Charles Spencer has reflected on the lasting effect Princess Diana’s death may have had on her sons, particularly Prince Harry, who was 12 when she died in a Paris car crash in 1997.
Speaking to CBS Sunday Morning, Spencer recalled walking alongside Harry during Diana’s funeral procession. He said he remembered thinking that a child should not have to walk behind his mother’s coffin.
Prince William, who was 15 at the time, also participated in the procession. The memory led Spencer to question whether Harry received enough understanding while dealing with such a significant personal loss at a young age.
He said he sometimes wonders whether Harry’s later feelings and difficulties involving the royal family could be connected, at least in part, to experiences from his childhood.
“I just wonder if a gentler, more understanding treatment then might have helped him,” Spencer said, according to CBS News. He suggested that a different approach might have contributed to a happier outcome for the family.
Harry and Meghan Markle stepped back from senior working royal duties in 2020 and later moved to the United States. Their decision was followed by years of public discussion about their relationship with other members of the royal family.
Spencer’s comments do not establish a direct link between Harry’s childhood grief and the later family disputes. They represent his personal perspective on how Diana’s death may have affected her younger son.
Spencer also said he no longer closely follows the monarchy’s internal affairs. He described his relationship with King Charles as ending after Charles and Diana’s relationship ended, while saying he continues to respect the Crown.
His remarks come ahead of his memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, scheduled for publication Sept. 22. The full CBS Sunday Morning conversation is part of the program’s Sept. 20 broadcast.
Sources: CBS Sunday Morning; CBS News
