"... After a 30-minute burial service, the mourners left Diana, alone on the isolated island as she had been alone in life."
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Sarah Bradford, Diana
Every once in a while there comes along a book that manages to stir your soul. I read one recently that touched my heart. Besides the fact that I towed the book around for months before I could finally finish it, there were a lot more reasons why Diana by Sarah Bradford endeared itself to me.
Sarah Bradford, 8th Viscountess Bangor has done a remarkable job chronicling the short-lived yet awe-inspiring life of Lady Diana. The contents of the biography are well researched and put forth in as disinterested a manner as can be humanly possible by a biographer. The greatest of stories can be ruined if the writer does not execute effectively. In the case of Diana, the life of Di was in safe hands. The author opens with a detailed mapping of Lady Diana's family tree - both maternal and paternal. From a pure genealogical point of view this could well be the most interesting part of the biography. Lady Diana was born with a rare gene pool; her ancestors consisting of children of two kings, a duke and a saint. Her father was the 7th Earl Spencer. Her maternal ties made her related to George Washington, in addition to a few more American relations. Her father's second marriage to Raine Legg made Barbara Cartland (Diana's favourite author) her step-grandmother. At the time of her birth she was the 11th cousin to the heir apparent - Prince Charles.
At the tender age of 19, Lady Diana Spencer got married to the Prince of Wales, and gave birth to the next-in-line to the throne within an year of her marriage. These are mere statistics, however. What Sarah Bradford brings to you with her felicity of words is the true picture behind the canvas of an apparent fairy-tale. Diana's entire life can be summarised as a quest for love, from her family, husband, friends and in-laws. A quest in which she was more often than not unsuccessful.
Having been brought up in a broken home, Diana grew up with a lot of insecurities. She had hoped that marriage would bring some stability in her life but that was not to be. She faced innumerable difficulties in her married life, until she got divorced and even after.
Camilla Parker-Bowles had convinced Prince Charles to marry Diana because it looked like they could manipulate her and have their way around without any protestations. Little did they know that Princess Di would not let them have it all so easily. Diana's individual popularity and appeal became a threat to the royal family and pro-Diana, anti-Diana camps emerged in the households. Charles was, personally, extremely envious of her popularity over his own and drifted away from her instead of helping her cope with her depression and self destructive behaviour. The Queen's stance regarding all the injustice meted out to Diana and to her problems was rather aloof.
Camilla Parker-Bowles had convinced Prince Charles to marry Diana because it looked like they could manipulate her and have their way around without any protestations. Little did they know that Princess Di would not let them have it all so easily. Diana's individual popularity and appeal became a threat to the royal family and pro-Diana, anti-Diana camps emerged in the households. Charles was, personally, extremely envious of her popularity over his own and drifted away from her instead of helping her cope with her depression and self destructive behaviour. The Queen's stance regarding all the injustice meted out to Diana and to her problems was rather aloof.
Post natal depression, infidelity, bad mouthing, conspiracies, betrayal, condescension, eating disorders, suicidal tendencies - she faced them all. Diana may have been a lost teenager without a mentor when she entered the royal family, and obviously did not know how to cope with the magnitude of her role as the future Queen. However, she had a kind heart and she worked with true zeal and earnest for causes that she believed in - leprosy, AIDS, impoverished destitutes, elimination of land mines, to name a few. What is commendable is the fact that Diana was not just a pretty face in the royal family who could claim to have dispensed with her duties after having given birth to the future king of England. She reached out and became the people's Princess. Her warmth and caring nature struck people as out of the world. Her charm never failed. Despite her personal hardships, she never neglected the causes she was associated with. She was aware of her status and celebrity, and used them to garner attention and funds for these social causes world over. She won hearts wherever she went. She took lessons from her personal suffering and reached out to aide those who were suffering from depression and bulimia.
Diana was an exceptional mother in the royal household, the only one of her kind. She was aware of the stark difference in status of both her sons that would emerge once William became the King and preemptively laid a sound and mature foundation in their upbringing. She wanted her children to grow in a 'real' world and not in a royal silo. She treated her sons in as 'normal' a way as she could. These were the things missing from the upbringing philosophy of her husband. She may have had an untimely demise but she left behind her legacy with her children.
Diana meandered in search for true love, seeking a normal simple married life after being abandoned by her husband. Ms Bradford lays out all her (futile) attempts at seeking love, including the one that she died with, without mincing words. Diana however, even after the divorce, always harboured love for Charles. Quite sadly, she never found long lasting love with any man, her husband or otherwise. She was always battling emotional loneliness, which grew when her sons went to boarding school.
Diana was a self conscious woman, who played with the media, and sometimes into their stratagems, to seek sympathy and build a positive self image. She was cursed with the need for constant approval. She feared rejection, and was highly insecure. As a result she found it hard to trust people, and instances of her extreme reactions on the basis of suspicions were aplenty. She never forgave disloyalty. The reasons for her behaviour were deep rooted in the treatment she received from the people she loved and trusted in the initial phase of her life. She remained isolated at the time of death and even during the funeral. Had it not been for the public uproar, she would not have been given a state funeral. The royal family was taken aback at the profound grief expressed by people all over the world at the demise of their beloved Princess Di and the growing dissent against the royal family for their unfeeling attitude toward her death.
The biography of Lady Diana Spencer is worth a read because it shows us the tenacity and endurance of who was doubtlessly one of the most beautiful women in the 20th century. It takes a brave-heart to turn against the oldest monarchy in the world and stand for what you believe in, to stand for what you are and yet not lose the kindness and warmth in your heart. Sarah Bradford uses her language elegantly and with sophistication. The narration of the life and times of Princess Diana is done in a manner so graceful, forthright, poignant and succinct that it is nearly impossible for you not to be moved. A life that lasted only 39 years and left people with so much to remember and talk about.
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