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A new book by the brother of the late Princess Diana includes claims about King Charles III‘s reaction to her death, prompting a rare reply from Buckingham Palace.
In the book, “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister,” Charles Spencer alleges that Charles, then the Prince of Wales, was “giddily elated – like a lottery winner” when he spoke to him immediately after Diana’s death in 1997, according to an excerpt of the book published Thursday by the U.K.’s Daily Mail.
In another excerpt, published Wednesday, Spencer alleges that during a disagreement over Diana’s funeral arrangements, Charles told him, “rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough.”
Diana, Princess Of Wales, Talking To Her Husband, During A Visit To The British Embassy. The Princess Is Wearing A Taffeta And Lace Gown With A Scalloped Neckline Designed By Murray Arbeid With Queen Mary’s Diamond And Pearl Tiara, A Present From The Queen.
Tim Graham Photo Library via Get
The excerpt prompted a rare reply on Wednesday from the palace, which typically does not comment on books or reports about members of the royal family.
Even when Harry released his 2023 memoir, “Spare,” which contained numerous claims about Charles, William and other members of the royal family, the palace remained publicly silent.
“While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and color memory in ways others do not recognize, even many years after such a loss,” the palace said in a statement to ABC News about Spencer’s book.
Diana died in a car crash in Paris in 1997 at the age of 36. One year prior, in 1996, Charles and Diana finalized their divorce after 15 years of marriage.
The former couple shared two children, Princes William and Harry, neither of whom have commented on their uncle’s book.
Harry ignored a question about the book shouted at him by reporters on Thursday while attending the Invictus Spirit Awards in London.
Spencer, Diana’s younger brother, memorably walked alongside William, Harry and Charles in the procession for Diana’s funeral on Sept. 6, 1997.
Princess Diana’s sons Princes William and Harry with their father Prince Charles and uncle Earl Spencer outside Westminster Abbey on the day of their mother’s funeral service, 6th September 1997.
Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images
His book — scheduled for release on Sept. 22 — is described as telling the story of Diana’s life from his perspective as her brother.
In the book, Spencer alleges that Charles told Diana the night before their July 29, 1981, wedding that he “was happy to marry her, but was not actually in love with her,” according to The Daily Mail.
Reflecting on what he remembers as Charles’ “giddily elated” reaction to Diana’s death, Spencer writes in the book about the couple’s “bitter divorce.”
“Looking back now, I suspect the prince’s first reaction must have been to think more of how this event might free him to marry the woman he loved, rather than appreciating the loss of one he did not,” Spencer writes. “It can be hard to feel too much sympathy for an ex-spouse, or those who care for them profoundly, after bitter divorce.”
Charles would go onto marry his current wife, Queen Camilla, in 2005. The pair first had a brief dalliance in the 1970s, and began an affair in 1986 while Charles was married to Diana, according to Charles’ authorized biography.
The palace has not commented on the additional book excerpts published Thursday by the Daily Mail.
ABC News has reached out to Spencer’s publisher, Penguin Random House, for comment.
In addition to Spencer and her sons, Diana is survived by her older sisters, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes.
