Diana, Princess of Wales: A Look Back at Her Life and Legacy

The world was shocked on August 31, 1997, when news broke that Diana, Princess of Wales had died in a car crash in Paris at just 36 years old.

Tony Blair's famous description of her as the “people's princess” perfectly captured the unique place she held in the public's affection.

In her relatively short time as a public figure, Diana truly captured the nation's heart with her wit, grace, poise, vulnerability, and bravery.

Let's take a look back at her life and legacy.

Emergence into Public View

Diana Spencer first emerged fully into public view as an elegant and mild-mannered 19-year-old nursery worker in February 1981 after she accepted Prince Charles's proposal.

Even after the engagement was announced, the newly betrothed couple gave an interview to ITV.

The youthful pair were charmingly awkward as they discussed their romance, and Charles was filmed affectionately stroking her hand at points.

However, the interview took an insensitive turn when the journalist asked the couple how they felt about each other, adding, “I suppose, in love?”

Diana replied, “Of course,” before Charles indelicately added, “whatever in love means.”

Diana let out a stilted giggle, but her face betrayed her true wounded feelings.

She later confided that the remark had left her traumatized.

However, her grace in that first interview coupled with the public indignity she suffered immediately endeared her to the nation.

Wedding of the Century

Charles and Diana were wed in July 1981 at St. Paul's Cathedral in what was billed as the wedding of the century.

She looked every inch the princess in a manual dress with a 25-feet train, as the largest ever worldwide audience of 750 million people tuned in across the globe.

Yet amongst all the regal pomp and pageantry, Diana, who had just turned 20, betrayed her human side as her nerves showed through.

During her vows, she mixed up her groom's names, calling him Philip Charles Arthur George instead of Charles Philip.

A Hands-on Mother

Soon after the wedding, Charles and Diana announced they were expecting their first child.

William was born on June 21, 1982, and then Harry followed on September 15, 1984.

Diana yet again won over the public with her down-to-earth approach to raising her children.

She chose air schools and clothing and insisted on taking them to school when she was not busy with royal duties.

Combating AIDS and HIV Misconceptions

In the mid-1980s, the AIDS epidemic was at its peak, and misconceptions about the disease were rife.

One of the most prevalent was that it could be contracted via person-to-person contact.

In 1987, Diana opened the UK's first dedicated HIV and AIDS unit at London Middlesex Hospital, and then in front of the camera, she took the hand of a man suffering from HIV.

With one powerful gesture of compassion, she helped dispel a cruel myth surrounding the disease and shifted public perception of sufferers.

The Panorama Interview

By the late 1980s, it was public knowledge that Charles and Diana were living separate lives.

In December 1992, Prime Minister John Major confirmed the split by announcing the couple's amicable separation.

Then, in November 1995, she gave a famous interview to the BBC's Panorama in which she bore her soul to the nation.

In the candid exchange, she admitted she'd struggled to cope with the strains of the recent years and had even been driven to self-harm.

But she also displayed her cutting wit.

When asked by Martin Bashir about Charles's affair with Camilla Parker Bowles, Diana retorted, “Well, there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.”

Campaign to End Landmines

In January 1997, Diana visited Angola, which had been left littered with landmines after 30 years of civil war.

Diana spearheaded the campaign to end landmines by endorsing the Red Cross planned for a global ban.

When the woman took the incredibly brave decision to walk through a cleared path through a live minefield, the photos of Diana risking her life to highlight the plight of others have become the iconic and enduring images of the woman who truly was the people's princess.

Legacy

Diana's legacy lives on long after her death.

She was not only a princess and a national figurehead, but also someone who challenged social taboos with her gentle compassion and used her profile to highlight unfashionable causes.

Her grace, kindness, and vulnerability touched the hearts of millions.

Even today, she remains a beloved figure, and her influence can be seen in the work of her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, who continue to carry out her charitable work.