Princess Diana almost called off her wedding to King Charles, according to a royal biographer.
Excerpts from Ingrid Seward's new book My Mother and Me, published by the Daily Mail , claim Diana was "in despair" a month before her 1981 wedding to then-Prince Charles. The prince ignored her on Prince Andrew's 21st birthday. party.
"Her fiancé had been in the United States for much of the last week but he clearly did not want to dance with her," Seward wrote, adding that Diana eventually left the celebrations and went to her father's home in Northamptonshire , where she told him "the royal wedding is cancelled."
Princess Diana's father 'shocked'
The book claims that Princess Diana's father, Earl Spencer, was "shocked" by his daughter's decision to call off the royal wedding.
"After calming her down, he pointed out that it would be grossly disrespectful to cancel her engagement to the future king so close to the wedding," Sewards continued, claiming that the late princess "allowed her father Convince her."
"She cannot deny that she still wants to be the Princess of Wales," reads an excerpt published by the Daily Mail . "And, at 19, she was young enough to believe there would be a happy ending, despite what her gut told her about that horrific night."
The Queen has reservations
"My Mother and I" also explores Queen Elizabeth II's relationship with Princess Diana, about whom the late monarch was said to have "only two reservations" before marrying Charles.
"She wondered if someone so young could tell the difference between the man and the prince," Seward claimed. "She couldn't help but think that a Spencer girl would be a better match for her younger son Andrew."
On July 29, 1981, Princess Diana and King Charles tied the knot at St Paul's Cathedral in London. The royal couple had two children, Prince William and Prince Harry, before divorcing in 1996. The following year, Diana died in a car accident in Paris at the age of 37.
