Earl Spencer lashes out at the Royal Family as he accuses them of allowing Prince Harry to ‘spin out of control’ following Diana’s death

Charles Spencer has accused the royal family of failing Prince Harry after Princess Diana’s death. The earl makes the claim in an extract from his book, serialised by the Daily Mail.

The passage appears in Charles’s new memoir about Princess Diana, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister.

Charles said he remained troubled by the “lack of obvious care” shown after the funeral. His concern centred on Harry during the train journey to Althorp, where Diana would be buried.

He believed his nephew needed calm and support after enduring the public procession through London.

Harry walked behind Diana’s coffin (Credit: Gerry Penny/EPA/Shutterstock)

Charles Spencer recalls Prince Harry at Diana’s funeral

Harry was 12 when Diana died in Paris in 1997, shortly before his 13th birthday.

On September 6, he walked behind her coffin with Prince William, then-Prince Charles, Prince Philip and Charles Spencer.

“I could not get over how tiny, and slight, and bereft, Harry looked. Too small to be doing this, I thought, and wondered how on earth this heartbroken child could bear the ordeal of that moment, or how he could possibly be expected to deal with the agony that the day ahead would insist upon,” he wrote.

He also noticed Harry’s handwritten card among the flowers on Diana’s coffin, “the agonizing word ‘Mummy'” on it.

William, aged 15, appeared more composed to his uncle, although Charles believed both boys were suffering terribly. That appearance made Harry his immediate focus during the procession, he wrote.

Under an arch and briefly away from public view, Charles reached across and encouraged Harry with a hug.

Earl Spencer has lashed out (Credit: Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock)

Charles Spencer questions support for Prince Harry

Charles said his concern deepened on the train after the service.

“My chief memory of that train journey is of being concerned at the lack of obvious care for Harry, as he decompressed from the ghastliness of the morning. He needed Diana’s hugs, of course, and they would forever be denied him. But instead of calm and nurture, he was allowed to spin out of control. I have often looked back, reckoning that a more caring hand at such points as this would have helped him enormously in the future. Instead, he seemed so very alone in his despair and torment,” he then said.

Harry has previously spoken about suppressing his emotions after Diana’s death. He has also discussed substance use and later seeking therapy while confronting his grief.

Buckingham Palace response to Charles Spencer’s memoir

Buckingham Palace has not directly addressed this latest account concerning Harry.

It has, however, challenged a separate claim involving King Charles from the same memoir. That disputed allegation concerned words Charles says the then Prince of Wales used after Diana died.

The palace said grief could affect judgement and colour memory. It also noted its usual policy against commenting on books.

Swan Song: Diana, My Sister is due to be published worldwide on September 22. The latest extract returns attention to Diana’s death and its impact on her younger son.

It also presents Charles’s personal view of Harry’s treatment during one of the family’s most painful days. His claim remains his own account of events nearly three decades ago.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment when approached by Entertainment Daily.

Read more: Prince Harry faces question about uncle Earl Spencer’s book following King Charles bombshell

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