“I Don’t Go by the Rule Book”: 7 Reasons Why Princess Diana Will Always Be the Queen of People’s Hearts
Princess Diana turned 20 years old when she married 32-year-old Prince Charles and became a princess. In just 16 years, she managed to become the most influential humanitarian of the 20th century and won the love of the people.
Here at Bright Side, we learned more about Princess Diana and instantly fell in love with her. So we decided to tell you what earned her the title of “the people’s Princess.”
1. She was highly involved in charity work.
It is thought that Princess Diana had more of an effect on charity in the last century than any other person. She was involved in various projects, including hunger prevention, animal protection, cancer research, mental health awareness, and many other issues.
She was traveling around the world visiting hospitals, many of which she supported. She wasn’t reluctant to work with the homeless or drug addicts, and found a place in her heart for everyone.
One of the most significant charities she worked with was the one for AIDS awareness. In 1987, she opened the UK’s first specialized center for infected people.
She visited many patients and shook hands with an HIV-positive patient, showing her compassion and publicly challenging the belief that the disease is transmitted through touch. This gesture became first-page news all around the world. She continued working on it and establishing fundraising campaigns for AIDS research. Later, she also visited Africa to bring attention to the problem.
2. She truly loved people.
In one of her interviews, Princess Diana said: “I lead from the heart, not the head. Someone’s got to go out there and love people and show it.” And she proved this to be true many times.
When visiting hospitals, she would sit on the patients’ beds and hold their hands. Many were shocked because it had never happened before, but for lady Diana, it was a “normal thing to do.” She shook people’s hands without wearing gloves and hugged with children.
During a trip to Bosnia, Princess Diana insisted on visiting the cemetery where victims of war were buried. She has noticed a woman crying by her son’s grave. Princess Diana walked up to the woman and hugged and comforted her.
3. She used her fame to speak up and raise awareness.
Princess Diana was a person who always tried to direct attention to important issues. She was a person who started an open conversation about mental health when it was still a topic that not many talked about. In one of her interviews, she shared her own experience when she publicly talked about her struggle with bulimia, depression, and self-harm.
4. She was a great mother.
Diana had her own opinions when it came to how to raise her children and went against many of the royal rules. First, it wasn’t acceptable for royals to spend much time with their children, who usually had a full-time nanny. After becoming a mother herself, Princess Diana ditched those rules.
She would spend as much time with her sons, William and Harry, as possible. She adjusted her schedule to theirs, she would take them to school herself, and she would take them on royal trips with her. She wasn’t afraid to express her love for them in public, and she loved hugging them a lot.
She acted a lot like an ordinary mother, having fun with her children and allowing them to wear jeans and T-shirts. She even participated in a mother’s race at William’s school.
Still, she wanted her sons to know how other people, who weren’t fortunate to be born into a wealthy family, lived. She would take William and Harry with her to homelessness projects and to visit hospitals.
5. She was a style icon.
Princess Diana was a fashion trendsetter of the ’80s and ’90s. She created many fashion trends that were followed around the world. But not only did she dress well, she used her looks to communicate.
During her humanitarian visits, she wore colorful clothes to radiate warmth. While visiting children, she would wear jewelry so that they could play with it. She never wore hats when visiting kids, because “you can’t cuddle with a child in a hat.”
The most famous of her looks is probably her “revenge dress.” It’s the dress she wore right after Prince Charles officially confirmed having an affair.
6. She was easy-going.
Those who knew Princess Diana said that she had a good sense of humor and was constantly laughing. When asked in one of her interviews why she does charity, she replied: “Because I’ve got nothing else to do” and started laughing. She was doing it because she loved doing it.
In 1988, she attended a Michael Jackson concert, and the artist removed his song “Dirty Diana” from the show to honor her. But when the princess heard about it, she asked him to play it.
7. She was humble and loved people.
The royal family has always been distant from the ordinary people. Diana broke the ice and started the conversation. She was a royal, but she had the ability to make whoever she talked to feel special. She loved being with people.
She didn’t like to wear gloves, because personal contact was important for her and was a way to express her compassion. She was very shy, but charismatic and friendly to everyone, and it quickly made people fall in love with her.
She was loved deeply. Her death in 1997 at the age of 36 left Britain and the whole world grieving. Her funeral was watched by 2.5 billion people, which is 3 times more than the number of people who watched her wedding.
People left gifts and flowers outside Kensington Gardens. There were so many that the florists of London ran out of stock, and the piles were 5 ft deep in some places.
Is there a person you look up to in life?
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