Royal dispute over Diana memoir tests palace as Charles prepares for AI summit
Qwenews.com – King Charles III was due to turn attention toward artificial intelligence at a major summit on Thursday, but a dispute involving new claims about Princess Diana quickly pulled the royal family back into a familiar and painful chapter of its history.
The controversy stems from excerpts from “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister,” a memoir by Charles Spencer, the late princess’s brother, scheduled for publication next month. The extracts describe conversations Spencer says he had with Charles in the days surrounding Diana’s death in 1997 and renew scrutiny of the monarchy’s response to one of its darkest modern moments.
Buckingham Palace issued an uncommon public response on Wednesday, challenging Spencer’s judgment and recollections. The intervention was striking because palace officials generally avoid commenting on books about the family.
“While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and color memory in ways others do not recognize, even many years after such a loss,” a palace spokesperson said.
Claims revive the aftermath of Diana’s death
Spencer writes that Charles, then Prince of Wales, told him shortly after Diana died that “we’ll forget her soon enough.” He also describes what he portrays as an angry telephone exchange after he objected to Princes William and Harry joining their mother’s funeral procession.
Diana died in August 1997 after sustaining internal injuries in a high-speed crash in Paris. She was 36. Her sons were 15 and 12 when they walked behind her coffin days later with their father, from whom Diana had divorced.
A further passage alleges that Charles sounded “giddily elated – like a lottery winner” during a conversation with Spencer on the night Diana died. The palace said on Thursday that it had nothing more to add beyond its earlier statement.
The memoir also revisits Diana’s troubled relationship with Charles. Spencer recounts allegations that she found a bracelet Charles had bought for Camilla before their marriage, and that she later attempted to end the engagement. Another allegation holds that Charles called Diana “chubby” after their engagement, a remark said to have deeply hurt her as she struggled with an eating disorder.
Several of those accounts have appeared previously in biographies and media coverage, but their inclusion in a book by Diana’s brother gives the claims new prominence.
A sensitive legacy for the monarchy
Diana’s death shocked Britain and audiences around the world. Known as the “People’s Princess,” she held an exceptional place in public life, and the royal family’s early handling of the tragedy drew intense criticism. Its initial response was viewed by many people as distant and inward-looking, creating widespread anger and a serious constitutional strain.
That history explains why the palace’s unusually direct reply has drawn attention. Its wording recalled Queen Elizabeth II’s response in 2021 to allegations made by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after they stepped away from royal duties and moved to North America.
“Recollections may vary,” the Queen said at the time.
For the royal household, disputes over Diana are never simply historical. They touch the reputations of Charles, William and Harry, while also reopening public debate about the institution’s conduct during a period that remains emotionally powerful nearly three decades later.
A difficult year regains momentum
The latest clash follows a difficult start to the year for the wider royal family. Charles’s brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was arrested on his 66th birthday on suspicion of misconduct in public office connected to his former role as Britain’s trade envoy.
Mountbatten-Windsor left that post in 2011 amid intense criticism over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He has strongly denied wrongdoing connected with Epstein and has denied personally benefiting from his work as trade envoy.
A quieter summer had offered the family a period of relative calm. Yet Spencer’s forthcoming book, together with the surprise return of Prince Harry and Meghan to Britain, has created fresh pressure at a time when senior royals were hoping to concentrate on public duties and forward-looking initiatives.
Thursday’s AI gathering was intended to focus on a technology that has prompted fierce debate over its effects on work, creativity, safety and public life. Instead, headlines were dominated by a dispute rooted in the monarchy’s past. Senior family members were nevertheless scheduled to continue a busy day of engagements, while Harry made his first public appearance since returning to the country.
The episode underlines a persistent challenge for the House of Windsor: even as it seeks to project stability and modern relevance, Diana’s life and death continue to shape its public image. Spencer’s memoir is unlikely to settle those arguments. Its release may instead renew questions about grief, memory and the royal family’s handling of a loss that still resonates deeply with the public.
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