King Charles Faces Rare Palace Intervention Over Claim He Said Diana Would Be 'Forgotten Soon Enough'

King Charles has faced an unusually direct response from Buckingham Palace after his brother, Earl Spencer, revisited his former title and relationship with Diana, Princess of Wales, in a forthcoming memoir.

Spencer claims that Charles told him 'rest assured, we'll forget her soon enough' in the days following Diana's death in 1997, a recollection the Palace has responded to by questioning how grief can affect memory.

The claim appears in Spencer's forthcoming book Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, which is being serialised in the Daily Mail ahead of its publication on 22 September. The book examines Spencer's memories of his sister and the aftermath of her death, including the decision that Prince William and Prince Harry would walk behind their mother's coffin during her funeral procession.

The Palace rarely comments on books about members of the Royal Family, making its response notable. It did not simply deny that Charles made the alleged remark. Instead, a Palace spokesman said the King was 'mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss'.

That carefully worded statement has put the focus not only on what Spencer remembers, but on the reliability of a recollection formed during one of the most traumatic periods in the Royal Family's recent history.

King Charles and the Claim About Diana's Memory

According to Spencer's account, the alleged exchange took place while arrangements were being made for Diana's funeral in September 1997. Her death in a Paris car crash on 31 August had left her family facing intense public attention, with William and Harry preparing to take part in the procession through central London.

Spencer claims he objected to the idea of the two boys walking behind their mother's coffin. William was 15, and Harry was 12 at the time.

The Earl's account says Charles made the alleged remark about Diana being forgotten during those discussions. The quotation is Spencer's recollection and has not been independently established as a factual record of what Charles said.

That distinction matters. The Palace's statement challenges the reliability of the memory without explicitly saying the conversation never happened.

Spencer also argues in the book that Diana would not have wanted her young sons to undertake the public walk behind her coffin. That is his interpretation of what his sister would have wanted, rather than an independently established account of Diana's wishes.

The funeral procession took place on 6 September 1997, with William, Harry, Charles, Prince Philip and Spencer among those who walked behind Diana's coffin to Westminster Abbey.

Palace Responds to Spencer's Memoir

The Palace's intervention has drawn attention partly because of its unusual willingness to address a book concerning Diana and the King.

Sky News royal correspondent Laura Bundock described the statement as a 'really remarkable intervention' and a 'very robust response'. She noted that Buckingham Palace had generally avoided commenting on books, including Prince Harry's memoir Spare.

The circumstances surrounding Spencer's book are different. Diana remains a major figure in the Royal Family's history, and Spencer is her brother and a participant in the events he describes. His account therefore carries a personal dimension that makes the Palace's response particularly striking.

Still, the statement stops short of accusing Spencer of lying. Instead, it points to the possibility that grief may influence recollections, including memories formed many years ago.

The timing also matters. Swan Song: Diana, My Sister is due to be published on 22 September, with extracts appearing in the Daily Mail before publication.

Diana's death has been examined repeatedly through books, documentaries and memoirs over the past three decades, but Spencer's account introduces his own memories of the immediate aftermath and his relationship with the Royal Family during that period.

For now, the alleged words remain a claim contained in Spencer's memoir rather than an independently verified statement from Charles. The Palace has chosen to respond, but its wording leaves the central question unresolved.