King Charles responded to claims made by his brother-in-law Charles Spencer in an unusual statement following the publication of an excerpt from Spencer's upcoming book about Princess Diana. The Daily Mail published the excerpt on September 16, which includes allegations that King Charles expressed contempt for Diana after her death and disagreed with the decision to have William and Harry walk behind their mother’s coffin during her funeral procession. Buckingham Palace issued a rare statement saying that "pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason" and affect memory, without directly denying Spencer's claims.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-17,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Charles Spencer, Diana's brother and the ninth Earl Spencer, has alleged in his upcoming memoir "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister" that just days after Princess Diana’s death on September 8, 1997, he received a phone call from then-Prince Charles who told him, “rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough.” This claim is made amid disputes over funeral arrangements for the princess, including whether Princes William and Harry, aged 15 and 12 at the time, should walk in their mother's funeral procession. Earl Spencer insisted Diana would not have wanted her young sons to endure such a public ordeal. In response, Buckingham Palace issued a statement saying Charles is "mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory," without directly addressing the specific claim but indicating it could be influenced by the passage of time.
Written for “Charles Diana Claims” on 2026-09-17,
grounded in this article and the 8 other(s) covering the same event.
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King Charles responded to claims made about him in Charles Spencer's upcoming book in an unusual move.
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Charles → respond → move
The Daily Mail published an excerpt of Spencer's upcoming memoir, "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister," on Wednesday, Sept. 16, in which the King's former brother-in-law alleged a heated conversation he had with Charles following the death of his sister and the former Princess of Wales, Princess Diana.
"
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he → publish → Wales
Prince Charles continued his stream of anger, without me interrupting.
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me → continue → anger
Then he stopped.
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he → stop → ?
I assumed the pause signaled an effort to bring himself under control, but then he unleashed down the phone what I have always taken to be his pent-up contempt for Diana, and his horror that the world was so bowled over by her death
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world → assume → death
," Spencer alleged, according to the Daily Mail. "
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Spencer → allege → Mail
‘Rest assured,’ he hissed, ‘we’ll forget her soon enough!’
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we → rest → her
According to the excerpt, the disagreement between King Charles and the 9th Earl of Spencer was regarding the decision to have Prince William and Prince Harry, then 15 and 12, walk behind their mother's casket during the funeral procession.
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William → accord → procession
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson issued a rare statement on behalf of the King responding to Spencer's claims.
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spokesperson → issue → claims
"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," the statement read, per People.
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statement → comment → People
Princess Diana died in August 1997 at age 36 after suffering injuries sustained following a car accident in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris, France.
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Diana → die → Paris
Her partner, Dodi Fayed, and the driver, Henri Paul, also died in the crash.
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partner → die → crash
The two married in July 1981, announced their separation in December 1992 and finalized their divorce in August 1996.
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two → marry → August
Prince Harry wrote about the decision to have him and his brother walk behind their mother's coffin in his 2023 memoir, "Spare," writing that "several adults were aghast" and that "mummy’s brother, Uncle Charles, raised hell," and that he told the royal family, "You can’t make these boys walk behind their mother’s coffin!
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boys → write → coffin
It’s barbaric."
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It → ’ → ?
This is not the first time Spencer has spoken about his opposition to the boys walking behind their mother's coffin.
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boys → speak → coffin
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today in 2017 that he found the decision "bizarre and cruel."
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decision → tell → 2017
"It was the most horrifying half an hour of my life," he said.
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he → say → life
And it was far worse than having to deliver a speech at the end of it.
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it → have → it
It was the worst part of the day by a considerable margin, walking behind, well, my sister’s body, with two boys who were obviously massively grieving their mother."
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who → walk → mother
"And it was this sort of bizarre circumstance where we told you had to look straight ahead," he continued.
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he → tell → circumstance
"But the feeling, the sort of crashing tidal wave of grief coming at you as you went down this sort of tunnel of deep emotion, it was really harrowing actually and I still have nightmares about it now.
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I → crash → it
"
"Swan Song: Diana, My Sister" is set to be released on Tuesday, Sept. 22.
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Song → set → Tuesday
The Aporia
