Twenty years after Diana's death: The effects of the departure of the UK's most beloved princess on royalty
His car accident and subsequent death are one of the milestones that most moves the British and one of the most difficult times for the monarchy. Analysts explained to Emol what that fateful August 31 left behind.
I want to pay tribute to an exceptional and talented human being. In good times and bad, he never lost his ability to smile and laugh, nor to inspire others with his love and kindness." These were the words with which Queen Elizabeth II addressed the millions of British citizens and the world still dismayed by the death of her daughter-in-law, the young and charismatic Princess Diana Frances Spencer.
Known as Diana of Wales, she died on August 31, 1997 after a car accident that occurred while fleeing from paparazzi inside the Bridge of the Soul, in Paris. She was returning from a vacation in the Mediterranean with her partner Dodi Al-Fayed, who died at the moment of the accident, as well as the driver of the Mercedes Benz in which they were traveling.
She did it a few hours later in a hospital. The event caused special distress in British society, which saw how the so-called "princess of the people" ceased to exist. Hundreds of wreaths were installed on the doors of Buckingham Palace by the citizens themselves as a show of affection and condolences to the royal family, who faced one of their most difficult moments 20 years ago.
A "humanized" monarchy It happens that the death of the princess caused the monarchy to cease to be seen, for the first time in a long time, as insurmountable and to show its subjects an image of humanity. "Her death showed a certain degree of fragility. The world became aware, especially the British, that royalty in the end was quite human," the political science academic at the Universidad Católica Sebastián Briones told Emol.
The political analyst explains that this position "had a lot to do with British phlegm, not showing weaknesses in public, which at least was part of the old generations, as in the case of the Queen (...) It began to show that there were feelings and that there was something behind it and that royalty was catching up on that too. That they too suffer, they have joys, they have fights like the rest of the world. "
The same thinks the Central University academic and former diplomat, Samuel Fernández. As he explained, the massive reaction generated by the death of the princess caused a "structural change" in the "distant and remote" way with which British royalty traditionally interacted with the public. "The princess represented a different position, in the sense that she was very close (...) Her death allows the monarchy to realize that it had to correct that position.
And a gradual approach began," he emphasizes and adds that this has been especially beneficial to them. However, Briones clarifies that, in part, the royalty was forced to specify this approach at the request and pressure of the thousands of people who were waiting for a response from the protagonists. "They continued to stay very far apart and wanted to handle all matters more internally.
This forced them to manifest, for example, the arrangements they had with Diana's divorce (...) It ventilated the differences and tensions that existed between the royal family. and Diana. That became more evident and visible, "he says.
Greater visibility: for better and for worse The Queen's speech made special sense to many of those who listened to it on September 6, 1997. However, the fact that her first tribute was given just six days after the fateful accident, caused the monarch received harsh questions and that everyone remembered the constant disagreements he had with his deceased daughter-in-law.
In fact, according to Briones, the great victims after the tragedy were Elizabeth II and her son, Prince Carlos, who was criticized for his relationship with Camilla Parker, a current partner but a historical lover. On the contrary, for the analyst, those who benefited the most were Princes William and Harry. "As sad as it is, people feel very sorry for the fact that they were orphaned at a very young age," he says.
Despite the negative factors, Fernández highlights that the monarchy has been able to overcome controversies and remain stable as a symbol of the United Kingdom precisely because of the effects that Diana and her history had on British citizens. "Today royalty runs no risk and the line of succession continues.
No one here is thinking of skipping the succession of Carlos and going directly to his son, but there is a normality that has been established, it is a normality to the which indirectly has also contributed the accident of the princess ", affirms. Diana Spencer remains one of the UK's most remembered figures. And that is why, 20 years after her death, the words of Elizabeth II just hours after her daughter-in-law's funeral cause special meaning: "No one who has known her will be able to forget her. Millions of other people who never knew her, but they felt they knew her, they will remember her. "
