Diana, Princess of Wales's Real Name: Diana Frances Spencer

Quick answer: Diana, Princess of Wales was born Diana Frances Spencer. She was born on July 1, 1961, at Park House, Sandringham, Norfolk, England, and died on August 31, 1997, in Paris. Before marriage she was styled Lady Diana Spencer.

Real name and early life

Britannica identifies her as Diana, princess of Wales, born Diana Frances Spencer on July 1, 1961, near Sandringham (Britannica). Spencer is the aristocratic family surname; Frances is the middle name. She was the third of four children of Edward John Spencer, later 8th Earl Spencer, and Frances Roche. After her parents’ divorce she lived mainly with her father; when he inherited the earldom in 1975 she gained the courtesy title Lady Diana Spencer. Educated at Riddlesworth Hall and West Heath, she worked briefly as a kindergarten assistant in London before her engagement to Charles, Prince of Wales.

Career highlights

She married Charles at St Paul’s Cathedral on July 29, 1981, becoming Princess of Wales. They had two sons, William (1982) and Harry (1984). Global charity work focused on landmines, HIV/AIDS destigmatization, and children’s causes, reshaping modern royal soft power. The marriage dissolved amid highly publicized separations; they divorced in 1996, after which she remained Diana, Princess of Wales, without the style Her Royal Highness. On August 31, 1997, she died from injuries in a car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris, along with companion Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul; bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones survived (BBC; Britannica). Public mourning in Britain was unprecedented. Funeral coverage and later inquests kept the Spencer birth name in formal records even as the world knew her as Princess Diana. Across titles—Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales—the birth name remained Diana Frances Spencer.

Name notes for searchers

“Princess Diana” is a popular press shorthand; formally she was Diana, Princess of Wales after marriage. Do not confuse courtesy titles with a changed legal surname at birth. Prefer Britannica and BBC for biography and death facts. Tabloid nicknames (“People’s Princess”) are press labels, not legal names.