Princess Diana ‘traumatised’ by Charles’s harsh answer to engagement question
Charles and Diana had only been dating for six months when the news of their engagement was announced in February 1981. But one of the future King's remarks at that time, 'traumatised' his future wife
There was great excitement when Prince Charles and Princess Diana announced their engagement on 24 February, 1981.
The couple had been dating for six months when they released a statement confirming the happy news. It read: “It is with greatest pleasure that the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh announce the betrothal of their beloved son the Prince of Wales to the Lady Diana Spencer, daughter of the Earl Spencer and the Honourable Mrs Shand Kydd.”
Charles and Diana then gave an interview to the BBC in which they spoke about their romance. The Prince admitted he was “delighted and frankly amazed” that Diana had agreed to be his wife. And Diana described her future husband as “pretty amazing” as she shyly looked up through her fringe.
Charles revealed that he had proposed to Diana three weeks earlier at a private dinner at Buckingham Palace. He explained that he wanted to give Diana time to consider her answer during a pre-planned trip to Australia, but that she had accepted straight away and moved out of her apartment in Kensington to live in Clarence House.
But it was also during the somewhat awkward interview that Charles made a remark which Diana later said “traumatised” her. When asked if the couple were in love, Diana replied sheepishly, “Of course,” while Charles said, “Whatever in love means,” as he looked awkwardly to the floor.
Diana later reflected on the moment in Andrew Morton’s authorised biography, Diana: In Her Own Words. She said: “We had this ghastly interview the day we announced our engagement. And this ridiculous [reporter] said, ‘Are you in love?’ I thought, what a thick question. So I said, ‘Yes, of course, we are,’ and Charles turned round and said, ‘Whatever love means.’ And that threw me completely. I thought, what a strange answer. It traumatised me.”
After asking Diana for her hand in marriage, Charles presented her with a selection of rings by Garrard of Mayfair, the Crown Jeweller at the time. She picked an 18-carat white gold ring with 14 solitaire diamonds surrounding an oval blue sapphire. But there was a problem with it – it wasn’t bespoke.
The ring had actually featured in a catalogue which means, unlike most royal engagement rings, it wasn’t unique. In fact, anyone could have bought exactly the same ring – which didn’t go down well with the royals or their staff. The ring was later passed down to Prince William, who gave it to Kate Middleton on the day of their engagement in 2010. Charles and Diana married on 29 July, 1981, in St. Paul’s Cathedral in front of 3,500 guests while an estimated 750 million people worldwide watched on television. Of course, it wasn’t to last. The couple separated in 1993 and officially divorced in 1996. Tragically, Princess Diana died on Aug. 31, 1997, in a car crash.
