Royal biographer Ingrid Seward revealed exactly what the late Princess of Wales said – and it wasn’t anything to do with the current Queen
The Princess of Wales and Charles’s whirlwind romance culminated in their fairytale royal wedding in 1981, but their relationship soon began to unravel before ending in divorce in 1996. While Charles’s affair with Camilla has long been viewed as a key factor in the collapse of the marriage, Seward claims Diana privately pointed the finger elsewhere.
Seward, who knew Diana personally and authored several books on the Royal Family, including The Queen and Di, said she spent time with the princess just weeks before her death in a Paris car crash in August 1997.
Speaking on HELLO!‘s A Right Royal Podcast, Seward recalled a conversation that has stayed with her ever since.
“She said to me just before she died, ‘It wasn’t Camilla. It wasn’t Camilla that ruined our marriage. It was the people around Charles,'” Seward said, referring to members of the royal household and palace courtiers.
She admitted she never fully understood what Diana meant.
“I could never unpick that comment and quite understand what it meant,” Seward continued. “But I also remember Diana’s father saying how tricky the royal household was.”
Seward suggested Prince Harry’s criticism of palace officials in his memoir Spare may not be entirely unfounded.
“Harry obviously has a point amid his morass of complaints. He does have some valid points, and I’m riveted,” she said.
She added: “Are they just a load of overinflated egos in the royal household, or are they really trying to help?”
Seward has previously spoken about Diana’s desire for the public to remember that, despite their painful split, there had once been genuine love between her and Charles.
Speaking to The Times, she said: “She really wanted people to know that she loved Charles and he loved her. I always remembered that. She wanted William and Harry to know that too. There was a period of great love between them.”
She added that Diana believed the story of their early romance would become part of history and wanted it to be remembered accurately. At the time of her death, Diana was in a relationship with Dodi Fayed.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s relationship timeline
1977: Charles first met Lady Diana Spencer through her older sister, Lady Sarah Spencer, whom he was dating.
1980: Charles and Diana began dating, and after only a few months he proposed.
February 1981: Their engagement was announced. Diana wore an iconic blue suit and unveiled her sapphire engagement ring.
29 July 1981: Charles and Diana married at St Paul’s Cathedral in a ceremony watched by an estimated 750 million people worldwide, while around 600,000 lined the streets of London.
21 June 1982: Prince William was born.
15 September 1984: Prince Harry was born. Diana later claimed the birth marked a turning point in their marriage. She said: “Charles always wanted a girl. Harry was a boy… Charles and I were very, very close to each other the six weeks before Harry was born, the closest we’ve ever been. Then, suddenly, as Harry was born, it just went bang. Our marriage. The whole thing went down the drain.”
1986: Charles resumed his relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles, while Diana also entered relationships outside the marriage.
10 December 1992: Prime Minister John Major announced the Prince and Princess of Wales had separated.
June 1994: Charles publicly admitted he had been unfaithful during the marriage.
29 August 1996: Their divorce was finalised, ending one of the most scrutinised royal marriages in history. Diana also lost the style of Her Royal Highness.
