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Vanessa Peres

Professor Benjamin Good

RC 1000 Expository Writing

10 September 2021

Diana’s Death…Accidental or Intentional?

Princess Diana's death occurred about 20 years ago, but it remains a mystery to this day.

On August 21, 1997, when Diana was traveling in Paris with her rumored boyfriend Dodi, they

accidentally crashed on the highway. Said to be driving 70 mph in a 30 mph zone, it poses the

question of what happened and how could it have been prevented? The death of Princess Diana

has been spread through social media, causing the theory that Prince Charles planned her death.

Paparazzi are always trying to catch the best photos and information of those most

popular to the media. That is why that night, as the Princess of Wales, Diana Spencer, was

leaving dinner it was speculated that they were following her. Trying to obtain the best images of

her outing with alleged fiance Dodi Fayed, the paparazzi instigated the speed of the driver. Henri

Paul was a middle-aged man who had been working for the Fayde’s at their Ritz Hotel. Paul was

in charge of transporting the Princess and Dodi the night of the accident. Being employed by

their family for several years, it came as a shock when the reports revealed he was heavily

intoxicated. They speculated that he had disappeared for several hours before their departure and

when he returned it was imminent he was under the influence. A toxicology report showed that

Paul had mixed antidepressant medication along with several alcoholic beverages causing his

blood alcohol test to be well over what it should be to drive a vehicle. This reckless driving

caused Paul and Fayde to die instantaneously, and the Princess sustained injuries requiring her to

be rushed to the hospital. After a few hours, Diana was pronounced dead. “This year Paul was
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passed over for promotion to be the hotel's head of security” and so

the media speculates that Paul had plotted this death (The Irish

Times). He had acted strangely hours prior and was recruited by

M16. Some countless documents and witnesses attest to him

wanting her dead for financial gain. He was also said to have

conspired alongside the paparazzi. They plotted to tailgate her

limousine prompting the driver to try and escape. Unfortunately, in

the end, all were victims and the paparazzi gained photographs.

Princess Diana was rumored to be pregnant at the time that

she was killed. She and Dodi had been rumored to be engaged and

announce this along with her pregnancy in the upcoming days. Fayde’s father claimed that

“Diana had become pregnant with his son’s child, he said, and that idea was unpalatable to the

British state” (Griffin). This caused lots of conspiracy theories to form. They believed that they

did not want an Egyptian Muslim to be a stepfather to potential kings. Weeks prior she had

announced a “big surprise” causing the media to go crazy and spread that she was pregnant. This

theory however was proven untrue. The reports after her death revealed that she was not

pregnant. Her friends also confirmed that she never mentioned being pregnant and maintained a

steady cycle. Diana however did believe that she was going to be murdered. Her butler revealed

that she had written letters and gave them to him to keep hidden. This note expressed her

emotions towards the situation and how she was concerned for her safety. Within this letter, there

was also talk about her car. She mentions being worried about it having issues, and that that is

what caused her former bodyguard to be killed. All this speculation about her being unsafe
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pointed a finger at the royal family. They were the ones she had left for Dodi after lots of conflict

with Prince Charles.

One year before this tragedy, Princess Diana had officially divorced Prince Charles after

15 years of marriage. The couple had called it quits after Diana revealed that she was basically in

a relationship with three people. Prince Charles had a relationship with Camilla Shand the

Duchess of Cornwall throughout their marriage. They had met before Charles’s marriage, but it

is speculated that the queen did not approve and

therefore Charles married Diana. Due to this, it

conspires that Charles killed Diana in some

elaborate plan. With her dead, he would be able to

finally marry his true love, Camilla. This was

proven in how a few years after her death he

remarried making her his second wife. Charles

also had two children with Princess Diana years

before her death. A theory is that Charles killed

her to prevent Dodi, her boyfriend, from becoming

the stepfather. It said that Charles believed heavily in keeping the royal family a sort of way and

that this included not allowing a Muslim to be within. The notes that she had written to her butler

are also speculated to be the cause of Charles. Many think that he acted in a way that caused her

to fear her safety within the walls of the castle.

Murdered or accidentally killed, either way, the list of conspiracy theories continues.

With the media being so prominent in today's societies, so many new theories have been created

to propose a solution to her death. Over time some have been disproven, but the question remains
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what happened that morning. We know the facts that she died along with her boyfriend Dodi and

car driver Pual, but the reasoning behind it is still truly unknown. After years of debate, however,

it is most likely that Charles plotted her death due to numerous reasons. Unfortunately, the

secrets of this mysterious tragedy remain with the royal family and those who passed. This poses

the ultimate question of whether the royal family had involvement alongside Prince Charles, and

if they plan to keep the information of her death to their graves.

Works Cited

History.com Editors. “Charles and Diana Divorce.” History.com, A&E Television

Networks, 24 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/charles-and-diana-divorce.

McDermott, Maeve. “Who Killed Princess Diana? Conspiracy Theories Endure, Twenty

Years Later.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 29 Aug. 2017,

www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2017/08/29/who-killed-princess-diana-conspiracy-the

ories-still-endure/543939001/.

Nicolaou, Elena. “The Details of Princess DIANA'S Death-and the Royal Family's

Response.” Oprah Daily, 21 May 2021,

www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/tv-movies/a29874597/princess-diana-death/.

pennlive. “The Death of Princess Diana in 1997.” YouTube, YouTube, 30 Aug. 2018,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1slJpF7ybkg.

“Princess Diana's Driver Takes Many Secrets to Grave.” The Irish Times, The Irish Times,

20 Sept. 1997,

www.irishtimes.com/culture/princess-diana-s-driver-takes-many-secrets-to-grave-1.108077

Solly, Meilan. “14 Fun Facts About Princess Diana's Wedding.” Smithsonian.com,

Smithsonian Institution, 13 Nov. 2020,

www.smithsonianmag.com/history/14-fun-facts-about-princess-dianas-wedding-18097628

4/.