Charles Spencer Reveals Queen Elizabeth Offered Diana a Royal Title After Death — and Why He Declined

In his upcoming book, titled 'Swan Song: Diana, My Sister,' Spencer revisits some of the most painful moments of Diana's life.

Princess Diana's unexpected death left the entire world mourning, and now her brother, Earl Spencer, has revealed his account of what went down in the days following her demise. In his upcoming book, titled Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, Spencer revisits some of the most painful moments of Diana's life. While the book is set to be released on September 22, an excerpt involving the late Queen Elizabeth shows how the monarch mourned the loss.

According to Spencer, the Queen offered to restore Diana’s 'Her Royal Highness' title after her death. However, Diana’s brother explains why he ultimately turned down the gesture. Spencer writes that the title shouldn't have been removed in the first place.

Diana lost her HRH title following her divorce from then-Prince Charles in 1996. After the divorce, Diana remained known as 'Diana, Princess of Wales,' but without the HRH styling. According to the excerpt released by the Daily Mail, the Queen’s private secretary, Robert Fellowes, approached him while he was travelling on the Royal train. “I have just received a call from Her Majesty …and she would like to offer Diana her HRH title back," said the secretary to the Earl. Spencer said he appreciated the gesture but questioned why it was being offered after Diana’s death.

“That's very kind of the Queen, of course. But what's the point, Robert? Now? I mean – Diana's dead," was his alleged reaction. The Earl elaborated that he felt the offer was effectively a consolation prize because, in his view, Diana should never have lost the title while she was alive. “I felt that I knew in my bones how she would view this posthumous award,” he wrote. Reflecting on the decision years later, he writes “the title should never have been removed during her life, in which case it would not have been necessary to offer it to her in death.”

Ahead of Diana’s 30th death anniversary in 2027, Spencer, in his book, has made several other explosive revelations. In a rare break from tradition, a palace spokesperson issued a response stating, “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.”