And there are aspects of her as an individual that are really central to this story: the fact that she wore so many hats, was a humanitarian.

What was it about her that captivated the public and continues to do so today?Ĭhernock: I’ve been thinking a lot about this in the lead-up to the anniversary of her death, thinking about why we continue to be fascinated by her and what was specific about her that made her such a focal point for attention. Q &A With Arianne Chernock BU Today: Before her death, Princess Diana was hailed for bringing a realness to the Windsors. Chernock is currently at work on a book about women’s responses to Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953, and what they believed it would mean for their place in society. “But it indirectly reminds us that Diana’s life and death have taught the world precisely nothing.”īU Today talked to Arianne Chernock, a College of Arts & Sciences professor of history and an expert on modern British and European history, especially gender, culture, politics, and the monarchy, about Diana’s legacy and the ongoing fascination with her life. “One of the picture’s final images is of a young Prince Harry at his mother’s funeral the pain in his eyes is moving,” a New York Times review of the documentary says. In just the last year, she’s been the subject of an Oscar-nominated film ( Spencer starring Kristen Stewart as Diana), a Broadway musical (Diana), a TV miniseries (season four of The Crown), and most recently, an HBO documentary, The Princess.Īrianne Chernock, a College of Arts & Sciences professor of history, says it’s important to think about Princess Diana in the context of royal British history, “where she is one of a long line of wronged women who continue to haunt, inspire, and motivate the public to be curious about them.” Photo by Cydney Scott Hailed as the “people’s princess,” she is also credited with helping to modernize the monarchy.Ī quarter century after her death, she is as much a fixture in popular culture as she was during her lifetime. Throughout her life, Diana was a devoted mother to her sons, William and Harry, and a lifelong advocate for children, AIDS-related causes, and victims of landmines. After a messy divorce, Diana became estranged from the royal family. Their marriage ended 15 years later in an acrimonious divorce, following charges of infidelity by both.

Her death unleashed an outpouring of grief, and her funeral at Westminster Abbey drew a television audience of 2.5 billion people.ĭiana was just 20 when she married Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, in 1981. Wednesday marks the 25th anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, who was killed at age 36 in a high-speed car crash in Paris after being chased by paparazzi.

Princess on the brink