But as this newly discovered interview revealed, the tears weren't due to the Charles leaving at all, but instead due to Diana discovering the affair Charles was having with
The key phrase here is "no plans to divorce"—Princess Diana, reportedly did not want a divorce. In between the formal separation and the divorce, Prince Charles gave an interview to Jonathan Dimbleby in which he admitted he was unfaithful to Diana after their marriage broke down.
They still had an affinity for Princess Diana
It's also a big reason many people didn't like her ex for so long—and truth be told, they still haven't forgiven him for the bad things he did to Diana during their ill-fated marriage.
It wasn't until 1994 that Prince Charles admitted to his adultery with Camilla for the first time. Princess Diana famously stated, “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.” The two royals filed for divorce in 1996. Diana died a year later.
Charles had been pressured by his father, Prince Philip, to propose to Diana, despite that Charles already had serious misgivings. According to Jobson, the prince knew within just a handful of meetings that he and Diana were ill-suited for one another.
Though it seems almost comically old fashioned now, the fact that Camilla had a dating history was a major strike against her. "The conventions of the time called for the heir to the British throne to marry a woman who at least appeared to be virginal," writes Bedell Smith.
The Mirror reports that, the night before the wedding, Charles, 32, told Diana, who had just turned 20 earlier in the month, that he didn't love her and did not want to go into the marriage on a false premise, the outlet reports. Understandably, this left the soon-to-be Princess of Wales devastated.
According to the Telegraph, the Queen bowed out because of her role as head of the Church of England, which discourages divorce. This prominent role meant she would have had to uphold the Church's values. It's believed her duties outweighed familial obligations when making this decision.
She attempted suicide
One of the most troubling revelations from Princess Diana's audiotapes was that she struggled with depression and even attempted to take her own life.
Just a month before she died, however, Diana had apparently had a change of heart about her ex. According to royal biographer Tina Brown, author of The Diana Chronicles, the late royal confessed to her during a meeting that summer that she would have gone back to Charles "in a heartbeat," if he had been interested.
“He then let out a cry of pain was that so spontaneous and came from the heart,” Andersen further shared, also citing one witness describing it as a 'howl of anguish'.
1989. Diana confronts Camilla, approaching her at a party and saying, “I know what's going on between you and Charles and I just want you to know that. She said to me: 'You've got everything you ever wanted.
Charles, of course, was having an affair with his now-wife Camilla Parker Bowles, but Diana had relationships, too. And after the royal couple separated, she was publicly linked to a few different men—including her Dodi Al Fayed, who died in the same car crash that killed Diana 25 years ago.
In those tapes, Diana recalled her growing suspicion that Charles and Camilla were still having an emotional affair: she discovered a personalized bracelet that Charles had bought for Camilla shortly before the wedding. Diana wanted to call off the wedding, but her sisters talked her out of it.
The Queen thought Diana quite suitable for Charles. “She was very much a hit with the royal family—they really warmed to her,” Chernock says.
Frances had an affair, and the Spencers divorced when Diana was just 6 years old. Little Diana was devastated and ashamed. She and her siblings – brother Charles and older sisters Sarah and Jane – went to live with their father at Althorp, the family estate.
The dress in question, known today as the Revenge Dress, was designed by Christina Stambolian for Princess Diana, who memorably wore the black number on June 29, 1994 to the Serpentine Gallery, the same night that Prince Charles admitted to his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles on national television.
Camilla may have been at Diana's wedding but she was not welcome at her funeral, which was watched by an estimated 2.5 billion people around the world. Still, to many her absence echoed around the ancient hall. The Queen made it clear to Charles that he could not take his paramour to the service.
On July 29, 1981, Charles and Diana got married. Camilla attended their wedding. According to royal biographer Andrew Morton, Camilla immediately caused a rift between Charles and Diana when Diana allegedly found an engraved necklace intended for Camilla while opening wedding gifts.
Nearly eight years after Princess Diana's death in a car crash was mourned the world over, Prince Charles, her widower and heir to the British throne, weds his longtime mistress, Camilla Parker Bowles. The marriage, a private civil ceremony, took place at Windsor Guildhall, 30 miles outside of London.
Katie Couric has revealed why she broke down in tears while covering Princess Diana\x27s funeral. Couric was struck by an envelope with \\\x22Mummy\\\x22 ... Yes, Prince Harry and Prince William both cried at their mother, Princess Diana\x27s, funeral.
In a series of tapes recorded for her 1992 biography, Diana said that she recalled discovering a bracelet which Charles had bought for his longtime lover Camilla Parker Bowles shortly before their wedding. Due to her suspicions she wanted to call off the wedding but was put off the idea by her sisters.
Charles and Camilla's friendship turned romantic over the course of 18 months. Royal expert Marlene Koening, who wrote about Charles and Camilla's relationship for BBC's History Extra, told Insider that the pair were instantly attracted to each other.
Queen Elizabeth II settled the matter last year, when she gave the blessing for Camilla to be known as queen consort. The endorsement was widely seen as a formal sign that the royal family had finally accepted Camilla as a respected senior member.
The Queen's choice of outfit for her son's nuptials could have been because it didn't clash with Duchess Camilla's second wedding dress, which was pale blue.