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Lucy Carroll

Professor Benjamin Good

RC 1000

10 February 2021

The Obsession with Princess Diana in Life and Death

Imagine driving through Paris and entering a long, dark tunnel, but never seeing the end.

This was the unfortunate case for the former princess of Wales, Diana Spenser, or more

commonly known as Princess Diana. On August 31, Princess Diana passed away due to a car

crash, along with her driver and then rumored boyfriend, Dodi al-Fayed. Following her death,

there was both a national and international outcry of grief over the loss of such a beloved public

figure. In the haze of distress, theories over her death and the crash itself popped up, growing

like wildfire until they reached mainstream popularity. This essay will explore the possible

theories behind the death of Princess Diana, why people reacted in such a way, as well as what

other influences caused this conspiracy theory to be pushed into the mainstream from obscure

conjecture.

Diana Spencer, born into the British aristocracy, grew up very close to the royal family,

eventually leading to a relationship with Charles, Prince of Wales, ending in their marriage and

two children. During their marriage and even after their divorce, Princess Diana was a treasured

public figure and face for the royal family, regularly referred to as the “people’s princess.” She

gained popularity around the world through acts of humanitarianism and activism, as well as

being more openly motherly and caring with her children, such as bringing them on official

tours, an act not common for royal family members(Nicolaou). Her wedding with Prince Charles

was called the “wedding of the century,” and according to The Oprah Magazine Editor, Elena
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Nicolaou, the event broadcasted in over 70 countries to almost 750 million people. Following her

death, Princess Diana’s funeral was viewed by over 2 billion people worldwide. It was a huge

loss for the royal family, their public image, and the British people as a whole(Gupta).

The proven cause for Princess Diana’s death was a car crash. She and her boyfriend were

driving when their driver suddenly lost control and ran into a pillar on the road. Princess Diana

was rushed to the hospital where she was later pronounced dead. At the time, the driver was

speeding as well as reportedly being intoxicated(Griffin). Different theories surrounding her

death soon came to light in the aftermath. Many believed that she was purposely chased down by

paparazzi or assassinated by members of the British State, for a multitude of reasons depending

on which theory one may subscribe too.

Some the main theories are that she was possibly pregnant with her boyfriend’s, an

Egyptian, Muslim man, child and the royal family did not want him to possibly be the stepfather

to the future leaders of England(Griffin). There are other theories that her driver purposely

crashed the car, the car they were driving was sabotaged in some way, or those at the hospital did

not do as much as they could have to save her(Griffin). Conspiracy theories surrounding her

death became so widely known and popular, the British Metropolitan Police officially

investigated all theories, dubbed Operation Paget, ultimately debunking them all. These theories

spread in all forms. With a quick search, documentaries, videos, articles, and books can be found
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discussing the life and “suspicious” nature of Princess Diana’s death and what could have really

happened. Both traditional media as well as the internet have created huge platforms for people

to spread their ideas and theories on the events.

There may be many reasons as to why people created these conspiracy theories. Many

idolized Princess Diana and her untimely death came as an immense shock. There was also

growing contempt for the royal family following her death. According to The Psychology of

Conspiracy Theories, conspiracies such as Diana’s may have been created to “find[ing] meaning

when events seem random,” or try to maintain some sort of control of [the] world(Douglas et al.

The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories). It could be said that experiencing loss is an earth

shattering feeling and giving some meaning to a seemingly random or mundane event could be a

coping or defense mechanism for those struggling to accept reality or grieving a loss. According

to Anna Freud’s theories on denial, “If a situation is just too much to handle, the person may

respond by refusing to perceive it or by denying that it exists.”(Mcleod Defense Mechanisms)

Another possible defense mechanism is rationalization, “a cognitive distortion of ‘the facts’ to

make an event or an impulse less threatening.”(Mcleod Defense Mechanisms) These thought

processes could possibly cause those heavily afflicted to create a new reality easier to deal with

or manipulate facts to fit their picture of events. Even so, there are many popular conspiracy

theories that do not reach the significant notoriety of the Princess Diana theories. As said before,

even before the death of Princess Diana, there was an underlying disdain for the royal family

over things like citizen taxes being paid to the family as well as a belief that there is no need for

something as archaic as a royal family. In the following days after her death, there was an

explosion of negative emotions towards the royal family and their reaction or lack thereof over

Diana’s death. Certain acts such as the refusing to fly the Union Jack at half-mast or there being
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a five day period after Diana’s death before any member of the royal family made a public

statement(Finn). This anger could have amplified peoples’ want to believe conspiracy theories

over official information.

Conspiracy theories cannot be looked at without looking at the psychology and thought

process behind the creator and believers. A combination of grief, increased anger towards the

royal family, and the pure celebrity of everyone involved allowed for the theory of Princess

Diana’s death to become an internationally known conspiracy, becoming popular for people of

all ages and locations. Conspiracy theories such as the ones connected to Princess Diana’s death

hold a lot of power and sway of the general public and discerning fact from fiction can be very

difficult, especially for those who are emotionally or socially vulnerable. Recognizing how to

remove emotion or bias out a situation may help reveal the truth of any matter.
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Works Cited

Douglas, Karen M, et al. “The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories.” School of Psychology,

University of Kent, Association of Psychological Science, 2017.

Finn, Natalie. “The Complicated Truth About the Royal Family's Reaction to Princess Diana's

Death.” E! Online, E!, 1 Sept. 2020,

www.eonline.com/news/963436/the-complicated-truth-about-the-royal-family-s-reaction-

to-princess-diana-s-death.

Griffin, Andrew. “People Still Don't Believe Diana Died in an Accidental Car Crash. Here's

Why.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 19 Nov. 2020,

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/princess-diana-death-conspiracy-theories-b

1746545.html.

Gupta, Surbhi. “Explained: The Enduring Appeal of Diana, the 'People's Princess'.” The Indian

Express, The Indian Express, 19 Nov. 2020,

indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-the-enduring-appeal-of-diana-the-peoples-

princess-7056606/.

Maslin, Janet. “The Diana Chronicles.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 8 June 2007,

www.nytimes.com/2007/06/08/books/08book.html.

Mcleod, Saul A. “Defense Mechanisms.” Defense Mechanisms | Simply Psychology, 10 Apr.

2019, www.simplypsychology.org/defense-mechanisms.html#rat.
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Nicolaou, Elena. “The Details of Princess Diana's Tragic Death-and the Royal Family's

Response.” Oprah Magazine, The Oprah Magazine, 11 Nov. 2020,

www.oprahmag.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a29874597/princess-diana-death/.

Rat, Romuald. “Princess Diana Crash Site.” Pri.org, The World, Paris, 17 Aug. 2013,

www.pri.org/stories/2013-08-17/british-police-scoping-new-evidence-princess-diana-deat

h.

Singer, Henry, director. Diana, 7 Days That Shook The World. YouTube, BBC, 2017,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=c89ss80x4nw.

“Was Diana's Death Really an Accident? | Princess Diana: Tragedy or Treason?” You Tube, TLC

UK, 26 Aug. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=gz2Ckr9GPvo.