‘The People’s Princess’ Would Have Been 65 Today

Diana Frances Spencer, who became known to the masses as “The People’s Princess” or simply “Princess Diana,” was born on July 1st, 1961. Were Princess Diana still alive, today the iconic philanthropist, style icon, and humanitarian would have turned 65.

Diana was born at Park House, located near Sandringham, Norfolk as the youngest daughter of then Viscount and Viscountess Althorp. She grew up with three siblings; sisters Sarah and Jane, and younger brother, Charles. The Spencer family grew up close to the Royal Family, with Diana playing with Prince Andrew and Edward at holidays and even growing up referring to Queen Elizabeth II affectionately as “Aunt Lilibet.”

At seven-years-old, Diana’s parents divorced and her father won custody of her shortly after the holidays in 1967. She inherited the title of Lady Diana after her father became Earl Spencer in 1975, at which point her father moved the entire family from Park House to Althorp, the Spencer seat in Northamptonshire.

Diana was first introduced in 1977 to Charles, Prince of Wales when she was 16 and the Queen’s eldest son and heir was 29 and, at the time, dating her older sister, Sarah. A few years later, the heir apparent began to express interest in Diana as a potential wife. The two courted from 1980 until February of 1981 when they became engaged. They kept the engagement secret for two and a half weeks before announcing it to the public.

Diana became Princess Diana of Wales at the age of 20 when she wed Charles at at St Paul’s Cathedral on July 29th, 1981. The wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer cost about $48 million at the time. When adjusted for inflation, that equates to $140 million today. Their nuptials remain one of the most expensive royal weddings in history. Globally, 750 million watched their wedding via television while more than 600,000 lined the streets in London hoping for a glimpse of the couple.

Diana and Charles had two sons, William and Harry. Notably, Diana gave her sons more experiences outside of typical royal life. She took them to school when she was able, planned outings for them, and would even rearrange her calendar to be more in line with her children’s.

From 1987 to 1995, Diana’s relationship with Charles was very tense, subject to many scandals, and both had admitted to extramarital affairs. The marriage was clearly on the rocks and despite multiple attempts at reconciliation, the two divorced in 1996. Diana lost the title of “Her Royal Highness” at the insistence of Charles in the divorce and her oldest son William told her, “Don’t worry, Mummy, I will give it back to you one day, when I am king.”

On August 31, 1997, Diana was involved in a fatal car crash and died at the young age of 36. The crash occurred while her driver was fleeing from paparazzi. Her funeral, televised on September 6th, was watched by more than 2.5 billion people worldwide.

Over the years, Diana has remained one of the most notably popular member of the British monarchy. She was known for her kindness, humor, compassion, advocacy, and being a hardworking and resilient person. She was a devoted mother to her children, and she stuck true to who she was despite being in one of the most highly pressurized positions possible.

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