Queen's anger at Diana insult

Mar 17, 2006, 13:59 GMT

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II was said to have been 'disappointed' and 'saddened' by Earl Spencer's speech at Princess Diana's funeral - because it failed to do justice to his sister's memory.

The claim is made by Gyles Brandreth, a former Conservative MP and a biographer of members of the Royal Family.

It had been thought the queen was angered at the earl's attack on the royal family. But she actually believed Charles Spencer had insulted Diana's memory by failing to pay tribute to her achievements or strong religious beliefs.

In his five-minute funeral tribute, the earl accused the press of turning Diana into 'the most hunted person of the modern age', claiming the media had pushed her to the extent that she 'talked endlessly of getting away from England'.

Assessing the impact on William and Harry, he told the congregation: 'On behalf of your mother and sisters, I pledge that we, your blood family, will do all we can to continue the imaginative, loving way in which you were steering these two exceptional young men, so that their souls are not simply immersed by duty and tradition but can sing openly as you planned.'

Writing in The Spectator magazine today, Mr Brandreth said: 'The queen, at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, was disappointed with the address given by Diana's brother, not because of Charles Spencer's ungracious remarks about the royal family, but because Spencer's speech failed to do justice to his sister's memory.

'Spencer was so busy knocking the press and insulting the royals, he left himself no time to pay proper tribute to Diana's manifold gifts and achievements.

'The queen was especially saddened by the fact that her godson Spencer failed to acknowledge the importance to Diana of her personal faith.'

Copyright 2006 BANG Media International