Buckingham Palace has hit back at claims by the late Princess Diana’s brother that King Charles III acted cruelly after her death in a car crash in 1997 — the latest of many criticisms leveled at the king by his former brother-in-law Earl Charles Spencer in recent decades.
The dispute is liable to overshadow a public engagement on Thursday when Charles will meet with various AI executives in Scotland to appeal to them to take care in their work.
What is the argument about?
Earl Spencer, Diana’s elder brother, has written a new book being serialized in the Daily Mail newspaper, in which he alleges that Charles told him in an angry phone call, “rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough,” days after Diana died aged 36.
“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,” a palace spokesperson said late on Wednesday.
Charles and Diana had gone through an acrimonious separation prior to her death in 1997 and relations between the two Charles’ were already at rock bottom prior to the late-night tragedy in Paris.
In the book, “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister,” which is due to be published in full next week, Spencer repeats his assertion that he called for Princes William and Harry — then aged 15 and 12 — not to walk in the massive public funeral procession for their mother on September 6, 1997.
Spencer claims that Charles subjected him to a “stream of anger” after he raised this objection.
“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. ‘Rest assured’, he hissed, ‘we’ll forget her soon enough!’,” Spencer writes.
Diana’s sudden death in a car crash as her chauffeur tried to evade paparazzi photographers led to an outpouring of grief in much of the UK and beyond for the popular if polarizing princess — known for her striking looks, a relatively easy manner by royal standards, and for her engagement with charitable causes. The monarchy faced accusations of failing to adequately respond in public to her death, particularly in the immediate aftermath.
The feud between the Spencers and the Windsors both before and particularly after her death has been a recurring feature in the British press and on popular TV shows like Netflix’s “The Crown.”
Charles and Camilla in Scotland, set for AI event
Charles and Queen consort Camilla have been at Balmoral Castle in Scotland for most of September, attending a series of appointments amid their stay.
One of the higher profile engagements takes place on Thursday at Dumfries House in Ayrshire, where Charles is hosting executives from AI companies like Nvidia, Google DeepMind, Open AI and Anthropic, among others, at what’s seen as a crucial time for the industry.
“The decisions taken at this formative time will shape the world inherited by future generations,” the King would say, according to excerpts released in advance by the palace. “The task before you is not merely to advance technology, but to ensure that it remains firmly in the service of humanity, community and the natural world.”
Britain’s Minister for Artificial Intelligence Kanishka Narayan, promoted to a new bespoke ministerial role by new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, will also attend the event.
So will Paolo Benanti, an adviser to Pope Leo XIV, who has demonstrated considerable interest, and indeed concern, in AI development.
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Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher