A Look Back at Prince Charles and Princes Diana's Failed Marriage 33 Years Later
Prince Charles and Princess Diana Would have been married 33 years this month. While Prince Charles is now married to the Duchess of Cornwall, Diana never remarried and remained single until her death in 1997 despite having been in other relationships since the couple's divorce. Here's a look back at what was once dubbed the fairytale wedding of the 20th century.
Lady Diana Spencer was only 20 years old when she walked down the aisle of St. Paul's Cathedral to meet her Prince at the altar. The Prince was none other than the Prince of Wales and crown Prince of England, Charles. The ceremony was held on July 21, 1981
Diana was a sight to behold with her 25 foot long train that was admired by approximately 600,000 people who turned up in the streets to witness the event along with the 750 million television viewers. David and Elizabeth Emanuel are credited for the lace and taffeta gown that is now immortalized in millions of Royal wedding photos published worldwide.
The couple also appeared in the balcony of Buckingham Palace for the traditional balcony kiss, one which was also repeated by Prince William and Kate Middleton.
The couple had met in the summer of 1980 and after a series of dates and holidays in which time Diana met the members of the Royal family, The Prince proposed on February 3, 1981 but was not officially announced until February 24.
After the couple was married, Diana was given the title Princess of Wales. She became the third highest ranking female Royal in the UK after the Queen Mother and Queen Elizabeth. The couple were blessed with their first child, Prince William on June 21, 1982, less than a year after their first wedding anniversary. An heir to the English throne was born.
Just like Kate Middleton, Diana also took William with her on her first tour of Australia and New Zealand as part of her new-found Royal duties.
Prince Harry was born on September 15, 1984, two years after William. The red-head Prince had been the subject of many speculations regarding his paternity especially after the marriage between his parents unravelled and an affair between Diana and James Hewitt was revealed albeit the affair supposedly started after Harry was born.
The romance between Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles apparently resumed in the mid-80's if it ever really stopped and with the revelation of Diana's own affair, the couple eventually separated in December 1992.
In 1995, Diana went on the record in a controversial interview with BBC's Martin Bashir and spoke about Charles and Camilla's affair as well as her affair with Hewitt who was her former riding instructor. The Queen advised the couple to divorce as confirmed by a statement issued by Buckingham Palace. The couple eventually finalised their divorce in August 1996.
Diana had a two year relationship with Hasnat Khan, a heart surgeon after her separation from Charles and had been in a new relationship with Dodi Fayed, an Egyptian billionaire when they both figured in the fatal accident on August 31, 1997.
Charles, for his part carried on his romance with Camilla Parker-Bowles. The two eventually married making Camilla the Duchess of Cornwall. The two have celebrated 9 years of marriage on April 9, 2014.