lineage.

The wedding took place at St Paul's Cathedral in London on Wednesday 29 July 1981 before
3,500 invited guests (including Mrs. Parker Bowles and her husband, a godson of Queen
Elizabeth the Queen Mother) and an estimated
1 billion television viewers around the world.
Diana was the first Englishwoman to marry an
heir to the throne since 1659, when Lady
Anne Hyde married the Duke of York and
Albany, the future King James II. Upon her
marriage, Diana became Her Royal Highness
The Princess of Wales and was ranked as the
most senior royal woman in the United
Kingdom after the Queen and the Queen
Mother.

Children

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The Prince and Princess of Wales had two children, Prince William of Wales on 21 June
1982 and Prince Henry of Wales (commonly called Prince Harry) on 15 September 1984.

On 5 November 1981, Diana's first pregnancy was officially announced, and she frankly
discussed her pregnancy with members of the press corps. In the private Lindo Wing of St.
Mary's Hospital, Paddington on 21 June 1982, Diana gave birth to her and Prince Charles's
first son and heir, William. Among some media, she decided to take William, still a baby, on
her first major overseas visit to Australia and New Zealand, but th e decision was popularly
applauded. By her own admission, Diana had not initially intended to bring William until it
was suggested by the Australian Prime Minister.

A second son, Harry, was born about two years after William on 15 September 1984. Diana
asserted that she and Prince Charles were closest during her pregnancy with "Harry", as the
younger prince became known. She was aware their second child was a boy, but did not share
the knowledge with anyone else, including Prince Charles.

She was universally regarded as a devoted and demonstrative mother. However, she rarely
deferred to Prince Charles or to the Royal Family, and was often intransigent when it came to
the children. She chose their first given names, defied the royal custom of circumcision,
dismissed a royal family nanny and engaged one of her own choosing, in addition to selecting
their schools and clothing, planning their outings and taking them to school herself as often as
her schedule permitted. She also negotiated her public duties around their timetables. After
the birth of Prince William, the Princess of Wales suffered from post-natal depression. She
had previously suffered from bulimia nervosa,
which recurred, and she made a number of suicide
attempts. In one interview, released after her
death, she claimed that, while pregnant with
Prince William, she threw herself down a set of
stairs and was discovered by her mother-in-law
(that is, Queen Elizabeth II). It has been suggested
she did not, in fact, intend to end her life (or that
the suicide attempts never even took place) and
that she was merely making a 'cry for help'. In the
same interview in which she told of the suicide
attempt while pregnant with Prince William, she
said her husband had accused her of crying wolf

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when she threatened to kill herself. It has also been suggested that she suffered from
borderline personality disorder.

ACCUMPLISHMENTS OF PRINCESS DIANA

Diana, Princess of Wales, was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, and the mother of
Princes William and Henry.

One of the greatest accomplishments of Princess Diana was without any doubt the fact that
she did succeed in making the world a better place for a lot of people all over the world.

Princess Diana helped very many people personally, but she was also a supporter of many
charity projects.

She played an active role in the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, a campaign that
won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997. Her participation was due to her concern about injuries
landmines create, often to children.

One of the accomplishments of Princess Diana was her help to raise AIDS awareness. At the
time when people were frightened about catching AIDS by touching someone, she visited
people with AIDS to show that this wasn’t true. She showed to the world that people with
AIDS deserve compassion and kindness. A
lot of charity work of Princess Diana
involved children of any kinds. As a patron
of the British Deaf Association Princess
Diana had taken the initiative to learn a
number of words in sign language. She
would work on her skill, master it and later
use it in her work. The children at East End
school for the deaf invented a special sign
for her: you run your hand from the front of
your hair to the back, referring to her famous
hairstyle…

One of the achievements of Princess Diana was raising funds for various charities. A lot of
charities raised substantial amounts of money from just one appearance by the Princess at a
ball or film premiere. However Diana always made sure not to be associated with the
glamorous side of things. She would visit every charity under her patronage at least twice a
year, talking to the staff personally.

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Princess Diana had a rare ability to make people happy just by talking to them, shaking their
hands, or giving a hug. Her ability to listen, look directly into the eye, and talk to a person in
a way that “made you feel that you were the only person that she was at all interested”, made
her a subject of true admiration and love of a lot of people that she helped. Once asked if she
ever felt depressed about visiting terminally ill patients, she replied: "No, sitting on the edge
of someone's bed in those situations is the least complicated relationship you can have in your
life. They're happy to see you, you're happy to do whatever small amount you can do just by
being there. And it's incredibly energizing. It's what keeps me going."

One of the greatest accomplishments of Princess Diana was raising her two children in love
and devotion to them, and with a very high degree of awareness of her role as a mother of a
future king. Like in many other aspects of her royal life, with her children she would also
follow her heart rather than follow the royal protocols.

Diana was a different royal mother: she wanted to keep her children with her, and to give
them plenty of love. She would not be afraid to give them love and hugs in public. From their
younger years Diana’s children were involved in her charity work: writing letters to some of
the people she had met and talked about, visiting sick people in hospitals, visiting together
with her the places where homeless people lived. Her sons would never forget the other side
of life their mother showed them. It was an idea of Prince William to sell a lot of her dresses
for charity.

The accomplishments of Princess Diana can be best summarized in the words of Queen
Elizabeth II:

“She was an exceptional and gifted human being. In good times and bad, she never lost her
capacity to smile and laugh, nor to inspire others with her warmth and kindness. I admired
and respected her - for her energy and commitment to others, and especially for her devotion
to her two boys. ...”

Charity work

Starting in the mid-to-late 1980s, the Princess

of Wales became well known for her support
of charity projects, and is credited with
considerable influence for her campaigns
against the use of landmines and helping the
victims of AIDS.

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AIDS

In April 1987, the Princess of Wales was the first high-profile celebrity to be photographed
knowingly touching a person infected with the HIV virus. Her contribution to changing the
public opinion of AIDS sufferers was summarized in December 2001 by Bill Clinton at the
'Diana, Princess of Wales Lecture on AIDS', when he said:

In 1987, when so many still believed that AIDS could be contracted through casual contact,
Princess Diana sat on the sickbed of a man with AIDS and held his hand. She showed the
world that people with AIDS deserve no isolation, but compassion and kindness. It helped
change world opinion, and gave hope to people with AIDS with an outcome of saved lives of
people at risk.

Landmines

Perhaps her most widely publicized charity

appearance was her visit to Angola in

January 1997, when, serving as an International

Red Cross VIP volunteer, she visited landmine
survivors in hospitals, toured de-mining projects run by the HALO Trust, and attended mine
awareness education classes about the dangers of mines immediately surrounding homes and
villages.

The pictures of Diana touring a minefield, in a ballistic helmet and flak jacket, were seen
worldwide. (In fact, mine-clearance experts had already cleared the pre-planned walk that
Diana took wearing the protective equipment.) In August that year, she visited Bosnia with
the Landmine Survivors Network. Her interest in landmines was focused on the injuries they
create, often to children, long after the conflict has finished.

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She is widely acclaimed for her influence on the signing by the governments of the UK and
other nations of the Ottawa Treaty in December 1997, after her death, which created an
international ban on the use of anti-personnel landmines. Introducing the Second Reading of
the Landmines Bill 1998 to the British House of Commons, the Foreign Secretary, Robin
Cook, paid tribute to Diana's work on landmines:

All Honorable Members will be aware from their postbags of the immense contribution made
by Diana, Princess of Wales to bringing home to many of our constituents the human costs of
landmines. The best way in which to record our appreciation of her work, and the work of
NGOs that have campaigned against landmines, is to pass the Bill, and to pave the way
towards a global ban on landmines.

As of January 2005, Diana's legacy on landmines remained unfulfilled. The United Nations
appealed to the nations which produced and stockpiled the largest numbers of landmines
(China, India, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia and the United States) to sign the Ottawa Treaty
forbidding their production and use, for which Diana had campaigned. Carol Bellamy,
Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), said that landmines
remained "a deadly attraction for children, whose innate curiosity and need for play often
lure them directly into harm's way".

Princess Diana once admitted that her work came “from the heart, not from the head.” And it
was not merely a part of royal protocol to her. She was not afraid of illness, nor meeting
people who were dying. She was ready with a hug and kiss for everyone.

Once a man who could not see, but wanted to know what Diana was like, asked her if he
could touch her face. “Of course you can,” she said. He moved his hands over her face until
he could make a picture of her in his head. “You are very pretty!” he said.

In 1982, the newspapers reported that Diana was working with five charities. In 1985 this
number grew to eighteen. Diana frequently visited children’s’ hospitals, and often little
children felt that she was their special friend.

Princess Diana once said: “I’m not frightened of dying, if

I can die happy.”

PROBLEMS & SEPARATION

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From left to right, Prince Charles and the Princess of Wales, the United States First Lady
Nancy Reagan, and United States President Ronald Reagan in November 1985.

During the early 1990s, the marriage of Diana and Charles fell apart, an event at first
suppressed, then sensationalised, by the world media. Both the Prince and Princess of Wales
allegedly spoke to the press through friends, each blaming the other for the marriage's
demise.

The chronology of the break-up identifies reported difficulties between Charles and Diana as
early as 1985. During 1986, Prince Charles turned again to his former girlfriend, Camilla
Shand, who had become Camilla Parker-Bowles, wife of Andrew Parker-Bowles. This affair
was exposed in May 1992 with the publication of Diana: Her True Story, by Andrew
Morton. The book, which also laid bare Diana's allegedly suicidal unhappiness, caused a
media storm. This publication was followed during 1992 and 1993 by leaked tapes of
telephone conversations which negatively reflected on both the royal antagonists. Transcripts
of taped intimate conversations between Diana and James Gilbey were published by the Sun
newspaper in Britain in August 1992. The article's title, "Squidgygate", referenced Gilbey's
affectionate nickname for Diana. Next to surface,
in November 1992, were the leaked
"Camillagate" tapes, intimate exchanges between
Charles and Camilla, published in Today and the
Mirror newspapers.

In the meantime, rumours had begun to surface

about Diana's relationship with Major James
Hewitt, her former riding instructor. These would
be brought into the open by the publication in
1994 of Princess in Love.

In December 1992, Prime Minister John Major announced the Wales' "amicable separation"
to the House of Commons, and the full Camillagate transcript was published a month later in
the newspapers, in January 1993. On 3 December 1993, Diana announced her withdrawal
from public life. Charles sought public understanding via a televised interview with Jonathan
Dimbleby on 29 June 1994. In this he confirmed his own extramarital affair with Camilla,
saying that he had only rekindled their association in 1986, after his marriage to the Princess
of Wales had "irretrievably broken down.”

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While she blamed Camilla Parker-Bowles for her marital troubles, Diana at some point began
to believe Charles had other affairs. In October 1993 Diana wrote to a friend that she believed
her husband was now in love with Tiggy Legge-Bourke and wanted to marry her. Legge-
Bourke had been hired by Prince Charles as a young companion for his sons while they were
in his care, and Diana was extremely resentful of Legge-Bourke and her relationship with the
young princes.

DIVORCE
Diana at the Cannes film festival in 1987

Diana was interviewed in a BBC Panorama interview with journalist Martin Bashir,
broadcast on 20 November 1995. In it, Diana asserted of Hewitt, "Yes, I loved him. Yes, I
adored him." Of Camilla, she claimed "There were three of us in this marriage." For herself,
she said "I'd like to be a queen of people's hearts." On Charles's suitability for kingship, she
said: "Because I know the character I would think that the top job, as I call it, would bring
enormous limitations to him, and I don't know whether he could adapt to that."

In December 1995, the Queen asked Charles and Diana for "an early divorce," as a direct
result of Diana's Panorama interview. This followed shortly after Diana's accusation that
Tiggy Legge-Bourke had aborted Charles's child, after which Legge-Bourke instructed Peter
Carter-Ruck to demand an apology. Two days before this story broke, Diana's secretary
Patrick Jephson resigned, later writing Diana had "exulted in accusing Legge-Bourke of
having had an abortion".

On 20 December 1995, Buckingham Palace publicly announced the Queen had sent letters to
Charles and Diana advising them to divorce. The
Queen's move was backed by the Prime Minister and
by senior Privy Councillors, and, according to the
BBC, was decided after two weeks of talks. Prince
Charles immediately agreed with the suggestion. In
February Diana announced her agreement after
negotiations with Prince Charles and representatives
of Queen, irritating Buckingham Palace by issuing
her own announcement of a divorce agreement and
its terms.

The divorce was finalised on 28 August 1996.

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Diana received a lump sum settlement of around £17 million along with a clause standard in
royal divorces preventing her from discussing the details. Diana and her advisers negotiated
with Charles and his representatives, with Charles reportedly having to liquidate all of his
personal holdings, as well as borrowing from the Queen, to meet her financial demands. The
Royal Family would have preferred an alimony settlement, which would have provided some
degree of control over the erstwhile Princess of Wales.[citation needed]

Days before the decree absolute of divorce, Letters Patent were issued with general rules to
regulate royal titles after divorce. In accordance, as she was no longer married to the Prince
of Wales, Diana lost the style Her Royal Highness and instead was styled Diana, Princess of
Wales. Buckingham Palace issued a press release on the day of the decree absolute of divorce
was issued, announcing Diana's change of title.

Buckingham Palace stated Diana was still a member of the Royal Family, as she was the
mother of the second- and third-in-line to the throne, which was confirmed by the Deputy
Coroner of the Queen’s Household, Baroness Butler-Sloss, after a pre-hearing on 8 January
2007: "I am satisfied that at her death, Diana,
Princess of Wales continued to be considered as
a member of the Royal Household." This appears
to have been confirmed in the High Court
judicial review matter of Al Fayed & Ors v
Butler-Sloss. In that case, three High Court
judges accepted submissions that the "very name
‘Coroner to the Queen’s Household’ gave the
appearance of partiality in the context of inquests
into the deaths of two people, one of whom was a
member of the Family and the other was not."

Personal life after divorce

After the divorce, Diana retained her double
apartment on the north side of Kensington
Palace, which she had shared with Prince Charles
since the first year of their marriage, and it remained her home until her death.

Diana dated the respected heart surgeon Hasnat Khan, from Jhelum, Pakistan, who was called
"the love of her life" after her death by many of her closest friends,[35] for almost two years,
before Khan ended the relationship.[36][37] Khan was intensely private and the relationship was

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conducted in secrecy, with Diana lying to members of the press who questioned her about it.
Khan was from a traditional Pakistani family who expected him to marry from a related
Muslim clan, and although Diana expressed willingness to convert to Islam, their differences,
not only religion, became too much for Khan. According to Khan's testimonial at the inquest
for her death, it was Diana herself, not Khan, who ended their relationship in a late-night
meeting in Hyde Park, which adjoins the grounds of Kensington Palace, in June 1997.

Within a month Diana had begun dating Dodi Al-Fayed, son of her host that summer,
Mohamed Al-Fayed. Diana had considered taking her sons that summer on a holiday to the
Hamptons on Long Island, New York, but security officials had prevented it. After deciding
against a trip to Thailand, she accepted Fayed's invitation to join his family on the south of
France, where his compound and large security detail would not cause concern to the Royal
Protection squad. Mohamed Al-Fayed bought a multi-million pound yacht on which to
entertain the princess and her sons.

PRINCESS DIANA BIOGRAGHY IN FASHION

Princess Diana biography in fashion is a story of Diana expressed in her style. Her looks as
well as her life were the reflection of the constant work on herself and development of her
personality. Diana clearly became more attractive as she matured.

She was one of the most photographed women in the world.

Everything she wore, from her handbags and shoes, hats and jewelry and even jeans, was
scrutinized and commented on.

How did Lady Di, a shy young girl, transform into the international fashion icon?

How did she develop her style from being named one of the Ten Worst Dressed Women in
1982 (a nomination given by one of London’s newspapers) to being named to the 1991/1992
International Best Dressed List’s Hall of Fame for “having established an appropriate, non-
dowdy modern style of royal dressing and bringing world recognition to young British
designers”?

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The beginning of her own style

Before her engagement Diana wore little make-up and her dress style was not sophisticated.
She liked the comfort clothes that suited her position as an assistant at the Young England
Kindergarten.

From the moment of her engagement Princess Diana image was very traditional and very
British. She was often a subject of criticism for dressing older than her years. “In the
beginning she found it quite difficult to know what kind of clothes were required and she
tended to follow what the other royals did,” commented Sassoon, one of the first British
designers who made clothes for her. Slowly she would find her own way in a whole new
world of occasion dressing, ceremonial costume, tiaras, coordinated shoes, bags and hats. She
would use the help and advice of Vogue deputy editor Anna Harvey, and would begin to
experiment with a list of designers. But even in fashion Diana would always remain a woman
of her own: listening to advice, but following her own instincts.

In the beginning of her public life the Princess Diana style was often too coordinated: she
could wear a red dress, red tights and a red hat all at once. Diana would, however, quickly
learn from her mistakes. Once she said: “Clothes are not my priority.” However her public
life would show that appearance counted for a great deal.

At that early period of Princess

Diana biography in fashion she
videotaped every one of her
television appearances, carefully
analyzing every detail, including
her hair, makeup and, of course,
clothing. Princess Diana wedding
dress.

Her style evolution

Princess Diana was always

conscious of dressing appropriately, having
learnt to master the art of how to dress
diplomatically. She developed a finely tuned

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sense of the right clothes for the occasion and place. She would wear an Escada coat to visit
Germany, a Yuki dress to meet the Japanese Emperor Hirohito, a Chanel suit to Paris. She
would always visit hospitals and sick children wearing something bright and cheerful. One
particular floral dress created by Bellville Sassoon was her favourite "working dress" for
visiting children. Princes Di noticed that it had a particular positive effect on children, who
obviously loved the color very much. She wore it frequently over a period of five years in
spite of the critical articles in the press about her having worn the same outfit for so long.

Much of what made Princess Diana very popular and beloved by the public was her modern
approach to her own life, both public and private. As with the other great style icons of this
century, it was Diana’s ability to look cool and chic in the simplest attire.

The style icon

After her divorce, she changed. Once she became an independent woman, this added a
different tint to her style. Over the last two years of her life the Princess style transformed her
into the international style icon. She started wearing clothes from foreign designers, including
Versace, Valentino, John Galliano, Ungaro, Lacroix, Ferraud and Moschino. Her new image
was young and confident. Her sense of style was finally able to shine out.

Everything about her body language and dress sense pointed to a more assured, self-confident
woman in control of her life. She stopped trying to color co-ordinate every outfit and would
wear beige
shoes, a black
bag and a pale
green suit with
more
confidence than
when she once
wore
monochrome
red or green
from head to foot. Her use of color became more low key and subtle. Even her hairstyle
changed to the more modern and sophisticated.

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With divorce behind her, she

concentrated on her most heartfelt
charity work as well as bringing up
her children. She invested her efforts
on fewer charities and devoted more
time and energy to each one.

Until the end of her life, though, she

was faithful to her favorite British
designers. Princess Diana's fashion
style had been simply edited down so
that her wardrobe included the
clothes she liked most. Catherine
Walker was one of the most
important designers in Diana’s life, responsible for most of her outfits for all of Diana’s
public life. Jacques Azagur would also remain in a group of her favorite designers until the
end of her life.

It was not what she wore but the way she wore it that was really important – she looked as
stylish in a pair of jeans, as she did in a couture ball gown. The famous Princess Diana
fashion image had much more to do with the twinkle in her eye and the smile that made
everyone who knew her or who came into her life feel at ease.

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The glamorous dresses of the Princess Diana sold at Christie's auction in 1997, raised more
than $3 million, and additional $2.5 million from catalog sales and fund-raising events, which
went for various charities. Princess Diana biography in fashion is a remarkable example of
the Princess, the Queen of style, who used her image for the benefit of others.

Her favorite small details

Diana had a star quality that few people naturally possess – she had a style.

Princess Diana popularized pearl chokers and designer handbags. Dior handbags became her
favorites since 1995 when Princess visited Paris and Bernadette Chirac, the First Lady of
France, gave her a Lady Dior handbag. Almost overnight it became the must-have accessory
of the time.

Annick Goutal Passion is known to have been her signature scent.

Princess Diana favorite cosmetics came from Clinique. Also Body Shop range was very
much liked by the Princess, who used to call herself "a fan of Body Shop."

DEATH

On 31 August 1997 Diana was

involved in a car accident in the
Pont de l'Alma road tunnel in Paris,
along with her friend and lover
Dodi Fayed, and their driver Henri
Paul. Fayed's bodyguard Trevor
Rees-Jones is the only person who
survived the wreckage.
Circumstances

Late in the evening of Saturday 30

August, Diana and Fayed departed the Hôtel Ritz in Place Vendome, Paris, and sped along
the north bank of the Seine. Shortly after midnight on 31 August, their Mercedes-Benz S 280
entered the underpass below the Place de l'Alma, travelling at high speed and pursued by nine
French photographers in various vehicles and a motorcycle courier.

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At the entrance to the tunnel, their car struck a glancing blow to the right-hand wall. It
swerved to the left of the two-lane carriageway and collided head-on with the thirteenth pillar
supporting the roof, then spun to a stop.

As the casualties lay seriously injured in their wrecked car, the photographers continued to
take pictures.

Dodi Fayed and Henri Paul were both declared dead at the scene of the crash. Trevor Rees-
Jones was severely injured, but later recovered. Diana was freed, alive, from the wreckage,
and after some delay due to attempts to stabilize her at the scene, she was taken by ambulance
to Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, arriving there shortly after 2:00 a.m.. Despite attempts to save
her, her internal injuries were too
extensive. Two hours later, at 4:00 that
morning, the doctors pronounced her dead.
At 5:30, her death was announced at a
press conference held by a hospital doctor,
Jean-Pierre Chevènement (France's Interior
Minister) and Sir Michael Jay (Britain's
ambassador to France).

Later that morning, Chevenement, together

with Lionel Jospin, the French Prime
Minister, Bernadette Chirac, the wife of the French President Jacques Chirac, and Bernard
Kouchner, French Health Minister, visited the hospital room where Diana's body lay and paid
their last respects. After their visits, the Anglican Archdeacon of France, Father Martin
Draper, said commendatory prayers from the Book of Common Prayer.

At around 2:00 p.m. the Prince of Wales and Diana's two sisters, Lady Sarah McCorquodale
and Lady Jane Fellowes, arrived in Paris to collect Diana's body. They left with her body 90
minutes later.
Subsequent events
Initial media reports stated Diana's car had collided with the pillar at over 190 km/h (120
mph), and that the speedometer's needle had jammed at that position. It was later announced
the car's actual speed on collision was about 95-110 km/h (60-70 mph), and that the
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speedometer had no needle as it was digital (which conflicts with the list of available
equipment and features of the W140 Mercedes-Benz S-Class, which used a computer-
controlled analogue speedometer, with no digital readout for speed). The car was certainly
travelling much faster than the legal speed limit of 50 km/h (30 mph), and faster than was
prudent for the Alma underpass. In 1999 a French investigation concluded the Mercedes had
come into contact with another vehicle (a white Fiat Uno) in the tunnel. The driver of that
vehicle has never come forward, and the vehicle itself has not been found.
The investigators concluded that the crash was an accident brought on by an intoxicated
driver attempting to elude pursuing paparazzi at high speed.

In November 2003, Christian Martinez and Fabrice Chassery, the photographers who took
photos of the casualties after the crash, and Jacques Langevin, who took photos as the couple
left the Ritz Hotel, were cleared of breaching French privacy laws.

On 6 January 2004, seven years after her death, an inquest into the death of Diana opened in
London held by Michael Burgess, the coroner of The Queen's Household.

Conspiracy theories

Although the official investigation found Diana had died as a result of an accident, there are a
significant number of conspiracy theories that she was assassinated.

The French investigators' conclusion that Henri Paul was drunk was made largely on the
basis of an analysis of blood samples, which were stated to contain an alcohol level that
(according to Jay's September 1997 report) was three times the legal limit. This initial
analysis was challenged by a British pathologist hired by the Fayeds; in response, French
authorities carried out a third test, this time using the medically more conclusive fluid from
the sclera (white of the eye), which confirmed the level of alcohol measured by blood and
also showed Paul had been taking antidepressants.

The samples were also said to contain a level of carbon monoxide sufficiently high as to have
prevented him from driving a car (or even from standing). Some maintain this strongly
indicates the samples were tampered with. No official DNA test has been carried out on the
samples, and Henri Paul's family has not been allowed to commission independent tests on
them.
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The families of Dodi Fayed and Henri Paul have not accepted the French investigators'
findings. In the Scottish courts, Mohamed Al-Fayed applied for an order directing there be a
public inquiry and is to appeal against the denial of his application. Fayed, for his part, stands
by his belief that the Princess and his son were killed in an elaborate conspiracy launched by
the SIS (MI6) on the orders of the "racist" Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. This was
apparently based on the grounds that the Duke abhorred the idea of his grandsons potentially
having Muslim or half-Arab siblings.

Other motivations which have been advanced for murder include suggestions Diana intended
to convert to Islam, and that she was pregnant with Dodi's child. In January 2004, the former
coroner of The Queen's Household, Dr. John Burton, said (in an interview with The Times)
that he attended a post-mortem examination of the Princess's body at Fulham mortuary,
where he personally examined her womb and found her not to be pregnant.

Later in 2004, US TV network CBS showed pictures of the crash scene showing an intact
rear side and an intact centre section of the Mercedes, including one of an unbloodied Diana
with no outward injuries, crouched on the rear floor of the vehicle with her back to the right
passenger seat — the right rear car door is completely opened. The release of these pictures
caused uproar in the UK, where it was widely felt that the privacy of the Princess was being
infringed, and spurred another lawsuit by Mohammed Al-Fayed.

Rumours and conspiracies theories aside, it is clear that Diana, Dodi and Henri were not
wearing seat belts when the car crashed. Rees-Jones, the only survivor, had his seat belt on.
Also, the underpass at the Place de l'Alma is known as an accident black spot; it is on a
stretch of high-speed road but only has limited visibility ahead in places; and there are
square-shaped pillars in the central reservation which could lead to collisions.

Funeral and public reaction

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 Biography

Diana's death was greeted with extraordinary public grief, and her funeral at Westminster
Abbey on 6 September drew an estimated 3 million mourners in London, as well as
worldwide television coverage.
More than one million bouquets were left at her London home, Kensington Palace, while at
her family's estate of Althorp the public was asked to stop bringing flowers, as the volume of
people and flowers in the surrounding roads was causing a threat to public safety.

The reaction of the Royal Family to the death of Diana caused unprecedented resentment and
outcry. The Royal Family's rigid adherence to protocol was interpreted by the public as a lack
of compassion: the refusal of Buckingham Palace to fly the Union Flag at half mast provoked
angry headlines in newspapers. "Where is our Queen? Where is our Flag?" asked The Sun.
The Queen, who returned to London from Balmoral, agreed to a television broadcast to the
nation. At the urging of Downing Street, what was to be a recorded piece became a live
broadcast, and the script was revised by Alastair Campbell to be more "human".

Mourners cast flowers at the funeral procession for almost the entire length of its journey
before and after the service, and vehicles even stopped on the opposite carriageway of the M1
as the cars passed on the route to Althorp. Outside Westminster Abbey crowds cheered the
dozens of celebrities who filed inside, including singer Sir Elton John (who performed a re-
written version of his song Candle in the Wind). The service was televised live throughout
the world, and loudspeakers were placed outside so the crowds could hear the proceedings.
Tradition was defied when the guests applauded the speech by Diana's brother, Lord Spencer,
who strongly criticized the press and indirectly criticized the Royal Family for their treatment
of her, although Lord Spencer
himself had years earlier refused
Diana permission to use a cottage at
Althorp as a sanctuary due to his
fears about press intrusion into his
family home.

In the midst of this "public

outpouring of grief" many
commentators and members of the
public found themselves nonplussed

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by what they considered to be mawkish, sentimental and self-indulgent displays of insincere
emotion.

The writer Francis Wheen recalls: On that Sunday afternoon I was telephoned by a neighbor,
a ferociously conservative columnist on the Daily Mail: “I can’t bear much more of this.
Fancy a drink in the pub?” Disgust was also aroused through what was perceived by many as
a hypocritical turnaround on the part of many sectors of the media, in particular the tabloid
press, who had abruptly shifted from the portrayal of Diana as a promiscuous, manipulative
bimbo to the depiction of Diana as a saintly martyr.

When the satirical magazine Private Eye issued a mock editorial consisting of a retraction of
previous negative statements made against Diana, the magazine found itself subjected to
heavy criticism from the press and was temporarily removed from the shelves of WH Smith
and other newsagents. Defenders of the magazine argued that the parody had been directed
towards the attitude of the media, and not the death in itself; the episode was seen by many to
be indicative of a pervasive self-righteous and bullying mentality.

Diana, Princess of Wales is buried at Althorp in Northampton shire on an island in the middle
of a lake called the Round Oval. A visitors' centre is open during summer months, allowing
visitors to see an exhibition about her and walk around the lake.

During the four weeks following her funeral, the overall suicide rate in England and Wales
rose by 17%, compared with the average reported for that period in the four previous years.
Researchers suggest that
this was caused by the
"identification" effect, as
the greatest increase in
suicides was by people
most similar to Diana:
women aged 25 to 44,
whose suicide rate
increased by over 45%.

In the years after her death,

interest in the life of Diana has remained high, especially in the United States of America.

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 Biography
Numerous manufacturers of collectables continue to produce Diana merchandise. Such items
have drawn strong derision from certain quarters for their alleged kitsch value. Some even
suggested making Diana a saint, stirring much controversy.

As a temporary memorial, the public co-opted the Flame de Liberté (Flame of Liberty), a
monument near the Alma Tunnel, and related to the French donation of the Statue of Liberty
to the United States. The messages of condolence have since been removed, and its use as a
Diana memorial has discontinued, though visitors visit and still leave messages at the site in
her memory. The concrete wall at the edge of the tunnel is still used as an impromptu
memorial for people to write their thoughts and feelings about Diana. A permanent memorial,
the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain was opened in Hyde Park in London on 6
July 2004, but it has been plagued with problems and has been declared off-limits to the
public at least twice for repairs.

In 1999, a little more than a year after her death, the journalist Christopher Hitchens made a
comment about her while on a cruise ship. He stated that Diana "has in common with a
minefield the following: relatively easy to lay but extremely difficult, expensive, and
dangerous to get rid of." When there was a backlash concerning his quip he said he thought,
"it was funny."

Diana was ranked third in the (2002) Great Britons poll sponsored by the BBC and voted for
by the British public. In this poll, she was ranked just above Charles Darwin (4th), who
changed the course of history through his theory of natural selection, William Shakespeare
(5th), regarded by many as the greatest writer in the English language, and Isaac Newton
(6th), widely held to be the most influential scientist in the history of humanity.

In 2003, Marvel Comics announced it was to publish a five-part series entitled Di Another
Day (a reference to the James Bond film Die Another Day) featuring a resurrected Diana,
Princess of Wales as a mutant with superpowers, as part of Peter Milligan's satirical X-Statix
title. Amidst considerable (and predictable) outcry, the idea was quickly dropped. Heliograph
Incorporated produced a role playing game, Diana: Warrior Princess by Marcus L. Rowland
about a fictionalized version of the twentieth century as it might be seen a thousand years
from now.

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 Biography
After her death, the actor Kevin Costner, who had been introduced to the Princess by her
former sister-in-law, Sarah, Duchess of York claimed he had been in negotiations with the
divorced Princess to co-star in a sequel to the thriller film The Bodyguard, which starred
Costner and Whitney Houston. Buckingham Palace dismissed Costner's claims as unfounded.

STYLES
The Honorable Diana Spencer (1 July 1961–9 June 1975)
The Lady Diana Spencer (9 June 1975–29 July 1981)
Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales (29 July 1981–28 August 1996)
Diana, Princess of Wales (28 August 1996–31 August 1997)

The style "Princess Diana" was incorrect at all times of her life, though often used by the
public and the media. After her divorce she ceased to be the Princess of Wales but was styled
Diana, Princess of Wales acting on precedent of divorced peeresses where the former title
acts as a surname.

INQUIRY INTO DIANA’S DEATH (SHOKING

REPORTS)

The findings of a two-year investigation in the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, will
contain some shocking conclusions, British newspapers reported at the weekend. But the
inquiry's findings won't become public for some time: Michael Burgess, the Royal Coroner,
will receive the report in the next few months and an inquest is not expected until next year.

Lord Stevens, the former Metropolitan Police commissioner heading the investigation, told
the Daily Telegraph the inquiry was "far more complex than any of us thought". He said
some of the issues raised by Mohammed Fayed, owner of Harrods store, whose son Dodi
died with the princess in a car crash in Paris on August 31, 1997, were "right to be raised".
Mr Fayed has claimed the couple were victims of an assassination plot orchestrated by Prince
Philip and involving British intelligence agencies.

The princess's friends have dismissed suggestions that she was pregnant and the couple were
to marry. Lord Stevens said in a recent television interview that his investigation had been

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"certainly worthwhile'. "It is right to say that some of the issues that have been raised by Mr
Fayed have been right to be raised. We are pursing those. It is a far more complex inquiry
than any of us thought," he said.

The official conclusion that car driver Henri Paul was drunk and on anti-depressants at the
time, and that the car was likely to be the vehicle involved, have never been accepted by the
families of Dodi Fayed or Paul.

The Independent on Sunday said Lord Stevens' remarks were a deliberate attempt to prepare
public opinion for some shocking conclusions."People are going to be very surprised about
what we have to say," said one senior officer closely involved with the inquiry.

Mr Fayed's spokesman refused to comment, saying it was "not appropriate" while the process
was ongoing. Another source close to the Harrods boss said Mr Fayed felt "vindicated" by
Lord Stevens' comments.

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 Biography

TIMELINE FOR PRINCESS DIANA

Diana, Princess of Wales and first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, was one of the
most charismatic British royal figures in the history of Britain. She was a popular media
figure and one of the most photogenic women in the world. She was also associated with
charity work and was a patron of several charitable organizations. Her tragic death in a car
accident shook the entire world.

1961: Lady Diana was born on 1 July 1961 Sandringham, Norfolk, and England. She
was the third child of Edward John Spencer and Frances Spencer.

1976: Diana’s parents were separated through a legal battle, following which her father
won the custody of Lady Diana.

1977: She first got introduced to Prince Charles when he was dating her elder sister,
Lady Sarah Spencer.

1981: Lady Diana got married to Charles, Prince of Wales and the 20 year old Lady
Diana became Princess of Wales. The fairytale wedding, which was telecasted live, was
watched by 750 million people worldwide.

1982: Princess Diana gave birth to Prince William after a lengthy labor.

1984: She gave birth to her second child Prince Henry, better known as Prince Harry.

1987: Princess Diana became the first high-profile person to shake hand with AIDS-
victim. By doing so she showed the world that AIDS victim needed love and compassion,
and not isolation.

1989: Prince Charles started dating Camilla Parker-Bowles in early 1990s due to which
Charles and Diana's marriage fell apart.

1992: Diana’s father died of heart attack.

1995: In December 1995, the queen agreed that Charles and Diana could seek an early
divorce. On 20 December 1995, Buckingham Palace publicly announced the separation of the
royal couple.

1996: The divorce was finalized on 28 August 1996. Princess Diana received thirty
million dollars as part of her divorce settlement. Though she retained her title as “Princess”

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but she was ceased to be called “Your Highness”. After her divorce, Diana worked for Red
Cross and championed the anti-landmine campaign, which went on to win Nobel Peace Prize
in 1997.

1997: Princess Diana life came to an abrupt end on 31 August 1997 as her Mercedes
Benz crashed into the 13th pillar of the Ponte De Alma Road tunnel in Paris. Diana died
along with her friend Dodi Al Fayed. Princess Diana’s death was mourned by whole world.

What Did Princess Diana Do For The World?

Diana, Princess of Wales, often referred to as “The People’s Princess”, was a

humanitarian and known all over the world for her generosity and kindness. She used her
position, power and aristocracy to garner financial and emotional support to the victims of
poverty, disease and drug abuse.
Princess Diana was associated with many charitable organizations. Many charitable
organizations raised substantial amount of money by ensuring that the princess was present
for their fund-raising events. In April 1987, she became the first high profile celebrity to
touch the AIDS patient publicly. By doing so Diana showed to the world that AIDS victim
were not contagious and one could be in their presence without worrying about contracting
the disease. She also visited starving kids in Africa as a humanitarian leader. Apart from this,
she used to make surprise visits to hospitals and mental asylums. She possessed the rare
ability to make people happy by simply touching and hugging them. She was also the patron
of many charitable organizations. While working for charity she always made sure to keep
glamor away from her work. She was the Vice President of the British Red Cross Society and
she was a member of the International Red Cross advisory board.

Princess Diana also led the international campaign for banning anti-personnel landmine
which went on to win Nobel Peace Prize in 1997. She played significant role in getting the
Ottawa Treaty signed, which placed an international ban on stockpiling, production and use
of anti-personnel landmine.

Princess Diana died on 31 August 1997 in a car accident in Paris. Millions of people
across the globe mourn her untimely death.

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Princess Diana will be remembered as women who worked for victims of HIV, drug
abuse, poverty, mental diseases and social injustice. Millions of people followed her
charitable work.

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PRINCESS DIANA QUOTES

"I want to walk into a room, be it a hospital for the dying or a

hospital for sick children and feel that I am needed. I want to
do, not just to be."

“It’s important to show love”.

“The greatest problem in the world today is intolerance.

Everyone is so intolerant of each other.” “I don’t think many
people will want me to be Queen. I do things differently – I
don’t go by the rule book.”

“People think that at the end of the day, a man is the only
answer. Actually, a fulfilling job is better for me.”

“Hugs can do great amounts of good - especially for children.”

Quotes about her

Jackie Kennedy-Onassis referred to Princess Diana as to

“beautiful, elegant, charming, very stylish and wonderful
mother.”

(Christopher Anderson. “Jackie After Jack”)

“She was very easy to be with. She certainly never seemed

arrogant in the least. There was certain humility about her.”

(Ann Jackson, Publisher of In Style Magazine)

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 Biography

“She was a naturally beautiful woman inside and out and a lady
of great warmth, humility and compassion.”

(Jimmy Choo, Designer)

“She was very charismatic as a person, not just because she

was a princess. She had this caring quality. She had
compassion… She was a woman who showed her heart. She
showed the pain of divorce; the jealousy of another woman
being in the background – she was human. She was divine with
her children. They always came first.”

(David Sassoon, Designer)

“She was a princess. She had a style. She did everything with grace and
charm.”

(David Thomas, the Crown Jeweller)

“I could see…how well she was handling her public persona.

Everyone was enchanted. Later that same year she presided
over a reception at the State Apartments at Kensington Palace
with Prince William at her side. I asked her if she often brought
the Princes along on official duties and she told me she did
because, she said, “I want them to see what I do.”

(MaryLou Luther, Journalist)

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