Many of us still have discussions or debates over the death of Princess Diana. People have created numerous conspiracy theories on this topic, whether Princess Diana was murdered or died in a car accident. Was it a planned scheme, or was it purely accidental? Was she killed by her own family or someone else? The answer is yet to be found, so let’s dive into this mystery!
1. Who was Princess Diana?
Unlike others, Princess Diana is one of the most admired royals to this date. She was always being kind and helped others. She was a wise and curious person. She was always doing something to make this place better to live in and a reminder that there is still humanity in this world. Because of everything she did for the people, Princess Diana was nicknamed “The People’s Princess” by Prime Minister Tony Blair, at that time.
To read more about Diana’s life, check out “Diana, Princess of Wales”
2. Life of Lady Diana Spencer as a Princess
She married the Prince of Wales (Prince Charles) on 29th July 1981 in London at St Paul’s Cathedral and had two sons: Prince William and Prince Harry. At the age of 20, she went from living with her friends to living in Kensington Palace.
Her ways of living and handling things as a royal were very different from Queen Elizabeth II. She used to get close to the people, shake their hands, and go on tours to spread awareness about things from leprosy to domestic violence and from mental health to AIDS. She used to refer to herself as a Humanitarian figure instead of a Political figure.
2.1. Mental Health Disorders She Faced
Princess started suffering from Bulimia after the day Prince Charles told her that she was looking a bit chubby. Her marriage life started getting more troubled since Prince Charles had an extramarital affair with his friend Camilla Parker Bowles.
She then got into depression because of all the problems she was having in her life and soon started having extramarital affairs herself. Soon after in August 1996, the couple got divorced.
3. The Car Crash
Princess Diana died on Sunday, 31st August 1997. She died because of the injuries she held in a terrible car crash.
Princess Diana, her partner Dodi Al Fayed, and their bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones was leaving the Ritz hotel in Paris. It was owned by Al Fayed’s father, Mohamed Al Fayed presumably to Dodi Fayed’s Paris estate at midnight on 31st August 1997.
Henri Paul was driving the group in a Mercedes Benz, and soon after they started getting chased by the paparazzi. As the car traveled towards Place de la Concorde, driver Henri started driving recklessly at 70 miles-per-hour at a 30 miles-per-hour zone.
Paul lost control of the car as he entered the Pont de L’Alma tunnel and slammed the car into one of the pillars.
3.1. Details About Their Deaths
Dodi Fayed and Driver Henri Paul were pronounced dead at the scene, while Princess Diana and Rees Jones were taken to the hospital. Princess Diana suffered from a concussion, a broken arm, massive chest injuries, and a cut thigh.
The Doctors weren’t able to make her heart beat properly. The operation to save her went on for 2 hours, but she never regained consciousness. Princess Diana died from internal bleeding on Sunday at 4:53 am on August 1997, while Rees Jones survived as his injuries were not that severe.
3.2. Princess Diana’s Funeral
After the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales in a car crash, the world was a mourning ground, it left them in shock. It was so sudden that the royal family was not ready and hadn’t decided on any royal protocol to follow for such events.
September 6th, 1997 was the day her funeral was held. Two and a half billion people attended to watch the procession of Princess Diana’s funeral and 32.1 million people in the UK watched the television broadcast.
The funeral procession was marched with Prince Charles, Princes William, Prince Harry, Charles Spencer (Diana’s brother), Earl Spencer, and Prince Philip. It was Prince William and Prince Harry’s request to walk behind their mother’s coffin as it was pushed to Westminster Abbey.
3.2.1. The Ceremony
Diana’s brother gave a speech in which he promised Princess Diana that her family recognizes the need to make Prince William and Prince Harry experience many different aspects of life. His speech is still the best in British History.
In Andrew Morton’s book, who is Princess Diana’s biographer, it is mentioned that when Diana’s coffin passed, Queen Elizabeth II bowed her head low. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles tributed to Princess Diana’s death by using their outfits as a symbol.
Queen Elizabeth used her Jewellery to showcase her thoughts while Prince Charles wore Princess Diana’s favorite blue suit instead of the black one that is usually worn at funerals.
Diana’s friend Elton John performed a song called “Candle in the wind” with some new lyrics altered for Princess Diana’s death.
3.2.2. Burial Place
Diana’s body is buried in her family’s estate at Althorp. Prince Charles chose a small island in the center of a lake in the park which is called the Oval. Surrounded by 36 oak trees planted by her family members, and the surrounding lake was filled with white water lilies.
4. Royal’s and Public’s Reaction to Princess Diana’s Death
After learning about “People’s Princess” Diana’s death many were shocked and the world mourned the tragic death. Princess Diana died leaving her two sons behind, Prince William and Prince Harry. The reactions were as follows:
4.1. Prince Charles
Even though they had been unofficially separated for 4 years and officially for a year, Diana’s death left him in shock. He was immediately informed of her death and according to the royal biographer Penny Junor’s book “The firm” Charles’s first reaction was that he will be blamed for her death.
He was worried that the people would be in shock and horror that it might ruin the monarchy. He cried over his sons and informed them about their mother’s death in the morning.
4.1.2. Dispute between Mother and Son
He also got into a fight with Queen as both their reactions and the way they were handling Diana’s death varied a lot. He wanted to visit the hospital before her death was announced and bring back Diana’s body himself but was not allowed by the palace.
St. James and Buckingham Palace weren’t able to agree on what action to take and how to pay the tribute to Princess Diana. Charles wanted to make Diana be seen as special as she was. Eventually, Queen understood the need for it and Charles with Diana’s sister Sarah went to bring Diana’s body back to Great Britain.
In the end, his wishes were accepted and Diana was honored with a royal funeral.
4.2. Queen Elizabeth II
Her reaction to Diana’s death was summarised to be very cold as she was reluctant to leave Balmoral castle and mourn Diana’s death. She wanted to stay with Prince William and Prince Harry and save them from British media’s intrusive behavior.
Still, to honor Diana the union flag was flown at half-mast even without Queen’s presence and the tradition to keep the union flag at half-mast on Diana Princess of Wales’s death anniversary began.
4.3. Public’s Reactions
The news shook the world. Everyone was mourning Diana’s death. The public was furious at the royal family for not commenting on anything for days or showing emotions.
Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace were filled with flowers and books of condolences signed by the people from Britain. People from outside UK shipped books of condolences to both of the Palaces.
Princess Diana touched many hearts with her charitable and warm nature. The world grieved her death.
5. Diana Princess of Wales’s Final Words
French Firefighter Xavier Gourmelon talked about Princess Diana’s last words and what happened after they found her in a car crash. At first, none of the firefighters knew who she was and who they were saving but was informed afterward.
When he approached her she regained consciousness and agitatedly asked him “Oh my god, what happened?”
He tried to calm her down, but the emergency doctor claimed that she had gone into cardiac arrest. Diana woke up again and was taken to the hospital immediately.
6. Death Blame Game
Princess Diana’s death arouses many accusations and questions. Most didn’t believe it to be a car accident, so they created conspiracy theories about who murdered Diana Princess of Wales. It led to the start of the blame game.
People believed so much in the conspiracy theories and the uproar of it made the British metropolitan police inquiry launch “Operation Paget” in 2004 to investigate the death of Princess Diana.
6.1. Facts Related to the Death of Princess Diana
6.1.1. Paparazzi
When Diana and Al Fayed were leaving the Ritz Hotel to his Paris estate, the paparazzi started chasing them as Diana’s Pictures were in high demand at that time.
When the car crashed in the Pont de L’Alma tunnel in Paris, they just watched Princess Diana die and didn’t even call the ambulance or Police because they wanted to click as many pictures of her as they could.
Even Lord Spencer accused and claimed that the reason Princess died was because of the Paparazzi and he knew the Paparazzi would kill her someday.
The journalists present at the car accident scene were soon after arrested and sent to prison as they did nothing to help and just watched them die.
People believed that the paparazzi had made the car crash happen intentionally.
6.1.2. Henri the Driver
Before the accident when the Paparazzi had started gathering around the Ritz Hotel, Henri Paul was caught talking to them and according to people present there, he had informed the Paparazzi about Diana and Al Fayed’s Departure.
There were photos of him claiming that he had been drinking that night and had taken drugs before he started driving.
Some even believed that he was an M16 Agent sent out to kill Princess Diana.
6.1.3. The Car That Vanished
According to the French investigation found, the Mercedes Benz had been hit by another car which was identified as White Fiat Uno according to the markings on Henri’s car.
As Henri was driving over the speed limit, to avoid a collision with the Fiat Uno he swerved left but had broken the tail lights of the Fiat Uno, and because of the impact, he lost control of the car making it crash into the pillar.
But upon further investigation, the car was never found. Even the CCTV cameras were not working that night and didn’t pick up on Diana’s car.
6.1.4. Royal Family
Many people believed that Diana Princess of Wales was killed by her own family because she was with a non-white guy and because all the scandals related to her relationship with the royal family, made them seen as a villain.
Mohammed Al Fayed also accused the royal family of her son’s and Diana’s death as he believed that Princess Diana had been pregnant and the royal family couldn’t handle the news and let the couple be together.
6.1.4.1. Princess Diana Had Doubts
Diana’s butler Paul Burell had disclosed a letter given to him by Diana at some point in which she talks about feeling threatened and afraid for her life.
One of her bodyguards had died in an accident and she was facing some car troubles, so she talked about how she felt that the palace was planning on killing her in a car accident by failing the breaks of the car and a head injury so that Prince Charles could marry again.
If you look at it now, it does coincide with Prince Charles getting remarried to his mistress a few years after Diana’s death.
But even after all these speculations, according to the forensic reports of Henri’s blood test, tire marks on the road around 200 feet before the Paris tunnel, Fiat Uno’s broken glass, and its white markings on the Mercedes concluded that it was indeed an accident.
To sum it up
The death of Princess Diana which took place Sunday morning on 31st August 1997 is still being talked about and conspiracy theorists never die down. It’s one of the most talked about incidents and we may never know how and why exactly did Princess Diana die.
Princess Diana inspired many people and was liked by almost everyone she met. No one could beat her charm. She was always on the news for various reasons but in the end, her fame cost Diana her life.
Bhavya is an author who loves to read and write. For her a perfect day is sipping hot cup of coffee while reading her favorite novel. Currently she is studying psychology, and wrote articles based on health and history tales.
