As is well known, Princess Diana grew up in a large family – she had two sisters and a brother. At one point, she was especially close to her sister Jane, but in the final years of her life, everything changed. Why did this happen, and how is Jane living today? We’ll explain in our article.
John Spencer and Frances Shand Kyd had five children. However, the eldest child, John Spencer, died shortly after his birth in 1960. The Spencer family traces its history back to the 15th and 16th centuries, and they made their fortune in sheep farming.
Diana grew up with her two older sisters, Lady Sarah (who dated Prince Charles before her), Lady Jane, and her younger brother, Charles. According to The Telegraph, Sarah and Diana were sociable as children, while Jane was “sensitive and quiet” and preferred books to noisy games. A former Vogue editor who knew the sisters as adults noted that Diana and Jane had remarkably similar voices, but different personalities.
However, life ultimately brought the sisters closer together—both their paths led them to the British monarchy. Lady Jane married Robert Fellowes in 1978 (incidentally, Diana was a bridesmaid). They had three children together: Laura, Alexander, and Eleanor.
Robert worked for Elizabeth II and eventually became the late Queen’s private secretary in 1990. Because of her husband’s work, Jane lived at Kensington Palace at the same time Diana was there with her then-husband, Prince Charles, and their sons, Harry and William. During this period, Diana and Jane grew closer and began to communicate more.
However, in the final years of the princess’s life, a chill spread between them again. When Diana’s relationship with Charles began to deteriorate, Robert Fellowes’ position as the Queen’s private secretary complicated matters, and Jane could only abide by the circumstances, as protocol was paramount at the palace.
According to People, the sisters barely spoke during the last 18 months of Diana’s life, and Jane never spoke publicly about the princess’s death. Diana’s butler, Paul Burrell, publicly revealed the tension between the sisters, although Diana’s childhood nanny, Mary Clarke, wrote in her memoirs that those around her exaggerated the situation and that the reality wasn’t so dire.
Whatever the sisters’ relationship before Diana’s death, Jane took her death very hard. According to eyewitnesses, when she saw her sister’s body in a Paris hospital, she nearly fainted.
Lady Jane remained close to her nephews, Princes Harry and William, and attended both their weddings. Her daughter Laura is Princess Charlotte’s godmother. She was also one of the first people Harry introduced his firstborn, Archie, to – he even showed the baby to his aunt before he even showed it to his brother!
Lady Jane, now 67, and her family prefer to lead a fairly quiet life, but Diana’s sister still appears from time to time at various royal events.
