Princess Diana’s Unseen Letters Reveal Prince Harry’s ‘Constantly In Trouble’
A series of previously unseen letters penned by Princess Diana revealed Harry’s mischievous nature as a child. The letters, which were about Diana’s sons William and Harry, are up for auction. They were originally sent to the late Cyril Dickman who served as a Buckingham Palace steward for more than 50 years.
In a letter dated March 2, 1985, the People’s Princess wrote that “William adores his little brother and spends the entire time swamping Harry with an endless supply of hugs and kisses, hardly letting the parents near!”
She wrote that they’re overwhelmed by how the public reacted to Harry’s birth and because of it, they could “hardly breathe from the mass of flowers.”
The two princes attended Berkshire’s Ludgrove School and in another letter penned on July 18,1993, Diana wrote that “the boys are well and enjoying boarding school a lot, although Harry is constantly in trouble!”
The letters are being sold by Cyril’s family. He passed away in 2012 at the age of 85. It was his grandson who discovered the letters while fixing his things. The letters prove how much Diana trusted him. In one of the letters, she similarly thanked Cyril for his support when her grandmother passed away in 1993. Dylan Mander from auctioneers Cheffins described the letters as “incredibly rare” because they contained personal touches from Princess Diana herself.
“The letters explained all different things — how Harry had been naughty at school and how Harry was adored by his brother who would not stop kissing him. It is incredibly rare to have letters from Princess Diana with such a personal touch to them. She would not have had friends in the sense we do so you could say Cyril Dickman was one of her closest friends.”
Interested bidders may join the auction on January 5.
Meanwhile, Prince Harry has recently opened up about Princess Diana’s untimely death. In a documentary that aired on ITV, he admitted that it took some time before he faced the reality of his mother’s death. He was only 12 when she passed away. He said that “it was a lot of buried emotions” that he initially did not want to deal with.
Nonetheless, he now considers himself “energized, fired up, and lucky enough to be in a position to make a difference.” His philanthropic efforts are a nod to the charitable works his mother did when she was still alive.
Earlier this year, Prince Harry also told People magazine that Princess Diana left a “gaping hole” when she died.
“When she died, there was a gaping hole, not just for us but also for a huge amount of people across the world. If I can try and fill a very small part of that, then job done. I will have to, in a good way, spend the rest of my life trying to fill that void as much as possible. And so will William.”
He hopes that his mother is “incredibly proud” of what they are doing. Next year, it will be the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death. William and Harry are now making plans. They are reportedly working with the Historic Royal Palaces to create a memorial garden on the grounds of Kensington Palace honoring Princess Diana just in time for next year’s spring.
Come February, the “Diana: Her Fashion Story” exhibition will also open at the Palace. In a statement, curator Eleri Lynn believes women across the globe can relate to Princess Diana’s fashion transition. “We see her growing in confidence throughout her life, increasingly taking control of how she was represented, and intelligently communicating through her clothes,” she remarked.
The display will feature some of Princess Diana’s iconic outfits such as her pale pink blouse which she wore for her engagement portrait in 1981 as well as her Catherine Walker suits which she considered her “working uniforms.”
[Featured Image by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images]
