Princess Diana led a difficult life as a member of the royal family. She was followed everywhere she went, and her photographs became a staple of the British tabloid press.
Not only was Diana persecuted, but her marriage to King Charles became even more complicated due to love problems and affairs. In the end, the couple divorced, and shortly thereafter, the beloved princess died in the infamous car accident in Paris.
Looking back, it now seems that the love story between Princess Diana and Charles was smoke and mirrors from the very beginning. Reportedly, on the eve of the wedding, Charles left his future wife ‘devastated’ by sending her a secret note.
According to Diana’s astrologer Penny Thornton, in this note he also confirmed that he did not love her.
Princess Diana was loved all over the world. She was a kind-hearted, cheerful, caring mother and a wonderful role model for many.
The tragic car accident in Paris that cut short Diana’s life was a moment that no one will ever forget. The whole world mourned Diana, and her legacy will live on for centuries.
For most of her royal life, she was hounded by paparazzi, and it is safe to say that Diana became the most photographed person in the world.
Princess Diana — King Charles
Everyone wanted a piece of the princess. According to The Guardian, paparazzi offered up to $500,000 for her grainy photos.
Her sons, William and Harry, saw both sides of how the press treated their mother. Just recently, Harry said that in his 20s, he wanted to leave the royal family, largely because of how his mother was treated before her death.
‘Look at what happened to my mum, how can I settle down, get married and have a family if I know it will happen again,’ Harry explained. ‘I don’t want to be part of that.’
In addition to her extremely public life, Princess Diana had many personal problems. One of the most serious concerned her husband, King Charles.
Just a few years after Diana’s wedding, Charles began an affair with Camilla, who later became his new wife.
According to some sources, the love story between Charles and Camilla can be traced back to 1972, when they met at a polo match. In the book Charles and Camilla: A Portrait of a Love Affair, author Giles Brandret claims that Charles and Camilla were introduced by their mutual friend Lucia Santa Cruz, the daughter of the Chilean ambassador.
The couple also dated for a while, but this ended when Charles disappeared to serve in the Royal Navy. When he returned, Camilla was engaged to Andrew Parker Bowles.
Bowles and Camilla married in 1973, but Camilla continued to maintain a close and friendly relationship with Charles. At that time, Charles began dating 16-year-old Diana Spencer.
When Diana was introduced to the Bowles couple, Camilla decided that the girl was ‘nice and pretty’ and approved of her. At first, Diana and Camilla got along well. But then things started to feel uncomfortable.
“I met [Camilla] very early on. I was brought into the circle, but I was a threat. I was a very young girl, but I was a threat,” Diana explains in the book Diana: In Her Own Words.
Lunch with Camilla
After Diana and Charles’ engagement, Camilla wrote a letter to the princess.
‘Such exciting news. Let’s have lunch soon, when the Prince of Wales goes to Australia and New Zealand. And I would very much like to see the ring. With much love, Camilla.’
Diana invited Camilla to lunch, but it turned out to be a humiliating event. Or, as Diana described it: ‘very cunning, very cunning.’
Camilla asked strange questions during lunch, and the young and immature Diana did not really understand what she was getting at.
Among other things, Camilla wanted to know if Diana planned to accompany Charles on a hunt.
‘[Camilla] said, “You’re not going hunting, are you?”’ Diana explained to Morton. “I asked, “What? She replied, ‘Horseback riding. You’re not going hunting when you move to Highgrove, are you? I replied, ‘No.” She said, ‘I just wanted to know.’
After that lunch, Diana began to suspect. She realised that Camilla wanted to know about her daily routine and check whether she could visit Charles during hunting trips.
Shortly before the wedding, Diana went to lunch again, this time with her sisters.
I went upstairs, had lunch with my sisters who were there, and said, ‘I can’t marry him. I can’t do it. It’s just unbelievable,’ Diana says in an audio recording in the documentary Diana: In Her Own Words. “They were wonderful and said, ‘Well, tough luck, Duch. Your face is already on the tea towel, so you’re too late to back out now.
Confrontation with Camilla
According to Charles’ authorised biography, quoted by Town & Country, Charles and Camilla’s affair began in 1986. At the time, Charles was still married to Princess Diana, and she found out about it.
In 1989, Diana told Camilla about her affair, advising her to back off.