King Charles Responds to Charles Spencer’s Claim About Princess Diana

King Charles has issued an unusually direct response to a claim made by his former brother-in-law, Earl Charles Spencer, about an alleged conversation following Princess Diana’s death in 1997.

The allegation appears in Spencer’s forthcoming memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, which is due to be published on September 22. In an excerpt, Diana’s brother recalls a heated phone conversation with the then-Prince Charles in the days before her funeral.

According to Spencer’s account, the disagreement began over plans for Princes William and Harry, then aged 15 and 12, to walk behind their mother’s coffin during her funeral procession.

Spencer’s Account of the Heated Phone Call

Spencer says he strongly objected when he learned that William and Harry were expected to take part in the procession.

He reportedly argued that Diana would never have wanted her young sons to endure such a painful and public experience.

The disagreement led to a phone call from the then-Prince Charles. Spencer recalls Charles pointing to his own experience of walking behind the coffin of his great-uncle, Lord Mountbatten, in 1979.

Spencer says he pushed back, noting the difference between Charles’ age at the time and the ages of Diana’s sons.

According to Spencer’s memoir, the conversation then became increasingly heated. He claims Charles eventually told him: “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough.”

The account is Spencer’s recollection of an event almost three decades ago and remains an allegation rather than an independently established fact.

Buckingham Palace Responds

Following the publication of an excerpt from the memoir, Buckingham Palace issued a rare statement addressing the claim.

The Palace said it does not normally comment on books, but added that the King is mindful of how grief can affect a person’s recollection of traumatic events.

The statement said that “the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory” in ways others may not recognise, even many years after a loss.

The wording has drawn comparisons with Queen Elizabeth II’s famously restrained response to claims made by Harry and Meghan during their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, when the Palace said that “recollections may vary.”

A Dispute Over Diana’s Funeral

The disagreement described by Spencer centers on one of the most emotionally difficult moments following Diana’s death.

Diana died in a car crash in Paris in August 1997, aged 36. Her funeral took place on September 6, 1997, with William and Harry walking behind their mother’s coffin alongside members of the royal family and Spencer.

Spencer has previously spoken about his concerns surrounding the decision, while Harry has also reflected publicly on the experience of walking behind his mother’s coffin as a 12-year-old.

Now, nearly 30 years later, Spencer’s memoir has brought his recollection of the events back into the spotlight — and Buckingham Palace’s response has added a new chapter to the long-running debate over what happened in the days following Diana’s death.