Биография принцессы дианы на английском с переводом. Princess Diana - Принцесса Диана, устная тема по английскому языку с переводом. Топик. Диана - народная принцесса

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Princess Diana

Diana was born in 1961,into a very wealthy and aristocratic family. Her ancestors acquired the title of earl from king Charles I in the 17 th century. For the next three centuries they felt comfortable at the royal court, holding various positions and bearing various titles.

In 1980 Diana appeared on the world stage as the future bride of Charles, the next king of England. They married on July 29, 1981 in St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Even though they had two children, William and Harry, Diana and Charles soon became unhappy together.

Diana was a very modern woman who enjoyed pop music, romantic novels and charity work. Charles enjoyed many different interests, but their age difference and mentalities clashed. After a very public separation in 1989, an equally public divorce followed in 1996.

As a single woman Diana put all of her energy into her two sons and her charity work

In 1997 she started a romance with Dodi Fayed, son of the owner of Harrods. Soon after the two were tragically killed in a car crash in Paris. She was a very English Rose, whose early death stunned a nation into silence.

As her brother said at her funeral, she was "the unique, the complex, the extraordinary and irreplaceable Diana, whose beauty, both internal and external, will never be extinguished from our minds."

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Diana Frances Spencer, all known as Lady Di, or Princess Diana, was born in London, the city of Sandringham, July 1, 1961 in a large family with royal roots. She was the third daughter of her parents, a little later she had a younger brother. Diana"s parents divorced when she was 8 years old, and she stayed with her father. The girl was fond of ballet, drawing, various kinds of sports. In her youth she had a dream of becoming a dancer. Diana loved spending time with her children, so at the age of 16 she began to work in the kindergarten as an assistant tutor.

When Diana turned 19 she met Prince Charles, and at the age of 20 she became Princess Diana. Their marriage lasted 15 years, they had two sons. Charles and Diana traveled a lot, worked together, but their marriage was not happy, since Charles did not like his wife. Diana suffered very much and often cried about this, and to somehow distract herself, she started doing charity. The princess was a kind, attentive and sympathetic woman. She tried to help all the sick, poor and needy. Visited hospitals, boarding schools, orphanages. Provided not only financial assistance, but also listened attentively and talked with people. People fell in love with Diana.

Such famous personalities as Tom Cruise, Elton John, Michael Jackson, Sting, Barbara Streisond and many others, were her close friends. But she found the most real friends in ordinary people.

Lady Dee died in a terrible car accident on August 31 in 1997. Her death shook and shocked a large number of people. People from different parts of the world came to the funeral to honor their memory. Princess Diana forever remained in history and in the hearts of people, and was remembered by him as a bright and kind person.

Перевод

Диана Фрэнсис Спенсер, всем известная как леди Ди или принцесса Диана, родилась в Лондоне, город Сандрингем, 1 июля 1961 года в многодетной семье с королевскими корнями. Она была третьей дочерью у своих родителей, чуть позже у неё появился младший брат. Родители Дианы развелись когда ей исполнилось 8 лет, и она осталась жить с отцом. Девушка увлекалась балетом, рисованием, различными видами спорта. В юности у неё была мечта стать танцовщицей. Диана любила проводить время с детьми, поэтому в возрасте 16 лет стала работать в детском саду помощницей воспитателя.

Когда Диане исполнилось 19 лет она познакомилась с принцем Чарльзом, и уже в 20 лет стала принцессой Дианой. Их брак продлился 15 лет, у них родились двое сыновей. Чарльз и Диана много путешествовали, вместе работали, но их брак не был счастливым, так как Чарльз не любил свою супругу. Диана очень страдала и часто плакала по этому поводу, и чтобы как-то отвлечься она занялась благотворительностью. Принцесса была доброй, внимательной и отзывчивой женщиной. Она старалась помочь всем больным, бедным и нуждающимся. Посещала больницы, интернаты, детские дома. Оказывала не только финансовую помощь, но и внимательно слушала и разговаривала с людьми. Народ полюбил Диану.

Такие известные личности как Том Круз, Элтон Джон, Майкл Джексон, Стинг, Барбара Стрейзонд и многие другие, были ею близкими друзьями. Но самых настоящих друзей она нашла в простых людях.

Леди Ди погибла в ужасной автомобильной аварии 31 августа в 1997 году. Ее смерть потрялса и шокировала большое количество людей. Люди с разных концов мира приехали на ещё похороны почтить ещё память. Принцесса Диана навсегда осталась в истории и в сердцах людей, и запомнилась им как светлый и добрый человек.

Проект

по английскому языку на тему

«Принцесса Диана»

Подготовили:

Ученицы 6 «А» класса

Шулепова Анна

Шулепова Анастасия

Шуршалина Алена

Козырева Валерия

Учитель:

Алиева Ю.А.

Москва 2012г.

Цель:

Рассказать о жизни принцессы Дианы, ее детстве, личной жизни и заслугами перед простыми людьми.

Задачи:

1. Изучить биографию Дианы Спенсер.
2. Познакомиться с заслугами и достижениями Дианы.
3. Попытаться понять загадку ее популярности.
4. Сохранить в памяти людей образ чистой, нежной, ранимой, великодушной женщины.

1. Юные годы

2. Первая любовь «Золушки»

3. Тайная любовь

4. «Народная принцесса» Юные годы

Принцесса Диана (урожденная леди Диана Френсис Спенсер) родилась 1 июля 1961 года в Сандрингеме, графство Норфолк (Англия).

Детство Диана провела в Сандрингеме, там же получила начальное домашнее образование. Её учительницей стала гувернантка Гертруда Аллен, которая учила ещё мать Дианы. Забегая вперед отметим, что родители Дианы развелись и будущая принцесса жила вместе с отцом, сестрами и братом. Вскоре в доме появилась мачеха, которая невзлюбила детей. Развод оказал величайшее влияние на девочку Диану. Она стала хуже учиться в школе. В итоге Диана так и не закончила её. Единственная вещь, занятие, которое она любила-это танцы. Также Диана просто души не чаяла в детях. В общем, леди покидает отчий дом и уезжает в Лондон, где работает няней в детском саду и снимает квартиру вместе с подружками. Но это позже, а пока она продолжила своё образование в Силфилде, в частной школе около Кингс-Лини, потом в подготовительной школе Ридлсуорт-Холл.

В двенадцать лет её приняли в привилегированную школу для девочек в Уэст-Хилл, в Севеноукс, графство Кент.

« Леди Дианой» (титул учтивости для дочерей высших пэров) она стала в 1975 году, после смерти деда, когда её отец унаследовал графский титул и стал 8-м графом Спенсером. В этот период семья переезжает в древний родовой замок Олторп-Хаус в Ноттрогтонширре.

Первая любовь «Золушки»

Зимой 1977 года, перед тем как уехать на обучение в Швейцарию, шестнадцатилетняя леди Диана впервые встречает принца Чарльза, когда тот приезжает в Олторп на охоту.

К свадьбе Чарльза и Дианы , состоявшейся 29 июля 1981 года, было приковано большое внимание публики и СМИ. В 1982 и 1984 родились сыновья Дианы и Чарльза, принцы Уильям и Гарри (Генри) Уэльские, которые являются следующими в очереди наследования британской короны после своего отца. К началу 1990-х годов отношения между супругами расстроились, в частности, из-за продолжавшихся отношений Чарльза с Камиллой Паркер Боулз (впоследствии, после гибели Дианы, ставшей его второй женой). Сама Диана некоторое время была в близких отношениях со своим инструктором по верховой езде Джеймсом Хьюиттом, в чём призналась в 1995 году в телеинтервью (годом ранее Чарльз сделал аналогичное признание о связи с Камиллой). Брак распался в 1992 году, после чего супруги жили раздельно, и завершился разводом в 1996 году по инициативе королевы Елизаветы II .

Тайный роман

Незадолго до гибели, в июне 1997 года, Диана начала встречаться с кинопродюсером Доди аль-Файедом , сыном египетского миллиардера Мохамеда аль-Файеда , однако кроме прессы этот факт не подтвердил ни один из её друзей, также это отрицается в книге дворецкого Леди Дианы — Пола Баррела, который был близким другом принцессы.

«Народная принцесса»

1. Почему Диана была самой известной в мире молодой женщиной?
2. Почему она завоевала сердца миллионов людей в разных странах?
3. Почему так много людей приехали в Лондон, чтобы почтить ее память, когда она погибла??
4. Почему автомобильная авария, которая унесла ее жизнь, стала таким шоком для всех людей?
5. Почему люди чувствовали такую необходимость присутствовать на ее похоронах?
6. Почему слезы и любовь на похоронах тронули всех?

Ответ очень простой…

1. Сотни людей говорили о ее доброте
2. Несмотря на свой титул и состояние, она любила простых людей и была готова протянуть руку помощи всем.
3. Она помогала больным и бедным. Посещая больницы, она не боялась общаться с больными СПИДом.
4. Она готова была дать людям не только деньги, но и частичку своей души, чтобы сделать их счастливыми.

Она действительно была «народной» принцессой… Childhood, school, first job.

Diana Frances Spencer was born on July 1, 1961 at Park House, the home her parents rented on the royal family"s estate at Sandringham. Diana had two older sisters, Sarah and Jane, and a younger brother, Charles.

When Diana was six, her mother left her father. The Spencers divorced in 1969, and Diana"s father received custody of the children. In 1975 Diana"s father became the eighth Earl Spencer, making Diana a Lady.

Diana attended private boarding schools. Although she wasn"t an especially good student, she was excelled at sports and swimming. She dreamed of being a ballerina, but grew too tall. After leaving school in 1978 she worked as a nanny, waitress, and cleaning woman before becoming a teacher at the Young England kindergarten in Pimlico, London.

Romance with the Prince. Fairy-tale or drama?

Her romance with the Prince of Wales began in 1980. The oldest child of British monarch Queen Elizabeth II, he was 12 years older than Diana, and had previously dated her sister Sarah. Almost from the start, the press took a special interest in "Lady Di." They staked out her apartment and followed her everywhere. Diana later said that she found the constant attention unbearable.

Diana and Charles were married July 29, 1981 at St Paul"s Cathedral. The wedding was broadcast in 74 countries and watched by 750 million people worldwide. Diana was the first English woman to marry an heir to the throne in over 300 years.

At the ceremony the Archbishop of Canterbury said, "Here is the stuff of which fairy tales are made." But the fairy tale was an illusion, as Diana had already discovered. Prince Charles was still in love with an old girlfriend, Camilla Parker-Bowles. "There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded," Princess Diana remarked years later. Distraught, Diana developed bulimia and attempted suicide. Despite her problems, she was a devoted mother to her two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. She worked tirelessly for charity, and was beloved by the public for her warmth and humanity.

In 1992 Princess Diana decided to expose the truth about her relationship with Prince Charles to the public. She secretly collaborated with author Andrew Morton on his book Diana, Her True Story. The separation of the Prince and Princess of Wales was announced on December 9, 1992. The divorce became official August 28, 1996. Princess Diana kept the title Princess of Wales and continued to work for her favorite charities. She and Prince Charles had joint custody of their sons.

Secret love

In 1997 Princess Diana began a love affair with Emad "Dodi" Fayed, the son of billionaire businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed. Their romance ended abruptly on August 31, 1997 when both were killed in a car accident in Paris while fleeing from paparazzi. Princess Diana"s sudden death led to an unprecedented worldwide outpouring of grief and love. As her brother said at her funeral, she was "the unique, the complex, the extraordinary and irreplaceable Diana, whose beauty, both internal and external, will never be extinguished from our minds."

People’s Princes, indeed.

Why was Diana the most famous, the most beautiful, the most photographed woman in the world?

Why did she win the hearts of millions and millions of people in many countries?

Why did so many people come to London to remember her when she died?

Why did the car accident which took her life, become such a total shock to crowds of people?

Why did people feel the need to be in London at the funeral?

Why did the tears and love at the funeral move the world?

The answer is so simple.

She was a kind woman. Hundreds of people talked about Diana"s kindnesses.

She liked ordinary people, though she was rich and had many rich friends. Wherever she was, she was always ready to lend a hand.

She was devoted to the sick and the poor. She visited hospitals for people with AIDS and for lepers and wasn"t afraid to touch them, talk to them, listen to them.

And it"s not only money, that she wanted to give people. She wanted to give them a part of her soul, to make them happy.

She was, indeed, the People"s Princess.

AN EARL’S DAUGHTER

Diana Frances Spencer was not royal by birth. She was born on 1 July 1961 at Park House on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk. She was the third daughter of the future viscount Althorp and Frances Ruth, who was one of The Queen Mother’s ladies-in-waiting.

Diana had two elder sisters, Sarah and Jane, and a younger brother, Charles; there was also a brother called John, born in 1960, who survived only ten hours.

Diana spent her early children’s years in Sandringham, where she had home education. Her first teacher was Gertrude Allen, who taught Diana’s mother. Life at Park House was orderly, traditional and aristocratic. The Spencer children saw their parents only for an hour in the morning and at tea time. When Diana was just six years old her parents separated and later divorced, the children remaining with their father.

Diana continued her education in Sulfide, in private school near the Kings Lynn, then in preparatory Ridlsuort School. When Diana was 12 years old, she went to the privileged school for the girls in West Heath, county Kent.

Her life changed a lot in 1975 when Viscount Althorp becoming 8 th Earl Spencer, and Diana becoming Lady Diana, and they moved to the stately home at Althorp in Northamtonshire. The following year Earl Spencer married Raine, Countess of Dartmouth, whose mother was the romantic novelist, Barbara Cartland. Diana went to a finishing school in Switzerland, where she studied domestic science, typing and correspondence, and found plenty of time to enjoy skiing.

LADY DIANA SPENCER

When Diana returned to Britain from Switzerland she lived in London, sharing apartment with old school friends. She moved naturally in the society that was described by someone as ‘Sloane Rangers’, so called because much of their leisure time was spend in the fashionable shops and restaurants around Sloane Square. Diana became a nanny to a number of children, and took a three-month cookery course, before joining the Young England Kindergarten as a helper. She enjoyed the social whirl, attending parties in the evenings and going to the country every weekend. Diana would stay with friends, or occasionally go back to Althorp where she would visit her sister Jane, and her husband Sir Robert Fellows, at their house on the estate.

Most of Diana’s circle of friends came from similar backgrounds, and when her relationship with The Prince of Wales began they automatically provided her protection. Once the media suspected Lady Diana and Prince Charles’ new romance, press reporters and cameramen pursued her relentlessly. They besieged her flat at Coleherne Court and followed her everywhere. It was a very testing time for the young Diana.

Diana learned to keep her head down, literally, becoming known as ‘Shy Di’. So the highly intensive media attention which was to continue throughout her life began. But ones the engagement was official, Diana moved into an apartment in Clarence House, home of the late Queen Mother, where she would be under the protection of the Royal Press Office.

A FAIRY-TALE BRIDE

The wedding of The Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer took place at St Paul’s Cathedral on 29 July 1981, barely a month after the Brides 20 th birthday. It was a day of joy for everyone: the bride and groom, their families and the millions of people watching on television all over the world. The occasion was a combination of pageantry, high emotion, formal ceremony and vociferous enthusiasm.

Diana was everyone’s idea of a fairy-tail bride; her dress, designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel, was a triumph of ivory silk taffeta, hand embroidered with thousands of tiny mother-of-pearl sequins and pearls, and with a 25-foot train trimmed with sparking old lace. Diana wore the Spencer family tiara, and diamond earrings borrowed from her mother.

She left Clarence House in the Glass Coach accompanied by her father, to the thunderous cheers of the crowds lining The Mall. At St Paul’s the groom was waiting, dressed in uniform of a royal Navy commander, with a splendid blue sash of the Order of the Garter. Seated behind him were the 2,650 guests who had been invited to the wedding, including nearly all the crowned heads of Europe.

After the ceremony the couple returned to Buckingham Palace in the 1902 State Landau, while vast crowds pressed against the railings to catch a glimpse of the new Prince of Wales.

They left the Palace in a balloon-bedecked carriage, starting their honeymoon at Broadlands, the Hampshire home of the late Lord Mountbatten, then flying to Gibraltar to join the Royal Yacht Britannia for a Mediterranean cruise, and finally joining the Royal Family at Balmoral.

PRINCESS OF WALES

From the moment they were married, The Prince and Princess of Wales became the focus of public attention to an extent never before experienced in Britain, even by the Royal Family. They became the most closely watched couple in the world, and while Prince Charles was used to being in the spotlight, for Diana it was a new experience. She coped impressively, and soon became the most photographed woman in the world.

Her early days as Princess of Wales were not always easy. She was coming to grips with being a working member of the Royal Family, finding ways to impress her own style upon her new homes at Kensington Palace and Highgrove, and also getting used to the idea that she was now public property, with very little private life.

For one so young, Diana displayed an extraordinary sense of duty, yet she insisted that her prime role in life was to be a good mother to her children. When she and Prince Charles visited Australia in 1983 she refused to leave Prince William behind, saying she was not going to be separated from her baby for such a long period and miss what she regarded as one of the most important parts of his life. It showed that The Princess had a mind of her own and was not prepared to be merely a pretty accessory.

A DEVOTED MOTHER

Diana’s natural role in life was motherhood. She had always had a special affinity with children of all ages and she never doubted for a moment that she was intended to be a mother. Speaking about her children she once said, ‘They mean everything to me’ and later added, ‘I always feed my children love and affection - it’s so important’.

Although the royal marriage ended in divorce there were many times when the couple enjoyed great happiness together. One such time was at 9.03 p.m. on 21 June 1982, when Diana gave birth to her first son, Prince William, in the private Lindo Wing of St. Mary’s Hospital in London. Prince Charles broke with royal tradition by being present at the birth, and it was also the first time that an heir-presumptive had been born in hospital. Both Diana and Prince Charles were overjoyed.

Off duty Diana would attempt to shrug off the rigid controls of royal protocol and relax with her sons. She was determined that, although they would never forget who they were, they should have as normal an upbringing as possible. She took them to the cinema, letting them choose the films they wanted to see, and introduced them to the delights of fast food hamburger cafes, where she queued with other parents to serve herself. She was a thoroughly modern mother who refused to allow her royal role to interfere with the ordinary, every day joys of bringing up her children.

Diana turned up at the prices’ annual sports day, kicked off her shoes and ran barefoot in the mothers’ race - which the won, to her sons’ great delight. When the time came for Prince William to go away to school, Diana expressed a very clear reference for Eton. It was near enough to London that she could see him frequently, while allowing him to become an ordinary boarder. Both she and Prince Charles insisted that he should be treated the same way as the other pupils.

Diana impressed upon her sons their connection with the principality whose name they shared, telling them never to forget what they were: Prince William and Prince Harry of Wales. She took William on his first official visit to Wales - on St David’s Day 1991 - and later took both boys to Cardiff to watch the Welsh rugby team in action.

She instilled in her sons her own sense of public awareness from an early age, and showed them, at first hand, how the underprivileged are forced to live by taking them with her to a Seamen’s Mission centre for the homeless. It was a salutary experience for the young princes, but one which she felt was necessary in their ongoing training for their future lives.

Diana will be remembered in many different ways, but undoubtedly the most important legacy of her extraordinary life is her two sons, William and Harry.

A SPECIAL TOUCH

As she freely admitted, Diana was not an intellectual. But despite her lack of academic achievement she possessed a quick wit and an understanding that enabled her to survive those early years and adapt to her new role, while her empathy with the public prevented her from being dismissed as merely a ‘walking clothes-horse’.

Diana believed that the monarchy should be in touch with the people, and she won many hearts with her spontaneity and genuine warmth. She was a tactile person who loved to give a hug or a kiss, whether to a child in a Nigerian village or an old lady in a British geriatric ward. People from all walks of life and of all ages identified with her, for her sense of style as well as for the compassion she showed to the sick and the suffering, and to those who had been the outcasts of society.

The public turned out in droves whenever and wherever she appeared, and she always found time to stop and talk, often delaying her official programme in order to chat with people who had waited hours to see her.

It was her common touch, combined with her grace and aristocracy, which made her so popular with the press. They adored her, and followed her wherever she went, knowing that she would always provide them with a winning picture or story. She never let them down. Some of them whom she grew to trust, and took into her confidence, became personal friends who would mourn her in death as much as they had respected her in life.

PRINCESS OF STYLE

If ever a person could rightly claim to be a one-woman fashion industry, that person mast have been Diana, Princess of Wales. Almost single-handed she rejuvenated the British fashion scene, practically from the moment she first stepped onto the royal stage.

Legions of women, from Japan to Jersey, faithfully copied her style down to the tiniest detail. When she appeared in a ‘Robin Hood’ type of hat in the early 80s, identical copies were bought in their thousands, and when she, mischievously, wore a diamond necklace as a headband, jewelers throughout the world were inundated the next day with enquiries for replicas.

Diana never saw herself as a fashion icon and she disliked the description, believing it detracted from more serious side. She said she never followed fashion, only dressing ‘for the job in hand’. It is true that she was not a follower but a trend-setter, and if she was set up as an icon it was only because women so admired her innate sense of style and her ability to choose what was right for her. She managed to combine a modern look with the requirements of royal dignity and cool elegance. The demands of her position necessitated a large wardrobe, and Diana was determined to show the very best of British design and manufacture wherever she went on her overseas tours, performing an extraordinary service for the fashion industry and bringing a new glamorous image to the Royal Family.

She was not dressed exclusively by British designers. Diana was often seen, in recent years, in outfits by Christian Dior, John Galliano, Gianni Versace and Jacques Azagury, as well as those she wore from Bruce Oldfield and Catherine Walker.

Diana was fascinated by showbusiness and the arts and missed no opportunity to mix with stars of stage and screen. Ballet was her first love, and as Patron of the English National Ballet she played an active role in the organization, often turning up to watch rehearsals and staying behind to talk with the dancers. She once wistfully remarked that she would have loved to have been a ballet dancer but ‘at 5ft joins I’m too tall’. So when she sprang a surprise Christmas present for Prince Charles in 1985 by dancing on stage with Wayne Sleep, she was also achieving a life-time ambition. Some years later at a reception at the White House in Washington she partnered John Travolta on the dance floor and afterwards both said it was a ‘dream come true’.

It was Diana’s first change in hairstyle that seemed to transform her the most. Just after the birth of Prince Harry her pageboy hair-cut was replaced by a new style that was classic, sophisticated and totally stunning. The Diana look had arrived; the photographic image had been created.

In June 1997, responding to a suggestion by Prince William, Diana assigned Christie’s to auction 79 of her dresses, raising £1,960,150 for charity. They ranged from short cocktail dresses to formal ball-gowns and included her favourite: a Victor Edelstein creation in duchesse satin with matching bolero jacket, which sold for £54,436.

A MODERN PRINCESS

With the collapse of her marriage in 1992 - separation, followed in 1996 by divorce - Diana set out to find a new life for herself as a single parent. She wanted to create an independent role outside the Royal Family but, as the mother of a future King, she was never completely able to shed her responsibilities, or her imagine throughout the world as ‘Princess Di’.

She formed a number of unfortunate relationships which were quickly terminated and she realized that unqualified love and loyalty would come only from her sons. Diana worked hard at keeping physically fit by visiting a gymnasium most days, and she sought the company of people whom she believed would not try to exploit her.

She made many visits to the United States where her popularity never waned, and where she continued to be treated as royalty. Americans saw her as both an innocent victim and a winner in the divorce battle, and acclaimed her as a great survivor and the successful single mother.

Once the publicity of the marriage break-up had died down Diana began to working towards her goal, which was to be taken seriously in her own right. She had discussions with political leaders, such as President Nelson Mandela of South Africa, and finally she achieved her aim, talking a role of the international stage as an unofficial but highly influential ambassadress.

A QUEEN OF HEARTS

At one time the Princess of Wales was involved with over a hundred charities, which she liked to call her ‘Family of Organizations’.

At the height of her working life, her patronages included such disparate bodies as Barnardos, Birthright, and the British Deaf Association (for whom she leant sign language), the Leprosy Mission, the Malcolm Sargent Cancer Fund for Children, The Princess of Wales Children’s Health Camp in Rotorua (New Zealand), Turning Point, Help the Aged, Centrepoint, AIDS Crisis Trust and the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children.

When the accepted an invitation to become patron of a charity, she became a tireless worker.

Turning Point was perhaps one of the most unlikely groups for a member of the Royal Family to support. It was the largest national voluntary organization providing help for men and woman with drug and alcohol-related problems, and for people recovering from mental illness. When Diana was asked to join them she agreed without hesitation, on the condition that she was not to be merely another royal figurehead, but an active participant in all their work. She raised the profile of Turning Point dramatically and as their Chief Executive, Les Rudd, explained, ‘We have an unpopular client group and without The Princess’s personal involvement we would never have attracted the public’s sympathy to such an extent’.

Diana chose to become actively involved with Centrepoint, a charity which concentrates on providing accommodation for homeless young people who are considered to be at risk. She said ‘Nothing dives me greater pleasure than to try to help the most vulnerable people in society’.

In 1993 Diana announced her retirement from public life and relinquished her position with nearly all her charities. She retained and handful which she continued to support and work for until the day she died.

One of the most courageous and important of Diana’s public appearances was undoubtedly when she decided to open the first specialist AIDS ward in Britain. AIDS was, at the time, the unmentionable disease and few people were prepared to be associated with its care and treatment. The Princess sent shock waves throughout the world when she shook hands with patients suffering from AIDS - and did so without wearing gloves. By that single action she demonstrated that people had no need to fear that the disease might be transmitted simply by touch. From that moment her commitment to the cause was total; she helped raise millions of pounds and, more importantly, she increased the public’s awareness and understanding at a time when fear and prejudice were commonplace.

When Diana visited a leprosy hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia and another in Nigeria, and comforted those suffering from this most disfiguring of diseases, she never once flinched or drew away from close contract. She said, ‘I’m trying to show in a simple action that they are not reviled, nor we repulsed’.

It is difficult to overestimate the impact that Diana made on the causes she espoused. As a fundraiser she was unequalled; her presence at a function ensured that all the tickets would be sold in hours.

She worked indefatigably for the Royal Marsden Hospital Cancer Fund and insisted that part of the proceeds of the auction of her dresses in New York should go to the hospital. The rest of the money went to another of her favourite charities, AIDS Crisis Trust.

Diana’s concern for the dispossessed and the under-privileged knew no national boundaries. Together with her friends Imran and Jemima Khan she visited Pakistan to support their efforts in famine relief; and after meeting Mother Teresa in New York, she traveled to India to see for herself the living conditions of some of the poorest people in the world.

But it was when she visited Angola and Bosnia that people realized how sound her instinct was. She had begun her campaign for the banning of landmines without any official backing, but soon governments around the world were responding to her call. In Bosnia she met and comforted mutilated victims and bereaved widows and orphans with a sensitive professionalism that showed clearly how much she understood the anguish all around her. It was to be her last crusade.

When she was accused of interfering in political issues, Diana replied, ‘I’m a humanitarian, I lead from the heart’.

ENGLAND’S ROSE

Diana died in a car crash with Dodi Fayed on 31 of August 1997, in Paris. Few events in Britain’s history have produced a sense of national dismay and bewilderment that followed. People traveled for all parts of the country to pay tribute to The Princess. Thousands of flowers were placed at the gates of Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace, and people queued for up to twelve hours to sign the books of condolence at St. James’s Palace.

The Queen appeared on television and spoke movingly of her former daughter-in-law. ‘She was an exceptional and gifted human being. In good times and bad, she never lost her capacity to smile and laugh, nor to inspire others with her warmth and kindness’.

The funeral, described by Buckingham Palace as ‘a unique service for a unique person’, was an inspiring combination of traditional ritual and informality. The coffin containing Diana’s body was carried on a First World War gun-carriage drawn by six black horses and nine members of The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, and flanked by a bearer party of Welsh Guardsmen. Thousands, many of whom had camped out overnight in order to get a good position, watched silently, and threw flowers into their path. As the cortege passed thought Wellington Arch and down Constitution Hill, The Queen and three generations of the Royal Family emerged from Buckingham Palace.

The Prince of Wales, Prince Philip, Prince William and Prince Harry, together with Diana’s brother, Earl Spencer, joined the cortege and walked behind the coffin to Westminster Abbey. They were followed by a throng of representatives of many of her charities.

The service was simple and dignified, with Diana’s favourite hymns and poems read by her sisters. Diana’s brother gave a penetrating and passionate address. The 2,000-strong congregation included politicians, showbusiness celebrities, personal friends and representatives from her charities.

For many the most poignant element of the ceremony was the Princes’ wreath on the coffin: a small ring of white roses bearing the word ‘Mummy’.

As the choir sang a haunting anthem the coffin was carried away. At the door the procession stopped and an absolute silence descended - a silence that was respected by millions throughout the world.

THE PEOPLE’S PRINCESS

The death of Diana, Princess of Wales unleashed an expression of public feeling on an unprecedented scale. Nothing had prepared the people for the shock of losing such a vital, beautiful young women who had everything to live for. People of all ages had been able to identify with this member of the Royal Family, as a glamorous leader of fashion, a dedicated mother and more recently as the undisputed champion of the under-privileged, the handicapped and the elderly. She did more than had ever been done before to focus attention on what were previously unmentionable subjects, and the practical and constructive way in which she displayed her compassion and sympathy was a fine demonstration of modern royalty at work.

Diana was star quality, of that there was no doubt. She became the most pursued woman in the world and gave the impression of enjoying her celebrity status, even though she claimed not to understand why so many people felt so affectionate towards her. Perhaps it was this very innocence that made her so attractive. She occasionally gave the outward appearance of being tough, and she herself said she would ‘fight like a tiger’ for what she believed in. But another of the qualities that emerged was her vulnerability, and it was this made so many people spring to her defence. She never lacked friends to take her part and champion her cause, and there was never a shortage of volunteers anxious to protect and cherish her. Much of her international appeal came about because those who came into contract with her felt a natural instinct to look after her, even when she protested that she did not need protecting.

Diana was always a woman who acted from the heart, and the world loved her for it. She possessed a natural aura of accessibility, and was never afraid to show her emotion. Ordinary men and woman felt they could approach her without any fear of rebuttal; she positively encouraged people to talk to her and touch her.

Diana has been described as one of the nation’s greatest assets and her appearance was one of her most important attributes. Even when her behaviour was unpredictable, she was forgiven because of her beauty and style.

Her most important role was raising her small family. Everything else was secondary to the welfare of her sons and no one was ever left in any doubt as to her priorities. William and Harry came first and in spite of the pressures she lived under - that would not have change. She knew that the encouragement and help she could give him. She was prepared to subjugate her own ambitions to his happiness and security.

If Diana seemed to rebel against a protocol and tradition that appeared to be stuffy and restrictive, it struck a chord with young people, who felt she was striking a blow for them as well as for herself. And when she comforted the sick, the maimed and the abused, those around her knew that this was not an act, neither was she merely going though the routine of a well-rehearsed and programmed public appearance. Although her duties were necessarily choreographed down to the last detail, her concern was obviously genuine and she managed to communicate her true feelings.

How will she be remembered and what were her most significant achievements? It would be invidious to single out from her many good works just one and name it as the most important. On the international scene, if there is a successful conclusion to her landmines campaign, that would be a fitting memorial; or if there is a breakthrough in the treatment of AIDS or cancer. Perhaps her involvement in child care and famine relief will result in greater public awareness.

Diana will be remembered as an inspirational woman who once said she wanted to be known as a ‘Queen of Hearts’. Perhaps in death that is exactly what she has become.

By Mother Teresa
1910-1997

Love"s Eyes

I see a bird in flight,
Or a baby"s gentle smile.
The beauty that I see in them
Reminds me of your face.

The compassion and the caring
So softly chiseled there.
The love and understanding
Painted on by God"s own hand.

Your face is a priceless treasure,
With a perfection of its own.
I look into your face
To see Love"s own eyes
gazing back at me.

1990 - By me

Literature: ‘Diana, Princess of Wales’ by Brian Hoey

Diana, Princess of Wales (Diana Frances Mountbatten-Windsor, née Spencer) (1 July 1961 - 31 August 1997) was the first wife of HRH The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales.

From her marriage in 1981 to her divorce in 1996 she was styled Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales. She was generally called Princess Diana by the media despite having no right to that particular honorific, as it is reserved for a princess by birthright rather than marriage. Though she was noted for her pioneering charity work, the Princess"s philanthropic endeavours were overshadowed by a scandal-plagued marriage. Her bitter accusations of adultery, mental cruelty and emotional distress visited upon her by her husband riveted the world for much of the 1990s, spawning biographies, magazine articles and television movies.

From the time of her engagement to the Prince of Wales in 1981 until her death in a car accident in 1997, Diana was arguably the most famous woman in the world, the pre-eminent female celebrity of her generation: a fashion icon, an ideal of feminine beauty, admired and emulated for her high-profile involvement in AIDS issues and the international campaign against landmines. During her lifetime, she was often referred to as the most photographed person in the world. To her admirers, Diana, Princess of Wales was a role model - after her death, there were even calls for her to be nominated for sainthood - while her detractors saw her life as a cautionary tale of how an obsession with publicity can ultimately destroy an individual.

The Honourable Diana Frances Spencer was born as the youngest daughter of Edward Spencer, Viscount Althorp, and his first wife, Frances Spencer, Viscountess Althorp (formerly the Honourable Frances Burke Roche). Partially American in ancestry - a great-grandmother was the American heiress Frances Work - she was also a descendant of King Charles I. During her parents" acrimonious divorce over Lady Althorp"s adultery with wallpaper heir Peter Shand Kydd, Diana"s mother sued for custody of her children, but Lord Althorp"s rank, aided by Lady Althorp"s mother"s testimony against her daughter during the trial, meant custody of Diana and her brother was awarded to their father. On the death of her paternal grandfather, Albert Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer, in 1975, Diana"s father became the 8th Earl Spencer, and she acquired the courtesy title of The Lady Diana Spencer. A year later, Lord Spencer married Raine, Countess of Dartmouth, the only daughter of the romance novelist Barbara Cartland, after being named as the "other party" in the Earl and Countess of Dartmouth"s divorce.

Diana was educated at Riddlesworth Hall in Norfolk and at West Heath School (later reorganized as the New School at West Heath) in Kent, where she was regarded as an academically below-average student, having failed all of her O-level examinations. At age 16 she briefly attended Institut Alpin Videmanette, a finishing school in Rougemont, Switzerland. Diana was a talented amateur pianist, excelled in sports and reportedly longed to be a ballerina.

Marriage and family.

Diana"s family, the Spencers, had been close to the British Royal Family for decades. Her maternal grandmother, the Dowager Lady Fermoy, was a longtime friend of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. The Prince of Wales briefly dated Lady Sarah Spencer, Diana"s older sister, in the 1970s.

The Prince"s love life had always been the subject of press speculation, and he was linked to numerous women. Nearing his mid-thirties, he was under increasing pressure to marry. In order to gain the approval of his family and their advisors, including his great-uncle Lord Mountbatten of Burma, any potential bride had to have an aristocratic background, could not have been previously married, should be Protestant and, preferably, a virgin. Diana fulfilled all of these qualifications.

Reportedly, the Prince"s former girlfriend (and, eventually, his second wife) Camilla Parker Bowles helped him select the 19-year-old Lady Diana Spencer as a potential bride, who was working as an assistant at the Young England kindergarten in Pimlico. Buckingham Palace announced the engagement on 24 February 1981. Mrs. Parker Bowles had been dismissed by Lord Mountbatten of Burma as a potential spouse for the heir to throne some years before, reportedly due to her age (16 months the Prince"s senior), her sexual experience, and her lack of suitably aristocratic lineage.

The wedding took place at St Paul"s Cathedral in London on Wednesday 29 July 1981 before 3,500 invited guests (including Mrs. Parker Bowles and her husband, a godson of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother) and an estimated 1 billion television viewers around the world. Diana was the first Englishwoman to marry an heir-apparent to the throne since 1659, when Lady Anne Hyde married the Duke of York and Albany, the future King James II. Upon her marriage, Diana became Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales and was ranked as the most senior royal woman in the United Kingdom after the Queen and the Queen Mother.

The Prince and Princess of Wales had two children, Prince William of Wales on 21 June 1982 and Prince Henry of Wales (commonly called Prince Harry) on 15 September 1984.

After the birth of Prince William, the Princess of Wales suffered from post-natal depression. She had previously suffered from bulimia nervosa, which recurred, and she made a number of suicide attempts. In one interview, released after her death, she claimed that, while pregnant with Prince William, she threw herself down a set of stairs and was discovered by her mother-in-law (that is, Queen Elizabeth II. It has been suggested she did not, in fact, intend to end her life (or that the suicide attempts never even took place) and that she was merely making a "cry for help". In the same interview in which she told of the suicide attempt while pregnant with Prince William, she said her husband had accused her of crying wolf when she threatened to kill herself. It has also been suggested that she suffered from borderline personality disorder.

In the mid 1980s her marriage fell apart, an event at first suppressed, but then sensationalised, by the world media. Both the Prince and Princess of Wales spoke to the press through friends, accusing each other of blame for the marriage"s demise. Charles resumed his relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles, whilst Diana became involved with James Hewitt and possibly later with James Gilbey, with whom she was involved in the so-called Squidgygate affair. She later confirmed (in a television interview with Martin Bashir) the affair with her riding instructor, James Hewitt. (Theoretically, such an affair constituted high treason by both parties.) Another alleged lover was a bodyguard assigned to the Princess"s security detail, although the Princess adamantly denied a sexual relationship with him. After her separation from Prince Charles, Diana was involved with married art dealer Oliver Hoare and, lastly, heart surgeon Hasnat Khan.

The Prince and Princess of Wales were separated on 9 December 1992; their divorce was finalised on 28 August 1996. The Princess lost the style Her Royal Highness, and became Diana, Princess of Wales, a titular distinction befitting a divorced peeress. However, at that time, and to this day, Buckingham Palace maintains, since the Princess was the mother of the second and third in line to The Throne, she remained a member of the Royal Family.

In 2004, the American TV network NBC broadcast tapes of Diana discussing her marriage to the Prince of Wales, including her description of her suicide attempts. The tapes were in the possession of the Princess during her lifetime; however, after her death, her butler took possession, and after numerous legal wranglings, they were given to the Princess"s voice coach, who had originally filmed them. These tapes have not been broadcast in the United Kingdom.

Starting in the mid-to-late 1980s, the Princess of Wales became well known for her support of charity projects, and is credited with considerable influence for her campaigns against the use of landmines and helping the victims of AIDS.

In April 1987, the Princess of Wales was the first high-profile celebrity to be photographed touching a person infected with the HIV virus. Her contribution to changing the public opinion of AIDS sufferers was summarised in December 2001 by Bill Clinton at the "Diana, Princess of Wales Lecture on AIDS", when he said:

In 1987, when so many still believed that AIDS could be contracted through casual contact, Princess Diana sat on the sickbed of a man with AIDS and held his hand. She showed the world that people with AIDS deserved not isolation, but compassion. It helped change world opinion, helped give hope to people with AIDS, and helped save lives of people at risk.

Perhaps her most widely publicised charity appearance was her visit to Angola in January 1997, when, serving as an International Red Cross VIP volunteer, she visited landmine survivors in hospitals, toured de-mining projects run by the HALO Trust, and attended mine awareness education classes about the dangers of mines immediately surrounding homes and villages.

The pictures of Diana touring a minefield, in a ballistic helmet and flak jacket, were seen worldwide. (Mine-clearance experts had already cleared the pre-planned walk that Diana took wearing the protective equipment.) In August that year, she visited Bosnia with the Landmine Survivors Network. Her interest in landmines was focused on the injuries they create, often to children, long after the conflict has finished.

She is widely acclaimed for her influence on the signing by the governments of the UK and other nations of the Ottawa Treaty in December 1997, after her death, which created an international ban on the use of anti-personnel landmines. Introducing the Second Reading of the Landmines Bill 1998 to the British House of Commons, the Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, paid tribute to Diana"s work on landmines:

All Honourable Members will be aware from their postbags of the immense contribution made by Diana, Princess of Wales to bringing home to many of our constituents the human costs of landmines. The best way in which to record our appreciation of her work, and the work of NGOs that have campaigned against landmines, is to pass the Bill, and to pave the way towards a global ban on landmines.

As of January 2005, Diana"s legacy on landmines remained unfulfilled. The United Nations appealed to the nations which produced and stockpiled the largest numbers of landmines (China, India, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia and the United States) to sign the Ottawa Treaty forbidding their production and use, for which Diana had campaigned. Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children"s Fund (UNICEF), said that landmines remained "a deadly attraction for children, whose innate curiosity and need for play often lure them directly into harm"s way".

On 31 August 1997 Diana was involved in a car accident in the Pont de l"Alma road tunnel in Paris, along with her romantic companion Dodi Fayed, their driver Henri Paul, and Fayed"s bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones.

Late in the evening of Saturday 30 August, Diana and Fayed departed the Hôtel Ritz in Place Vendome, Paris, and drove along the north bank of the Seine. Shortly after midnight on 31 August, their Mercedes-Benz S 280 entered the underpass below the Place de l"Alma, pursued in various vehicles by nine French photographers and a motorcycle courier.

At the entrance to the tunnel, their car struck a glancing blow to the right-hand wall. It swerved to the left of the two-lane carriageway and collided head-on with the thirteenth pillar supporting the roof, then spun to a stop.

As the casualties lay seriously injured in their wrecked car, the photographers continued to take pictures.

Dodi Fayed and Henri Paul were both declared dead at the scene of the crash. Trevor Rees-Jones was severely injured, but later recovered. Diana was freed, alive, from the wreckage, and after some delay due to attempts to stabilize her at the scene, she was taken by ambulance to Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, arriving there shortly after 2.00 a.m. Despite attempts to save her, her internal injuries were too extensive. Two hours later, at 4.00 that morning, the doctors pronounced her dead. At 5.30, her death was announced at a press conference held by a hospital doctor, Jean-Pierre Chevènement (France"s Interior Minister) and Sir Michael Jay (Britain"s ambassador to France).