Princess Diana was known throughout the world as being a well rounded, gorgeous woman, but through all of that she was also a hero in many people’s eyes. Diana was often called Princess Diana by the media and the public, but she did not enjoy such a title and did not personally think of herself as a princess. This is a point Diana herself made to people who referred to her as such. She always had a strong head on her shoulders, no matter what might have been going on at the time. Diana tried to not let various things get her down, even though some could have destroyed her. Diana also spoke with surprising truthfulness about her own personal struggles with bulimia and suicide, giving individuals struggling with these issues a role model of openness and honesty. Princess Diana used her media popularity to bring attention to the needs of the forgotten and needy of the world. She was out to seek a symbol in everyone’s life, life itself.
Princess Diana was born into a royal family and had a rather tough time growing up. She was the youngest daughter of Edward Spencer, Viscount Althorp, and, Frances Spencer, Viscountess Althorp. During her parents' bitter divorce over Diana’s mother’s adultery with wallpaper successor Peter Kydd, Diana's mother sued for custody of her children. Diana went into many battles with her mother over this which led Diana to dislike her mother. Diana’s father’s rank was supported by Diana’s grandmother, on her mother’s side, in which her testimony against her daughter during the trial, meant custody of Diana and her brother went to their father.
Diana went to school not to learn but to find new things to do for the world. She failed almost all her academic courses which made her parents push harder. Diana did excel in: singing, dancing, playing sports, and working at volunteer shelters. This made Diana realize that helping people was what she was set out to do.
Princess Diana married Prince Charles, King of Wales, on July 29, 1981. It was said that the Prince married Diana just because she fit the part. The part in which every Princess has to fit: has not been married, is Protestant, and is a virgin. Diana was the first English woman to marry the heir of the throne since 1959. With Diana being in the media so much it was hard to do anything without the press knowing about it.
Once she had her children she began being in the public’s eye much more often. Soon she would be labeled the “People’s Princess.” She was frequently called a fashion icon, role model, and arguably the most famous and photographed woman in the world. People who were close to her said that she had a “very easy going personality.” Lord St. John of Fawsley said “her appeal lay precisely in that she elevated feeling to the highest position. That is why people responded to her - they knew she really cared.” She became involved in numerous charities. Her most advertised ones were fighting the use of landmines and helping those who suffered from AIDs. One of her most famous pictures taken was of her holding ...
Shock waves went around the world when news spread that the ‘people’s princess’, Princess Diana of Wales had died. On August 31st, 1997, she was involved in a car crash and sustained serious injuries, passing away four hours after the collision. Official investigators concluded that it was an accident, caused by the driver’s alcohol levels, and pursuing paparazzi. In comparison, a conspiracy theory suggests that the crash was orchestrated by the British Secret Service, as ordered by the Monarchy.
Growing up in 1960s, Diana Spencer always knew royalty. This idea of power was a birth right through her father, but yet Diana did not know of the influence she was going to inflict one day. Princess Diana, through her marriage with Prince Charles, became an icon for the United Kingdom and impacted many in the world (Princess Diana Biography Princess). Along with her compassionate heart and humble soul, Diana ascended in the eyes of the public and became England’s sweetheart and beloved leader. Princess Diana soon inspired people all over the world by breaking the royal stereotypes, sponsoring many charities and providing a prime example of what it means to love one’s children and people.
When Diana was eight years old her parents divorced each other. The reason for the divorce laid behind the fact the Diana’s mother Frances had cheated on her father with Peter Shand Kydd. After the divorce, Diana moved to London with her mother. However, shortly afterwards her father won custody over Diana and her siblings with the help of his mother-in-law and they returned back home to London.
Queen Elizabeth I was said to be one of the best rulers of England. Unlike rulers before her, she was a Protestant and not a Catholic. She was not stupid though. She did go to church and did everything that Catholics did to prevent getting her head cut off under the rules of her sister Mary. Elizabeth was very young when she came to rule. She was only 17 years old when her sister Mary died and she took over.
Marilyn Monroe was liked by many, society liked her for the sheer fact that she never portrayed herself as famous, but as a human. She was the epiphany of Hollywoods misguided. She created this noble character that people admired, they also admired her f...
Marie Antoinette and Louis Auguste were pledged to marry each other in 1765 just months after Louis Augeste’s grandfather, Louis XV, the emperor of France, died. Marie Antoinette set out for France to be married, escorted by fifty-seven carriages, one hundred and seventeen footmen and three hundred and seventy-six horses in May of 1770. They were married on May 16th, 1770, although she was not ready for the marriage. She often wrote home saying that she was homesick, and felt uncomfortable with some of the practices in France. She was made queen at age nineteen. As far as personalities went, Louis and Marie Ant...
Prince Amadeus went to Geneva to arrange for his marriage which was customary, especially for the ruling families in Europe. His choice was determined by the recommendations of his suzerain (to whom people must pay tribute to). His recommended bride was Catherine of Geneva. They married at a young age no more than seventeen or eighteen. No more than two years later they were blessed with a baby girl whom they would name Margaret. She was raised in royalty and was treated like a princess. Her baptismal ceremony was June 24, 1382 and from then on her life would be in the hands of Our Father. After the ceremony it was followed by rejoicing and feasting. Presents were rained on the royal baby. Silver trumpets announced the return of the princess to the castle. She slept; unaware that everything in her midst was being done for her. The simple people crowded around the church and castle asking anxious questions to the new parents. “Isn’t she a beautiful child and how happy are you?”
Princess Diana at the time of her death was arguably the world’s most renowned celebrity. Privately, Diana felt she was just an ordinary person; however, she was much more. She was known to be an advocate for the helpless and the hopeless. Diana’s influence was felt worldwide through her vast humanitarian activities, which consisted of working with and starting many charities. Diana used her royal title and her celebrity to raise awareness about many forgotten or overlooked causes. As a result of her worldwide travels, Diana became the people’s princess and the public was intrigued with her devotion, consideration, and graciousness. Diana’s wide and profound influence is seen in how popular Elton John’s tribute song “Candle in the Wind” was. In fact, according to Recording Industry Association of America, it became the best-selling single of all time (RIAA). Elton John united the world’s feelings of loss in his song “Candle in the Wind,” and though his purpose was generally ineffective, through his use of diction, imagery, and emotional tone he was able to speak for a world that lost its princess.
Princess Diana struggled with bulimia and depression throughout her life (Biography.com, 2011). In 1992, Andrew Morton’s book, Diana: Her True Story reveled that Diana had attempted suicide during the early years of marriage, struggled with an eating disorder, and obsessed that Charles con...
Princess Diana helped with many illnesses. Some examples of illnesses she helped face were Cancer and Cystic Fibrosis.(Brennan,p.89) She visited many hospitals such as St Mary’s Hospital in London 1989 and the Great Ormond street hospital in 1991.(Brennan page 87) Diana also helped make a difference in the world through charitable causes. One charitable cause Princess Diana focused on was homelessness this was especially rare in that time period for members of the royal family. Not only did she help with homelessness though, she also helped with drug abuse issues and planned charitable missions to help people with Leprosariums in Nigeria and Indonesia. Finally she devoted her money and time to help victims of landmines and
Diana Spencer, more commonly known as Princess Diana – or even Princess Di to some – was with out a doubt one of the most influential women of our lifetime. Diana represented what the woman of the 20th Century could become. Strong willed, independent and gorgeous all at once. Not in recent history had royalty, much less that of the United Kingdom, connected so well with the people. She was the first member of the royal family to travel the globe and meet with children victim to land mines and HIV/AIDS. Diana held so much power – and was loved so much by her people – that at her funeral, some referred to her as the Queen of the People. It is said by some that because of her extraordinary influence over the English nation, she suffered an untimely death.
As a young child, she had it rough. Her mother raised her as her ugly duckling which I find very strange. I can not imagine being told I was ugly by my own mother and can not even fathom that leading to a life of beauty and in fashion none the less. When her family settled in New York, Diana was about ten years old and was enrolled in Brearly school where she did not last long. Not being able to speak English made it a very lonely and difficult place. After...
Throughout her life Diana displayed a very insecure nature. Psychologists think this was rooted in her childhood (Smith). When she was six, her mom left her family (Smith). After her parent’s high-profile divorce was finalized, she remembered her father’s distant, lonely silences, and her mother’s constant crying (Morton 35). Diana described this as a “wish-washy and painful experience” (33). Due to these circumstances she felt detached and different from others at a very young age (34). For Diana’s engagement party to the Prince of Wales, she wore a black dress that she thought was “pretty and smart” (51-52). When Prince Charles saw her, he said with disgust, “only people in mourning wear black” (170-171). She was destroyed by this comment. She needed people’s constant support and compliments (170). Later in her marriage, her husband’s lack of attention led her to suffer from bulimia and to make several suicide attempts (85-86). Once, when she was attempting to gain Prince Charles’ attention, she took a penknife and cut her chest and thighs (77). Seeing the bloody sight he said, “You are crying wolf.” This comment added to her negative self-esteem (188). The constant press coverage put her under lots of pressure. “It warped her sense of who she was through its unrealistic expectations, distortions, exaggerations and outright inventions” (Smith). It made her believe she had to live up to the impossible expectations that were being forced on her (Smith). Diana was easily influenced and very sensitive. She let other people’s views of her and life’s uncontrollable circumstances affect her self-image.
“Diana, Princess of Wales.” Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Biography in Context. Web. 12 Mar. 2014.