An unusually sharply worded statement from Buckingham Palace has sparked a wide royal dispute over a claim related to Princess Diana's funeral.
The statement came in response to a forthcoming memoir by Charles Spencer, Princess Diana's brother, in which he alleges that then-Prince Charles said, after Diana's death in 1997, that she would soon be forgotten.
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A new book published, on Tuesday, by the late Princess Diana's brother made headlines around the world, after containing sharp accusations against Diana's former husband, now King Charles III, and reopening decades-old wounds within the British royal family.
In his book Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, Charles Spencer says he got into an argument with then-Prince Charles over the palace's plans to have Princes William and Harry, then aged 15 and 12, walk behind their mother's coffin during her 1997 funeral procession.
Spencer says he told Charles that Diana, who died in a car crash in Paris at age 36, would not have wanted her sons to go through this harsh experience.
He alleges that the prince "erupted furiously" during the argument, telling him, in essence: "Don't worry, we'll forget her soon enough."
Spencer also accuses Charles of harboring "contempt" for his former wife, and of appearing "cheerful" after her death.
After excerpts from the book were published last week, Buckingham Palace responded with a sharply worded statement, an unusual step compared to the reserved style the royal family typically follows.
The statement said the King understands that the pain of losing a sibling can affect thinking, judgment, and memory in ways others may not notice, even many years after the death.
But Spencer stood by his claims, affirming in remarks to the BBC that he's telling the truth.
Asked about the palace's response, he wondered: "Is he angry? Is he angry or embarrassed?"
The dispute brings Charles and Diana's history back to the forefront
Charles was 32 years old when he married Lady Diana Spencer, 20, in a lavish ceremony held at St. Paul's Cathedral in 1981.
The couple officially separated in 1996, and about a decade later Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles, who later became Queen Camilla.
Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl Spencer, has had long-running disputes with the royal family over how his older sister was treated.
The tension between the palace and the Spencer family following Diana's death has been depicted in dramatic works, including the film The Queen and the series The Crown.
In a deeply moving eulogy during his sister's funeral, Spencer pledged that her "blood family" would continue her "creative and loving" legacy in raising her two sons.
Many at the time viewed his words as a veiled criticism of the royal family.
After Diana's death, many in Britain and beyond felt that Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family were slow to respond to the global wave of grief that followed her death, and that the royal institution appeared distant from public sentiment.
Spencer criticizes Harry's treatment. The royal family spent decades trying to move past that period of crisis.
The warmer, more approachable style adopted by William and Harry, as well as the King in recent years, has become part of that period's legacy.
In his book, Spencer also criticized the royal family over what he described as a "clear lack of care" toward Harry, who was 12 at the time.
He recalled how his nephew looked after the funeral, "small, thin, and grief-stricken."
He wrote that Harry of course needed Diana's embrace, but was forever denied it, adding that instead of receiving calm and care, he was left losing control of himself.
Some critics have questioned why Spencer felt the need to reopen the pain and trauma some 30 years later.
Spencer said he wanted to put his own thoughts and memories of Diana down "once and for all," rather than continuing to read others' opinions, many of which, he said, were based on inaccurate information.
Asked whether the press's relationship with Prince Harry and his wife Meghan resembled how the media treated his sister, Spencer told the BBC that Diana "was deeply harmed by all that criticism," adding that it's unfortunate to see echoes of that now.
Resource: Al Ghad newspaper
