Princess Diana's Brother Recounts Rejecting Queen Elizabeth's Posthumous Title Offer

Charles Spencer, the brother of the late Princess Diana, has revealed that he rejected an offer from Queen Elizabeth II to reinstate his sister's "Her Royal Highness" title shortly after her death. The account is detailed in Spencer's forthcoming book, "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister."

According to excerpts published by the Daily Mail, Spencer was traveling with his sister's coffin to Althorp, the Spencer family estate, when he received a call from Robert Fellowes, the Queen's secretary and Spencer's brother-in-law. Fellowes relayed that the Queen wished to offer Diana her HRH title back.

Princess Diana's HRH title had been removed following her divorce from Prince Charles in 1996, after which she was styled as "Diana, Princess of Wales." Spencer recounted that he pondered Diana's potential reaction to the posthumous offer.

"What would Diana want? I thought," Spencer wrote. "She had been dreadfully hurt by the removal of that title as she exited her marriage. It had seemed so petty and vindictive. While she was no longer to be married to one future king, she would always be mother to another."

He ultimately decided that Diana would not have valued the gesture. "After a moment, I felt that I knew in my bones how she would view this posthumous award," Spencer stated. "‘That’s very kind of the Queen, of course. But what’s the point, Robert? Now? I mean – Diana’s dead.’"

Spencer later reflected on whether his response was appropriate, questioning if Diana's sons might have valued the gesture from their paternal grandmother. However, he felt a strong protective instinct towards his sister at that moment and believed the offer was a hollow consolation, regardless of the Queen's intentions.

He also expressed that the title should never have been revoked during her lifetime, which would have rendered the posthumous offer unnecessary.

Buckingham Palace issued a statement to HuffPost in response to the book excerpts, noting, "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 color memory in ways others do not recognize, even many years after such a loss."

Prince Harry, Diana's younger son, was recently asked about his uncle's book while on the red carpet but appeared to avoid the question.