Why is Princess Diana trending on social media 27 years after her death? | Variety

Yesterday, Saturday, August 31, 2024, marked the 27th anniversary of the death of Princess Diana, who enjoyed great popularity not only in Britain, but in many countries of the world, throughout her marriage and even after her divorce from King Charles, until she was nicknamed the “Princess of Hearts.”

Diana was just 20 years old when she married Prince Charles, then heir to the British throne, in 1981. Their marriage ended after 15 years in a bitter divorce, after accusations of infidelity from both of them.

After a divorce described by the press as “messy”, Diana separated from the royal family, to which she gave birth to Princes William and Harry.

The Princess of Wales died on August 31, 1997, at the age of 36, in a car accident in the French capital, Paris. Her partner Dodi Al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul also died. Her death sparked a wave of grief, and her funeral at Westminster Abbey attracted a television audience of 2.5 billion people.

According to the American news network “CNN”, the late Queen Elizabeth II responded to the request of many members of the royal family to show her interest in one way or another. She appeared on live television, addressing her subjects, and referring to Diana in beautiful terms as an “exceptional and talented human being.” At the funeral, the Queen took an extra step to honor her.

“The Queen never bows to anyone,” historian Jane Ridley told CNN, yet as the funeral procession passed Buckingham Palace, the Queen was seen at the front, “bowing to her daughter-in-law.”

Diana's memory tops social media platforms

Despite the passage of 27 years since her death, the memory of Princess Diana still tops social media platforms, as her fans commemorate the anniversary of her passing every year with phrases from her sayings or with sad messages about her departure. Some users of the “X” platform titled Diana’s photos with the phrase “The world will not forget the princess of hearts.”

Diana Frances Spencer shone in the eighties of the last century, and her entry into the British royal family gave a new spirit. She was a different face from what people knew about the royal family at that time, as she had a cheerful and smiling spirit, in the midst of a family that had controls regarding cheerfulness and smiling.

She was one of the most famous women in the world, especially through her advocacy for important humanitarian causes of that era, including children's charities, landmine removal, domestic violence, and mental health.

Princess Diana was known for her humble and likeable personality despite her association with the Crown Prince of Britain (Getty Images)

The late princess also made headlines in 1987 when she deliberately shook hands with an AIDS patient in an attempt to dispel the myth that HIV could be transmitted through touch.

In the months before her death, she turned her media attention and focus directly on the dangers of landmines in Angola, to the point that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair described her as the “People's Princess”.

Why did Diana remain in the public's memory?

In an article published in the American magazine “Best Life”, Diane Callihan says that Diana, during her short life, added touches of humanity and modernity to the British royal family, and forced its members to reconsider many of its ancient traditions and protocols.

Princess Diana was known for her controversial personality in high society par excellence, as she would approach and shake hands with ordinary people, to the point that some thought that “Lady Diana” was acting in a populist manner to win people's affection, “but in fact she was acting spontaneously and striving to present a more human face for the royal family in the United Kingdom.”

war on hiv

Her interaction with an AIDS patient also played a role in increasing her popularity, as the disease was associated with fear and ostracism of those infected with it, and it was widely believed that merely approaching or touching an infected person could transmit the infection to others.

But the princess broke the barrier of fear of the disease by taking a picture in which she sat in front of a patient, without hesitating to shake his hand despite the rumors that talked about the danger of that action.

This Morning - New Documentary on the Life of Princess Diana
Diana's brilliance in the 1980s gave the British royal family a new spirit (Al Jazeera)

Charity work

Diana was also keen for her sons, William and Harry, to live the lives of ordinary people, which was completely different from the luxury they lived behind the palace walls. In 1993, she took William (11 years old) and Harry (8 years old) to visit the “The Passage” charity, which cares for the homeless.

Prince William says the experience had a profound impact on him and taught him to respect and empathize with the less fortunate. The Duke of Cambridge later became a patron of the institution he visited with his mother as a child.

How did the current generation know Diana?

Although many young people were not alive when Princess Diana passed away in 1997, they lived through the unfolding of chapters of her life through her sons William and Harry and their wives.

Both William and Harry have made their mothers so central to their stories, both symbolically and in terms of the projects they undertake and their attitudes toward the media, that it is hard not to think of Diana when looking at the choices the boys have made in their lives.

Diana… “The Oppressed Princess”

It's important to think of Princess Diana in the context of British royal history, says Arianne Chernock, a history professor at Boston University's College of Arts and Sciences, “as she was one of a long line of wronged women who continue to haunt, inspire and motivate the public.”

“I was thinking a lot about this in the run-up to the anniversary of her death, thinking about why we continue to be fascinated by her and what was so special about her that made her such a focal point of interest. There are aspects of her as a character that are the foundation of this story,” she added.

“Diana wore many hats,” Chernock added, “she was a humanitarian, she was a young woman living her life and growing up in the public eye. She was a caring mother, a fashion expert, there were many aspects of her that the media was crazy about, and curious about.”

“She was a woman who was very proud to admit her mistakes and to reveal the messiness of her life in a way that was very different from some other members of the royal family, who tend to be more strict in their lives and in public,” she concluded.

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