A bitter royal feud erupted as Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl Spencer, published his memoir Swan Song: Diana, My Sister. The book details Prince Charles’s alleged elation after Princess Diana’s 1997 death and sparked a fierce public rebuttal from Buckingham Palace, reopening decades-old wounds within the British royal family.
The Bottom Line
- The Trigger: Charles Spencer’s memoir alleges that King Charles showed “contempt” and sounded “elated” following Princess Diana’s death in a 1997 car crash.
- The Palace Response: Buckingham Palace issued a rare, sharply worded statement arguing that “the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and color memory.”
- The Revelations: The book also claims Diana tried to call off her 1981 wedding after discovering a bracelet bought for Camilla Parker Bowles, and struggled with severe mental health battles.
An Explosive Memoir and a Rare Palace Rebuttal
The publishing world and royal watchers alike have turned their focus to London, where Charles Spencer dropped a literary grenade. The memoir Swan Song: Diana, My Sister outlines a stormy history between the late princess and the man who is now King Charles III. Among the most incendiary claims is an alleged screaming match between Spencer and the then-Prince of Wales over whether 15-year-old Prince William and 12-year-old Prince Harry should walk behind their mother’s coffin during her funeral procession.
Spencer claims that when he argued the boys should be spared the public ordeal, Charles “went ballistic” and retorted, “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough.” Furthermore, the book alleges that the king displayed “contempt” for his ex-wife and sounded “elated” upon learning of her fatal crash in Paris at age 36.
The British monarchy broke protocol. Buckingham Palace fired back with an extraordinary public statement. “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,” the palace declared. When pressed by the BBC about the rebuttal, Spencer pushed back directly, asking, “Is he furious or is he embarrassed?”
Unearthing Decades-Old Royal Tensions
The book reaches far beyond funeral arrangements, dragging pre-wedding anxieties back into the global spotlight. Spencer writes that his sister actively tried to break off her engagement in 1981 after discovering a bracelet purchased for Camilla Parker Bowles. Diana reportedly attempted to back out of the massive ceremony at St. Paul’s Cathedral altogether, telling her father that Charles clearly did not love her.
According to Spencer’s account, their father dismissed the plea as an impossible retreat given the immense public scale of the wedding. The memoir also revisits Diana’s deeply painful private struggles, noting that she suffered from suicidal ideation and more than once drove to the chalk cliffs at Beachy Head to consider ending her life. Echoing sentiments shared by Prince Harry, Spencer places primary blame for the fatal 1997 crash squarely on the paparazzi.
Tensions between the palace and the Spencer family have famously fueled prestige television and film projects before, most notably in Netflix’s royal drama The Crown and the film The Queen.
Key Revelations and Reactions at a Glance
| Claim / Event | Details Provided in Memoir | Response / Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| The Funeral Procession | Spencer claims Charles “went ballistic” when challenged over Prince William and Prince Harry walking behind Diana’s coffin. | Buckingham Palace issued a rare statement criticizing the reliability of grieving memories. |
| The 1981 Engagement | Diana discovered a bracelet bought for Camilla and attempted to call off the wedding, but was rebuffed by her father. | Reopened historical debates about the turbulent early days of Charles and Diana’s marriage. |
| Public Reception | The 28-pound hardback hit London bookshops with half-price promotions and early sales were not brisk. | Attracted global headlines, driving intense consumer interest among long-time royal observers. |
The Cultural Aftermath and What Comes Next
While brick-and-mortar bookshops in London displayed heavy stacks of the 28-pound hardback—with some retailers discounting copies to half price on launch day—public reaction remains sharply divided. Tourists and long-time royal observers, such as Atlanta visitor Mary Scheible, noted an eager appetite to hear the Spencer family’s perspective directly on the page.
