Charles Spencer has made another striking allegation about King Charles’s response to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
New excerpts from Spencer’s forthcoming memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, describe a private telephone conversation between the two men shortly after Diana died in Paris on August 31, 1997.
According to Spencer, the future King sounded “giddily elated, like a lottery winner” during the conversation.
The description is Spencer’s personal recollection of a deeply emotional moment nearly 30 years ago. The conversation was private, and his characterization of Charles’s tone cannot be independently verified.
Royally Inspired Context
What We Know
Charles Spencer is sharing his recollection of private conversations from 1997. Buckingham Palace disputes his account. Neither version of those conversations can be independently verified.
A Private Conversation After Diana’s Death
Spencer writes that Charles telephoned him after Diana’s death to discuss what would happen next.
In the excerpt, Spencer portrays Charles as emotionally removed from the tragedy and focused on the practical consequences surrounding Diana’s funeral. He suggests that Charles may also have viewed her death as removing an obstacle from his future relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles.
Buckingham Palace has firmly challenged Spencer’s account.
The Palace reportedly said it did not recognize the words attributed to the King and suggested that intense grief can affect a person’s reason, judgment, and memory.
It is an unusually direct response to allegations involving a private family conversation.
The Funeral Procession Disagreement
The latest excerpts also provide additional details about the disagreement over whether Prince William and Prince Harry should walk behind their mother’s coffin.
William was 15 at the time. Harry was 12.
Spencer says he strongly opposed asking the boys to participate in such a public procession while they were grieving. He claims Palace representatives believed their presence alongside their father, grandfather, and uncle could help protect Charles from public anger and possible heckling.
Spencer ultimately joined William, Harry, Charles, and Prince Philip in the funeral procession on September 6, 1997.
The image of the five walking behind Diana’s coffin became one of the most recognizable moments from the funeral.
Both William and Harry have spoken in later years about the emotional weight of that walk.
Buckingham Palace Disputes Spencer’s Recollection
These latest allegations follow the Palace’s initial response to another claim from Spencer’s memoir.
In an earlier excerpt, Spencer alleged that Charles told him, “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough.”
Buckingham Palace said it did not recognize that statement and questioned the reliability of recollections formed during an extraordinarily painful period.
The Palace has not offered a detailed alternative account of the private conversations. Its response has focused instead on rejecting the specific language and characterizations attributed to the King.
More Revelations May Be Coming
The memoir is being excerpted ahead of its publication, which means additional claims may emerge before the complete book becomes available.
Private conversations from moments of shock and grief are especially difficult to evaluate decades later. Spencer is presenting his recollection and interpretation. Buckingham Palace is disputing both.
What can be established is that the days following Diana’s death were marked by grief, public anger, and intense disagreement over how the Royal Family should respond.
The latest excerpts add more detail to Spencer’s version of those events. They are also likely to reopen painful questions about Diana’s relationship with the Royal Family and the decisions made for her sons after her death.
Royally Inspired will continue to distinguish Spencer’s allegations from independently confirmed facts as more portions of the book become public.
Book cover courtesy of Penguin Books.
Interested in reading it yourself?
Swan Song: Diana, My Sister by Charles Spencer is now available.
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Do these new excerpts change how you view the disagreement surrounding Diana’s funeral, or do they raise more questions than answers?
Sources: The Associated Press, The Guardian, and People
