Modern, independent and authentic, Princess Diana she strongly engaged in social causes and became known as “the people’s princess”. This Wednesday (31), the world remembers one of the saddest episodes around the British royal family: the tragic and untimely death of Diana, 25 years ago.
The Princess of Wales divorced Prince Charles in 1996, but intense media coverage was still hounding her when she went on vacation the following summer with boyfriend Dodi Fayed.
Shortly after midnight on August 31, a Mercedes carrying Diana and Fayed crashed at 100 km per hour into one of the pillars of a tunnel near the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The accident killed Diana, Fayed and their driver, Henri Paul.
The news reached the royal family while they were in Scotland at Balmoral Castle. Within hours, Charles had flown to Paris to retrieve Diana’s body before returning to Balmoral to be with his and Diana’s children, Prince William and Harry.
In 1995, two years before her death, she said in an interview that she wanted to be a queen. The Princess of Wales, however, was not talking about the British monarchy. She wanted to be the queen of people’s hearts.
Real family
For centuries, the British monarchy has been known for its formal and rigid exterior. Members of the royal family had a strong presence during public engagements, showing the rigidity of the institution. But Princess Diana defied royal norms and brought the royal family closer to the people.
His rise to international stardom as an activist for social causes such as AIDS, as well as a fashion icon, were traits of his approachable, kind-hearted demeanor and a rebellious spirit.
Diana was one of the most approachable members of the royal family. This changed the way royals act, nowadays, in public. Examples of this can be seen in the way their children and also their respective responses, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, interact with the public and press today.
broke protocols
Diana omitted the word ‘obey’ from her wedding vows
It is a long-standing tradition for royal brides to say that they will obey their husbands as they recite their wedding vows.
But when Diana, aged 20, married Prince Charles, 32, in 1981, she decided to remove the word “obey” from her vows – breaking royal precedent. Instead, Diana said that she would “love him, comfort him, honor him and keep him, in sickness and in health.”
The original phrase is from the 1662 Anglican Book of Common Prayer, which does not include the word “obey” in a husband’s vows to his wife. Even Queen Elizabeth II took her vows to obey her husband Prince Philip, something that would be technically impossible once she was crowned queen.
Both Kate and Meghan followed in Diana’s footsteps, omitting the word “obey” from their wedding vows decades later.
A royal education outside the palace walls
Diana made history again when her eldest son Prince William was three and she decided to send him to preschool – making him the first member of the royal family to attend preschool outside Buckingham Palace. In the past, future heirs to the throne stayed at home with a governess.
In 1985, the Prince and Princess of Wales escorted their eldest son to his first day of school at Jane Mynor Children’s School in London, according to the New York Times. Princess Diana, who had previously worked as an assistant teacher, chose the small school because she wanted William to have a normal English child’s education, the NYT reported at the time.
Prince Harry ended up following in his brother’s footsteps, attending the same school two years later. Diana’s choice to provide her children with an early public education showed not only her bravery to break with royal protocol, but also to expose her children to as normal a life as possible.
Unmasked the stigma around HIV/AIDS
One of the most iconic parts of Diana’s legacy was her involvement in causes related to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
In 1987, Diana opened the UK’s first HIV/AIDS clinic in London, as the virus was becoming a global health crisis and was often associated with misinformation. It was at this clinic that Diana shook hands with an AIDS patient – without gloves.
“HIV doesn’t make people dangerous to know, so you can shake their hands and give them a hug, God knows, they need it,” Diana said in 1987.
At the time, it was controversial because many falsely believed that the virus could be transferred through touch. This illustration of compassion and empathy for people affected by HIV/AIDS sent a clear message that if a member of the royal family wasn’t afraid to touch an AIDS patient, no one should be. The scene was publicized all over the world.
“The image of her holding hands with an HIV/AIDS patient shattered the stigma, prejudice and fear that surrounded the disease in its early days,” said Andrew Parkis, chief executive of the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.
Four years later, US First Lady Barbara Bush joined Diana at the clinic visiting patients, proving that the Princess of Wales had strong political influence across the world.
Today his humanitarian work lives on. The Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fund, created after her death, has raised millions and distributes funds to dozens of causes supported by Diana, including AIDS prevention, the palliative care movement and landmine clearance.
“The memorial did very well,” said Diana’s brother Charles, the ninth Earl Spencer. “She didn’t choose to be soft. She didn’t opt for the conventional ideas of charity that appealed to other people… She opted for the messy, complicated, scary ones and made them her own.”
Modern fashion choices
Princess Diana broke royal protocol in her fashion choices countless times, opting for more modern and casual pieces.
One of the most celebrated moments for the fashion icon was when she donned a midnight blue velvet dress, which left her shoulders bare, and danced with John Travolta at the White House in 1985. Her elegance and grace immortalized the moment.
Another iconic look was her “revenge dress”. Asymmetrical and fitted, the short dress was worn at a 1994 event in London on the day that Prince Charles admitted, in an interview, to having an affair. Black was considered appropriate only for royalty during funerals.
“Her style was very unique,” said Jack L. Carlson, whose Rowing Blazers brand recently launched a Diana-inspired clothing line. “She was not a follower. On the contrary, she made her own thing, and we all watched in awe and tried to keep up.”
Ran barefoot at a school event
This lighthearted moment captured at one of Prince Harry’s school events once again showed the Princess of Wales’ appetite for fun and competition. She was publicly a more practical mother than previous royal generations. She took the kids skiing, to the beach, to water parks and even car races.
In 1991, Diana participated in a walking race with other parents for “sports day” at Wetherby School. She ran barefoot and lost the race, according to Harper’s Bazaar.
Royals are normally expected to keep their shoes on when out in public. Most of these actual guidelines are learned and unspoken. According to Vogue, one of those rules is that shoes must be kept clean and tidy.
But Diana didn’t let those guidelines infringe on her fun. Prince Harry said in an ITV/HBO documentary following Diana’s death that she was “a child through and through”.
*With information from Jorge Mitsunaga of CNN
This content was originally posted on Death of Diana turns 25; remember some facts from the story of Lady Di on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
I’m James Harper, a highly experienced and accomplished news writer for World Stock Market. I have been writing in the Politics section of the website for over five years, providing readers with up-to-date and insightful information about current events in politics. My work is widely read and respected by many industry professionals as well as laymen.
