Lady Diana Spencer - Biography

When you think of fairy tales, you think of a Princess and Prince living happily ever after. This fairy tale is similar but has a twist in it. Princess Diana Spencer has touched the lives on many people in many ways. Some of the ways include her royalty in England, working with AIDS and HIV patients, and helping to banned landmines. She is influential and an inspiration to many people across the whole globe.

Diana Frances Spencer was born on July 1, 1961 in Sandringham, Norfolk, England. She was the daughter of Earl Spencer and his wife, Frances. Diana had two sisters and a younger brother, Charles. She began her relationship with the Prince of Wales at age 18 and when the press realized his infatuation of her, they began photographing her. Diana soon cultivated her charming but bashful smile and earned the nickname ?Shy Di.? In February 1981, Charles proposed to Diana and the wedding was planned for July 29, 1981 at St. Paul?s Cathedral. Their wedding was attended by over 2,500 in addition to an estimated over 750 million watching worldwide on a televised ceremony. Later, Prince and Princess of Wales welcomed their new baby boy, William Arthur Philip Louis, to the world on June 21, 1982. Two years later on September 15, 1984, Diana gave birth to Henry Charles Albert David.

With Princess Diana?s kind heart she decided to help out with several serious problems in the World today. Her first project was taking on such sensitive issues as HIV and AIDS, domestic abuse, and drug addiction. She traveled hundreds of miles a year to support her favorite causes, often taking young Prince William with her. In June 1997, Diana auctioned off 79 of her evening gowns at Christie?s in New York. The gowns collected over $5.7 million dollars, which was donated to AIDS and cancer funds. Diana touched a patient dying of AIDS. She said ?HIV does not make people dangerous to know, so you can shake their hands and give them a hug.?

A major contribution to charity was when Princess Diana helped to ban landmines. Hundreds of people were being killed from them and she wanted to make a difference. She visited landmine projects in Travnic, Sarajevo and Zenezica. Diana also traveled to such conflict-ridden areas as Angola and the former Yugoslavia on behalf of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines in January 1997. Some British politicians criticized her, but her visits to the victims drew world attention to the cause. In the end, Diana contributed to over 100 different charities.

Charles and Diana stared having marriage problems in the late 1980s and the press said that both Diana and Charles were having secret affairs. Queen Elizabeth II made a decision asking the couple to consider a divorce. They both agreed with the Queen?s will. Though that time, she still continued with her charity work around the world. She never let her divorce get in the way of seeing her children. Weekends would be spent together playing polo, skiing, or just watching a movie.

In 1997, Diana began a relationship with Emad (Dodi) al-Fayed. She was rumored to have been involved with a number of men in the years since her and marriage to Charles. Dodi was believed to be her first serious relationship since the divorce. On August 31, 1997, after leaving the Ritz in Paris, Diana and Dodi were involved in a fatal car accident, while trying to avoid the terrible paparazzi. Dodi and the driver were killed instantly. Diana was alive when found, but after a few hours, she was proclaimed dead of cardiac arrest at age 37. Most blame their death on the paparazzi. It was speculated that Diana and Dodi could have survived the accident if they were wearing seatbelts. Approximately one million stood on the streets of England during the three-mile funeral procession, and the whole world was watching as they showed her funeral.

Fairy tales normally have a happy ending, but not this one. It stared off with a ?fairy tale wedding? then two beautiful children. By this time, the road begins to get bumpy. First, by committing adultery and having to divorce the Prince of Wales. The worst part of this fairy tale is the ending, with the death of the ?People?s Princess,? Diana Spencer of Wales.