“Diana, Princess of Wales”

      A true fairytale princess, Diana, Princess of Wales embodied style, grace, elegance and a beautiful spirit. Sitting down to tea with The Princess would have been a dream come true for any little girl with grand fantasies. 
      At the age of 14, Diana acquired the title of The Lady Diana Spencer on the death of her paternal grandfather and moved to her family’s sixteenth-century ancestral home of Althorp. At 19, she worked as a part-time assistant at the Young England Kindergarten when Prince Charles asked her to marry him. Diana was the first English woman to marry an heir to the throne in 300 years, with her wedding taking place before one billion television viewers at St. Paul’s Cathedral. 
      Moving into Kensington Palace and occupying apartments in the northwest section, Prince William of Wales and Prince Henry of Wales (commonly called Prince Harry) were born within three years. The Princess of Wales frequently wandered through Kensington Gardens, one of her favorite retreats. 
      From the mid-to-late 1980's, the Princess of Wales became engrossed in charitable efforts from helping AIDS victims to banning the use of land mines and focusing on the injuries they inflicted, especially to children. She was tireless in her work. 
      But during her quiet moments, Diana, Princess of Wales might have occasionally enjoyed a cup of Earl Grey tea (Source:  Personal Chef Darren McGrady).  While not an avid tea devotee, she did enjoy the flavor of Earl Grey.  And, her favorite sweet treat was Chef McGrady's Bread and Butter Pudding.  Diana felt it was the best in the world.
      Upon her untimely, tragic death in 1997, the Princess of Wales was buried on an island in a lake known as The Oval within Althorp Park’s Pleasure Garden. A path lined with 36 oak trees, one commemorating each year of her life, leads to the lake where four black swans swim representing sentry guarding the island. And in the lake, water lilies float aimlessly paying tribute to one of the Princess of Wales’ favorite flowers, the lily. 


      A debt of gratitude goes to Sharyn Murdoch of Atlanta, Georgia for sharing her prized possession, the Diana, Princess of Wales Rose teacup from the Althorp Gift Collection. This English fine bone china features a hand painted rose inspired by the Diana, Princess of Wales Rose set in a pink pearl finish and hand decorated in platinum. 


Photos:  © Lighthouse Literary, Inc.