Wow!
This weekend marked exactly 88 years since Frances Shand Kydd, grandmother of Prince William and Prince Harry, and mother of the late Princess Diana, was born. Unfortunately, she passed away in 2004, but son Charles Spencer, Di’s younger brother, reflected on the special day on Instagram. And a rare snapshot of the former Princess of Wales also emerged!
Althorp
Royalty connoisseurs know that Diana’s younger brother, Count Spencer, has always been very concerned with the fate of his relatives and the family history. For example, Charles Spencer has published several books over the years about the beautiful Althorp estate, which has been the seat of the Spencer family for centuries. He also regularly shares snapshots from the archives via social media – from magazine covers with his grandmother to picturesque portraits of his distant ancestors.
Mommy Spencer
This weekend it turned out that Charles had once again delved into the archives, in honor of his mother. It was her 88th birthday! He looks back with a set of clippings from the newspapers of the time.
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“In memory of my mother, with love and gratitude, on what would have been her 88th birthday,” he captioned the images.
Young Diana
Now it is of course special enough to have such a set of newspaper clippings about your own family ready, but one snapshot in particular attracts attention. “Lord and Lady Althorp’s third daughter christened,” it reads in large letters above. And that third daughter is (you guessed it!) none other than Princess Diana. In the sweet newspaper photo, Frances Shand Kydd and John Spencer are seen proudly posing for a snap with their little girl.
The marriage between John and Frances was not very happy, and the two would end their relationship in 1967. Frances then eloped with a wealthy wallpaper heir (who would leave her for another lady in 1988), and John married another aristocrat’s daughter, with whom he remained together until his death in 1992. Life wasn’t really happily ever after for the three in the snapshot…
Source: Hello! Magazine | Image: NL Image