Royal family

25 years since Princess Diana's death, look back on her final summer with some of the last photos taken of the People's Princess leading up to her death in August 1997.

Published on August 31, 2022

TL;DR: 

• The last photos of Princess Diana include a variety of images taken in the summer of 1997. 
• She vacationed with Dodi Al-Fayed, Prince William, and Prince Harry.
• Princess Diana also continued attending official engagements.

25 years after Princess Diana died in a tragic car accident, revisit some of the last photos of the People’s Princess taken before her death. From vacationing on a yacht and championing causes close to her heart to that fateful drive in Paris, France, Diana’s last photos feature glimpses of her post-royal life.

Princess Diana last photos: She continued working in the summer of 1997

“Diana was starting a new life. She had said, I’m spreading my wings.’ She was being quite positive about her divorce,” Judy Wade, author of Diana: the Intimate Portrait, told People.

After separating in 1992, Diana and Prince Charles finally made their split official four years later. In July 1996, the pair officially divorced. Diana kept her Princess of Wales title. However, the divorce settlement stipulated she give up her title of “Her Royal Highness.”

After the divorce, Diana continued to work. In June 1997 she attended the ballet and auctioned clothes for charity. Additionally, in the months following her now-famous landmine walk, Diana didn’t stop bringing attention to the cause. In the summer of 1997, she traveled to Bosnia and Hercegovina, pictured above, continuing her effort to ban landmines. 

Vacationing with Dodi Al-Fayed 

However, the summer of 1997 wasn’t all work. Diana began dating Al-Fayed while paparazzi clamored for photos of the pair. Often they were seen on the Jonikal, a yacht owned by Al-Fayed’s father. 

Other times Diana could be spotted enjoying the sun and sea with her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. By August 1997, when the now-Dukes of Cambridge and Sussex were at Balmoral in Scotland, Diana had likely grown lonely.

“I’m sure she was missing the boys. She was at a loss in London,” Wade said. “August is the time when anyone who is anyone leaves London.” So that’s what Diana did. Once again she vacationed with Al-Fayed, ending up in Paris, France. 

Princess Diana last photos: In a car with Dodi Al-Fayed, Trevor Rees-Jones, and Henri Paul

Diana’s last photos include some of her in the car before the fateful crash. Upon leaving the Ritz Paris, Henri Paul, the person behind the wheel, drove through the city with paparazzi in pursuit. Diana and Al-Fayed sat in the backseat with Paul and bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones up front.

Ultimately, the vehicle crashed in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel. Not only did Diana die but so did Al-Fayed and Paul. Jones survived the crash but couldn’t recall anything in the moments leading up to it.

Following Diana’s death, an investigator had an “emotional” conversation with William and Harry. They talked for more than an hour. During that time, the investigator provided an overview of the crash and Diana’s sons asked questions. 

Ahead of the 25-year anniversary of Diana’s death, Harry shared his plan for marking the occasion would include sharing his late mother’s memory with his children.

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