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When Prince Charles met a shy, teenage Princess Diana with sandy blonde hair and bright blue eyes, he saw a woman who could stand beside a King with grace.
Arguably, someone who could sit back quietly while he went about his royal duties.
So he married her on July 29, 1981 after 12 dates, holding her hand as he walked the then-20-year-old out in her iconic Elizabeth Emanuel gown.
Only, as we came to learn, Princess Diana wasn’t one to sit in the passenger seat. The young royal was charming and enigmatic.
Above all else, her compassion for others drew them to her.
As the Queen’s cousin Lady Elizabeth Anson told People Magazine, there was a moment in time when Prince Charles realised that the crowds of adoring fans didn’t gather and camp out for days to see the future King.
They were there for her.
“[Diana] sort of metamorphosed into a very, very elegant blonde beauty,” she told the publication.
“They did a visit to Wales which was the beginning of, for Prince Charles, realising, ‘They’ve come out to see my wife, they haven’t come out to see me.’”
Soon after their marriage, Princess Diana was beloved by people around the world for her poise and honesty.
Until her untimely death in 1997, she was one of the most photographed and celebrated women in the world.
Which meant no one was taking photos of the future King of England.
