Buckingham Palace Disputes Earl Spencer's Memoir Claims About King Charles and Diana
The Royal Family is embroiled in a public disagreement over a controversial memoir written by Diana, Princess of Wales's brother.
Buckingham Palace has issued a strong rebuttal to claims made by Earl Spencer, the brother of the late Diana, Princess of Wales, regarding a controversial memoir about her life and death. The memoir, titled "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister," is set to be published next week and details events from the perspective of Diana's own family.
According to excerpts published in the Daily Mail, Earl Spencer alleges that King Charles, then Prince of Wales, made an insensitive comment in the wake of Diana's 1997 death, stating, "we'll forget her soon enough." The Palace's response, unusually forceful, suggests that grief can affect judgment and memory.
"While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss," a Palace spokesperson stated. This phrasing echoes the Royal Family's response to claims of racism made by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2021, when it was stated that "recollections may vary."
Earl Spencer also claims in his book that the then-Prince of Wales subjected him to a "stream of anger" over his insistence that Diana would not have wanted her sons, Princes William and Harry, then aged 15 and 12, to walk in her funeral procession. "Rest assured," Charles allegedly hissed, "we'll forget her soon enough." The Palace disputes this account, describing it as out of character for a man who was himself dealing with grief and the care of his sons at the time. The book is expected to reopen difficult chapters in the Royal Family's recent history, particularly concerning the public's perception of their response to Diana's death.
The dispute emerges amid a busy schedule for the Royal Family. King Charles is scheduled to host a summit on artificial intelligence at Dumfries House, in Ayrshire, where he is expected to urge AI leaders to prevent the technology from becoming a destructive force and to ensure it remains in service of humanity. Princes William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, are also undertaking official engagements, visiting community and volunteering projects on the Isle of Bute.