Charles and Diana: The truth behind their relationship

 In this blog I will be writing about the relationship between Charles and Diana. I know this will be a controversial topic to write about but I believe after doing some research and looking at various books that there is a different side to the story. 

I know Diana has told her side of the story many many times via books and interviews but we never really got to hear Charles's side to the story about what supposedly happened behind palace walls. I know this is going to cause a lot of hate and I'm willing to take that hate on, but just remember that this is my blog and I'm writing my own opinions and I have done some extensive research on this particular topic via books, documentaries and TV shows. 

We start back in the late 70s where Charles met Diana and how their relationship blossomed at the very beginning. It was said that Charles was dating Diana's sister Lady Sarah at the time where he met Diana at their house on the Sandringham estate. By the end of that date with Sarah both she and Charles broke the relationship off and he started asking Sarah what her sister was like. 

Charles dated a number of women in the 70s trying to find a suitable bride to produce and heir. They had to have absolutely no past. Charles first set his eyes on Camilla Shand at a polo match and they first hit it off from the very beginning, unfortunately Camilla did not meet the requirements of being a suitable bride as she was deemed a 'party girl' by the royal family. 

Diana had a very difficult childhood with divorced parents etc. She grew up with 3 siblings 2 sisters and one brother who were treated differently from her. 

The Queen Mother along with Lord Louis Mountbatten hooked Camilla up to marry Andrew Parker Bowles. Charles was at sea when he heard the news of their marriage and was absolutely devastated. So he went on and had a few dates with Diana Spencer who was at the time only 19 years old. It was a really big age gap between the two but because she had no past she was deemed as the suitable bride for the heir to the throne. 

On the 24th February 1981 it was announced from Buckingham Palace that Charles and Diana were engaged and will be married in the summer of July.  Charles sent out gifts as a thank you to all the women who have supported him and helped him through the years. He gave a very personal gift to Camilla that was a bracelet with G and F engraved into it. G and F were nicknamed what Charles and Camilla used when they were dating and it stood for Fred and Gladis. Obviously with the bracelet being such a personal gift Diana took problem with that as obviously Camilla was an ex of Charles and by this point she knew that he still had feelings for her. 

Diana wanted to back out of the marriage but her family already told her that their faces were all over the tea towels and plates. On the night before their marriage Charles told Diana that he didn't "love her" and that he felt forced into this marriage. On the 29th July 1981 Charles and Diana married in a 'fairytale marriage' and were watched by millions and millions of people. 

During the wedding Charles looked upset and even wiped tears from his eyes at one point. You got to remember that he still had strong feelings for Camilla and was forced into an essentially an arranged marriage. Diana did look beautiful in her wedding dress even though in my opinion the dress was too big and creased for a royal wedding. They married at St Paul's Cathedral. 

The royal couple spent their honeymoon on the Balmoral estate in Scotland and everything seemed fine. Even though they only went on a few dates people who knew them and saw them noticed that they were all loved up and happy with each other. When Diana was pregnant with William she and Charles were having an argument which is what most couples would do, Diana was said that the argument was soo heated that she decided to throw herself down the stairs while she was pregnant with William. Luckily mother and baby were fine but it did scare the people around her. 

On June 21st 1982 Diana gave birth to a little prince who was later named as William. After William was born Charles and Diana went on a royal tour to Australia and took their son with them as Diana didn't want to leave her son behind. There were some cracks showing in their relationship during this time period but no one really paid any attention to it. 

After William was born and apart from some arguments they still seemed perfectly happy and in love with each other. It remained like that until the 15th September 1984 when their youngest son came along named Harry. Around the same time as she was pregnant with Harry she had been cheating on Charles with other men and there was some speculation that Charles might not have been Harry's biological father. 

In 1986 things took a turn when after Diana strayed from the marriage Charles went back to his old girlfriend Camilla Parker Bowles. It was known that Camilla's husband Andrew Parker Bowles was having multiple affairs of his own back in London so Camilla was at her country house alone with their 2 children a lot. 

In March 1988 something absolutely tragic happened that would permanently change the marriage forever. Charles and Diana along with some friends would go skiing every year, while out skiing Charles and a group of friends noticed a rumbling sound. It turned out that it was an avalanche hurdling towards them. The instructor shouted everyone to move out of the way which Charles and one other person did. The other two friends didn't move in time and got crushed by the snow. 

Apparently when the rescue team got there it was said that Charles was digging his friends out of the snow with his bare hands. Unfortunately one of the party died and the other was badly injured. According to reporters who were there at the time could see that Charles was crying and shaking and looked really distressed as he entered the rescue helicopter. Meanwhile at the chalet Diana and Sarah were sat around a fire chatting and an aide came in and broke the news to them. 

When Charles arrived back at the chalet he wanted to stay but Diana insisted that they'd take the body back to the UK. When they got back to the UK Charles and Diana went their separate ways. Diana went to London to support the friend's widow while Charles travelled back to Highgrove house. 

When Charles got to the house, The housekeeper there said that he looked visibly distressed and traumatised as he walked up the stairs to his room. After spending a few days in Highgrove the staff noticed that he was getting worse and that he stared blankly at the TV for hours with red rimmed eyes. The housekeeper noticed that he needed someone there to talk to and that he needed constant support. 

After that accident Charles and Diana were completely on non-speaking terms. It was said that Diana made Charles get rid of his dog Harvey because she thought he was too old and smelly. She also made Charles go no contact with most of his friends because she thought the friends were associated with Camilla. 

There would be some pretty intense arguments according to staff one of which Diana would slap him across the face and call him various nasty names. Diana also used their 2 sons against him by changing her plans last minute to where Charles's plans would be eliminated with his sons and Diana would take them out instead. There were also instances where Charles would want to have a family tea with his sons but only to be told that they are having tea with their mother. 

Diana would apparently cry in front of William and Harry to then blame Charles for making their mother cry. William would usually slide tissue underneath the bathroom door every time he hears Diana cry. 

Another instance was apparently Charles told his cousin that while he was kneeling down and praying at night after an intense argument Diana would hit him over the head and keep on with the argument at hand. 

There have been many scandals on both parts during their relationship including the squidgygate and tampongate tapes which were both leaks through private phone calls. Squidgygate came first when Diana was talking to her lover at the time and used sqidge as a nickname. Tampongate was a intimate conversation between Charles and Camilla which reveals too much as a sexual term. 

There were rumours that Charles's mental health during his first marriage was completely downhill and was very very depressed to the point where we was suicidal and friends were seriously concerned for him and he needed help. Because he was that depressed they wanted him to reach out to Camilla who can help him see the light. It was also said that he was taking sleeping pills as he could hardly sleep. 

After those scandals the royal couple were at war with interviews and books. The most famous ones were the Andrew Morton book that focused on Diana and how bad the marriage between her and Charles was. After finding out about that book Charles hit back with the documentary Charles: The Private Man, The Public Role where he spoke out about his private life and family life, He never once spoke badly about Diana, the only thing he said was that he went to Camilla as soon as the marriage broke down. 

There was also the paranama interview where Diana famously stated "There are three of us in the marriage, so it was a bit crowded." This was true but the only issue is that there were more than three in that marriage if Diana included her many men as well. By this point The Late Queen Elizabeth II had enough and asked the royal couple to separate which they reluctantly did. 

By 1996 they got divorced after all the trouble and heartbreak they suffered they both divorced. Post divorced and they ended their feud and ended up being friendly and seen at various events together being friendly. He would visit Diana to make sure she was fine. They handled the joint custody of their two sons extremely well and they worked out arrangements etc. 

After the death of Diana, Charles was absolutely devastated and did everything in his power to protect his two sons. Charles also was the one who gave Diana a proper send off. He wanted to fly all the way to Paris to bring back her body. He went with Diana's two sisters and apparently in the hospital room Charles turned white and sobbed at her bedside. The nurses and doctors were shocked by his reaction. 

He was the one who wanted to give her a proper state funeral and persuaded his mother Queen Elizabeth II to agree to the state funeral. The funeral was very sad and Charles supported his sons throughout making sure during the actual service that his sons weren't on camera. 

He and Camilla are now happily married in 2005 and they still get the hate to this day. This blog should show that Charles and Camilla aren't the monsters and everyone who was involved were to blame. 

Like I said in the beginning this is strictly from books, documentaries and interviews that have been released over the years. I take no sides but this blog did focus on Charles's story as he was treated very badly by Diana. Diana wasn't the saint people make her out to be and I think it needs to be commented on. 

The History Of Royal Pets

In this blog we'll be looking at the different pets that The British Royal Family owned and inspired by over the years. 

Since the very beginning in 1066 The Royal Family had owned pets. King William I used to ride horses in battle. The Royals love to ride horses even to the current day. The British monarch also owns swans, dophins and whales along the UK coastline.  

King Henry VIII was the first monarch to own a dog in the Tudor times owning beagles, spaniels and greyhounds. They kept him company while going out hunting. He awarded people if one of his dogs got out. His dogs would wear collars to signify their royal status. 

We go to 1625 during the reign of King Charles I. He was very famous for his love of dogs as there is a breed of dog named after him called the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. He had a brown and white spaniel on his journey with him to the tower when he was executed by Oliver Cromwell. 

After restoring the monarchy in 1660 King Charles II was the type of king who focused on partying as the monarchy was restored. He also had King Charles Spaniels the spaniel is named after both Charles's because they had long black ears like both kings had long black hair. 

Now we go to the reign of King George III and keep various pets including terriers, spaniels and greyhounds. King George also had a pet zebra called Zanga and a cheetah called Miss Jenny which was a gift to him. 

King George III's son King George IV was known for his love of animals and owned a number of pets including dogs and exotic animals including a giraffe. He was particularly fond of spaniels.  In Windsor great park he was known to own giraffes, tigers and lions. He took over ownership of his father's pet zebra Zanga. He also had a parrot called Charlotte. 

Queen Victoria had a wide range of pets including different breeds of dogs, horses, donkeys and even some goats. Victoria grew up with her pet called Dash who was a King Charles Spaniels. Queen Victoria also owned horses and donkeys that she kept in the stables at Buckingham Palace. 

The king who abdicated King Edward VIII after he was banished he fled to Paris he and his wife Wallis Simpson owned a few pugs. He got inspired by his grandmother Queen Victoria who was a dog lover. 

Edward VIII's younger brother King George VI owned many pets including Labradors and Corgis. It was King George VI who introduced the Pembroke Welsh Corgi breed to the royal family when he introduced Dookie in 1933. That breed of dog became a favourite breed for himself and his two daughters. 

Queen Elizabeth II's reign will always be reminded to people for her love of horses and corgis, she bred corgis with dacshunds to create the new breed of a dorgi. All of her corgis were descended from her favourite corgi Susan. Susan was given to Princess Elizabeth's 18th birthday. Elizabeth II also was known to ride her horses almost everyday, she spent most of her free time at the stables at either residence she resided in. When Queen Elizabeth II died on the 8th September 2022 her corgis were sent to be looked after by her son Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah. Elizabeth had around 30 corgis during her reign. 

During her funeral on the 19th September 2022 her corgis Sandy and Muick were waiting for their owner in the quadrangle of Windsor Castle and her pony Emma was waiting half way up the long walk of Windsor. She was seen almost bowed to her late owner as she went past her. 

King Charles III had a few pets throughout his life. He likes Jack Russell Terriers and Labradors. He first owned a Chocolate Labrador called Dash when Dash was just a puppy. He also owned a Golden Labrador named Harvey who was given away to one of his aides he gave him away due to his ex-wife Diana who said that Harvey was too old and smelly. 

He had quite a few Jack Russell Terriers the two were Pooh and Tigga. One day Prince Charles went to Balmoral to spend some of the summer with his mother in 1993 and went out for a walk with Tigga and Pooh and when he got back to the castle he realised that Pooh didn't come back with him. There was a whole search party for him and even rewarded anyone who found him. He never came back and they believed that Pooh fell down a rabbit hole and couldn't get out. Tigga passed away in 2002. 

When Charles married Camilla Shand in 2005 they had no dogs. Camilla started adopting 2 Jack Russell Terriers named Beth and Bluebell from Battersea dogs and cats home. Beth and Bluebell were dogs who would attend engagements with their owners and take part in documentaries about their owners. In November 2024 Beth was put to sleep with a cancer that had spread. 

In December 2024 a new royal pup called Moley was born to which Camilla adopted after the sad death of her beloved dog Beth. Then in February 2025 King Charles III adopted a Lagotto Romagnolo puppy named Snuff he's apparently absolutely smitten with Snuff as Snuff was the first dog he owned in decades. 

It was confirmed on the 24th April that King Charles III’s new pup snuff was a gift from his darling wife Camilla for Christmas in 2024. 

Royal Residences

 In this blog I will be looking at various royal residences within The British Royal Family. I will list all of the residences and give information next to them: 

Buckingham Palace- Buckingham Palace is a royal residence in London where the monarch does all of the administration and meets various people. The palace is usually used for state visits where the banquet takes place. The Palace was originally known as Buckingham House that was built for the Duke Of Buckingham and Normandy in 1703 on a site that had been in private ownership for at least 150 years. 

It was acquired by King George III as a private residence in 1791 for Queen Charlotte and then it became known as The Queen's House. During the 19th century it was enlarged by architects John Nash and Edward Blore who constructed three wings around a courtyard. In 1847 Queen Victoria and Prince Albert found the palace too small for their growing family. So a new wing was designed by Edward Blore and Thomas Cubitt. Thomas Cubitt was also the great-great-great grandfather of the current Queen Camilla. 

In the Second World War Buckingham Palace was bombed nine times. The most serious publicised incident was deystroyed the palace chapel in 1940. One bomb fell in the palace quadrangle while King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were in residence. On VE day on the 8th May 1945 the palace was the centre of British celebration where The King and Queen along with their daughters Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret and Winston Churchill appeared on the balcony. 

Under King Charles III's reign the palace has been central for his coronation and trooping the colour, he and his wife Queen Camilla opt not to live at the palace as it's currently undergoing renovations although the palace is open in summers. 

Clarance House- Clarance House is better known for the official residence of The Queen Mother and very recently King Charles III and Queen Camilla. The house was built in 1825-1827 adjacent to St James's Palace for The Duke Of Clarance, The future King William IV. 

The four storey house is faced in pale render. Over the years, it has undergone much extensive remodelling and renovations. It was heavily damaged in the Second World War by the enemy during The Blitz. Little remains of the original structure designed by John Nash. 

After their marriage in 1947 Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip used the house as a family home for their growing family. Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother remained in residence until her death in 2002. In 2003 Prince Charles moved in with his long term partner Camilla Parker Bowles along with his two sons William and Harry. 

Currently, Clarance House is the London residence of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. They intend to continue to live at Clarance House until at least 2027 during renovations to Buckingham Palace. The palace will remain as the headquarters for the monarchy and the locations of state events during this time. 

St James's Palace- St James's Palace is the most senior palace in London. The palace gives its name to the Court of St James which is the monarch's royal court. The palace was built in the order of King Henry VIII in the 1530s. 

The palace is known for hosting royal reception, It also is used for the proclamation of monarchs. The most recent proclamation was on the 10th September 2022 for King Charles III. King Charles III's proclamation was first to be televised inside. St James's Palace is connected to Clarance House and is the residences of various royals including Princess Anne, Princess Beatrice and Princess Alexandra. 

Kensington Palace- Kensington Palace is situated within Kensington Gardens in the royal borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London. 

It's been the residence of the British Royal family since the 17th century. It is the residence of The Prince and Princess Of Wales, The Duke and Duchess Of Gloucester and other royals. Today, the State Rooms of Kensington are open to the public managed by the Historic Royal Palaces which is an independent charity which handles their own public funding. 

The palace was once home to Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer where they raised their 2 children Princes William and Harry. On the 31st August 1997 after Diana's death the gates of the palace became the focus of public mourning where 5 feet of floral tributes were laid. 

Balmoral Castle- The Balmoral Castle is based in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It's usually the summer residence of The Royal Family where they spend their summers. 

The estate and original castle was brought from the Farquharson Family in 1852 by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The house was deemed too small for Victoria and her growing family so they commissioned Balmoral Castle itself. The estate is not part of the Crown Estate and remains the private property of The Royal family. 

In September 2022 Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II made Balmoral the place to pass away peacefully, It was known as her favourite residence as it was where she could be herself. 

Birkhall- Birkhall is a house on the Balmoral estate which is currently where King Charles III and Queen Camilla like to go on many occasions. 

The property was built in 1715 which was built before the main castle. In the 1930s King George V lent Birkhall to The Duke and Duchess Of York and they holidayed there with their 2 daughters Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. After George VI died in 1952 The Queen Mother used Birkhall in summers until 2002 when she died. 

Prince Charles inherited Birkhall after his grandmother's death in 2002. Birkhall was where Charles proposed to his longtime partner Camilla Parker Bowles and then honeymooned there in 2005 and spent every summer there. In 2020 Charles and Camilla chose Birkhall to self isolate after Charles tested positive for COVID-19. 

After his mother's death in 2022 it was on his way back from Birkhall when he found out that he became King. After Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral Charles and Camilla spent the rest of the mourning period in Scotland. 

Highgrove House- Highgrove House is the private residence of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in Gloucestershire. 

The house itself was built in the late 18th century the estate was owned by various families until 1980 where the Duchy Of Cornwall purchased it. The then Prince Charles remodelled the Georgian house with neo-classical additions in 1987. 

The gardens in Highgrove are created by Charles himself and became popular to which he invites the public every year to come and see the gardens. Highgrove was also the house of Charles, Diana and their 2 sons. When their marriage was failing Charles often spent most of his time on the estate doing gardening and walks during a really tough time for him. 

 Llwynywermod- Was the Welsh residence of Prince Charles who was The Prince Of Wales from 1952 to 2022. 

Charles wanted to get a house in Wales because then when he visits Wales he has somewhere to stay. The Duchy Of Cornwall purchased this property in April 2007. The Prince Of Wales and Duchess Of Cornwall took up residence in the summer of 2008. The interior was designed by Camilla's sister Annabel Eliot. After Charles's accession to the throne in 2022 he continued to pay rent to the new Duke Of Cornwall, Prince William. 

Royals At War (World War One)

 During world war one, many royals across Europe including King George V were actively involved in the war effort, some serving in the military, visiting front lines and supporting the war effort at home. 

At the outbreak of the First World War the royal family was led by King George V and his wife Queen Mary. The pair had 6 children Edward, Albert, Mary. Henry, George and their youngest John. 

King George V and his wife Queen Mary were both active in supporting soldiers during the war years and visited the western front numerous times and also paid repeated visits to hospitals of wounded soldiers. During one visit to France George suffered a broken pelvis when his horse rolled over on top of him. 

Edward, Heir to the throne was keen on serving in the military immediately as soon as the war was declared. His hopes of fighting on the front line were immediately dashed when the Secretary of War Lord KItchener refused to allow the British heir to the throne to place himself in such danger. Despite this Edward would pay many visits to the front line trenches and witness the fighting first hand. 

Albert served in the navy during the war and was mentioned in dispatches for his work as a turret officer during the Battle Of Jutland. However ill health would shortly rule him out of the military service. 

Princess Mary became heavily involved with supporting soldiers in action through the creation of The Princess Mary Christmas Tins and those who were wounded and then treated in military hospitals back in Britain. 

As the war went on it became clear that the links of Germany through the name Saxe-Coburg and Gotha were becoming unpopular. The Europe revolution saw the overthrow of George's cousin Nicholas in Russia. This caused concern for the other European Monarchies including Britain. George took the step of suspending or revoking the British peerages and titles of his relatives who were fighting on the German side. 

In order to ensure that the Royal Family could be viewed as a British Royal Proclamation that was issued on the 17th July 1917 announcing the new Royal  name of Windsor.