Princess Diana's heartbreaking 'confession' about Prince William's 'ghastly' christening
Diana reportedly felt "excluded" from the event
To the outside world, Prince William’s christening on August 4, 1982, appeared to be a picture-perfect royal occasion.
But behind the palace walls, Princess Diana was reportedly struggling, and years later, she allegedly described the day as “ghastly”.
In Andrew Morton’s 1992 biography, Diana: Her True Story – In Her Own Words, the late Princess of Wales reportedly opened up to him about the private pain she endured during what was meant to be a happy family milestone.
Princess Diana described Prince William’s christening as ‘ghastly’
“Nobody asked me when it was suitable for William,” Diana allegedly recalled, according to excerpts published by the Daily Mail.
“11 a.m. couldn’t have been worse. Endless pictures of the Queen, Queen Mother, Charles, and William. I was excluded totally that day.”
Diana had given birth to William just six weeks before his christening on June 21, 1982. The formalities of royal protocol, she reportedly said, made her feel completely sidelined.
“I felt desperate because I had literally just given birth,” she continued. “William was only six weeks old, and it was all decided around me. Hence the ghastly pictures. I wasn’t very well, and I just blubbed my eyes out.”
Even baby William, she noted, picked up on her emotions. Diana reportedly said that William “started crying too” as he “just sensed that I wasn’t exactly hunky dory”.
There were even disagreements over his name, allegedly.
According to Andrew, “Charles wanted to call his first son Arthur and his second Albert, after Queen Victoria’s consort”. However, William and Harry “were Diana’s choices, while her husband’s preferences were used as middle names”.
Where was Prince William christened?
The baby prince was christened in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace by the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie, on August 4.
The occasion coincided with his great-grandmother, The Queen Mother’s 82nd birthday.
William was only six weeks old, and it was all decided around me. Hence the ghastly pictures.
William is Charles and Diana’s first son. They welcomed their second son, Prince Harry, on September 15, 1984. Harry was christened months after his birth on December 1, 1984.
It took place at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle.
The chapel turned out to be Harry’s wedding venue many years later, when he tied the knot with Meghan Markle in May 2018.
Charles and Diana married in 1981 but separated in 1992. Their divorce was finalised in 1996, months before Diana’s tragic death in August 1997.
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