Why Princess Diana Felt Let Down By One Of Her Sisters

The problematic marriage between Princess Diana and Prince Charles affected not only the couple but even their closest friends and family members as well. One such strained relationship was between Princess Di and her elder sister, Lady Jane Fellowes, to the point that the two barely spoke to each other in the last seven and a half years of Diana’s life.

Diana is younger than Lady Jane by four years. Just as her marriage to Prince Charles turned sour, Jane’s husband, Robert Fellowes, received a promotion and became the Queen’s private secretary in 1990. This position later became the reason that drove a wedge between the two sisters.

Princess Diana did not have a positive opinion of Robert as he is one of the Queen’s most loyal staff. In fact, she saw Jane’s husband as a member of the establishment of “men in grey suits” or those who ran the royal family’s machinery behind the scenes and even accused him of conniving with the palace’s plans of monitoring her phone calls.

The princess is disappointed of Jane not publicly siding with her by opting to keep her silence. “Diana felt let down by Jane because she thought Jane might have spoken up for her, but never did,” one of Diana’s close friends revealed. “But we all knew that Jane was in an impossible position, and no one knows what she said to her husband in private — only she and Robert know that.”

As a result of their strained relationship, the two sisters hardly spoke to each other in the last seven years of Diana’s life. They only spoke when Princess Diana’s sons, princes William and Harry, exchanged presents with Jane’s children, Alexander, Laura and Eleanor.

After Diana’s death, it became Jane’s biggest regret that she was not able to patch things up with her sister when she was still alive. “It's been terrible for Jane that Diana died before they could properly make it up,” a friend close to Jane told Daily Mail.

On the other hand, Princess Diana’s relationship with her other sister, Lady Sarah, became closer than ever, especially during those trying times when her marriage was crumbling down. “When Diana needed someone to talk to, she always thought of Sarah first,” a family friend revealed. “Sarah had the knack of making Diana feel a lot better about her life and even make her laugh. She was able to keep everyone cheered up even when the crisis was at its worst.”