Queen Elizabeth Should've "Worked Harder" as a Matchmaker to Find King Charles a "Suitable Wife," as Princess Diana Was "So Young"

"She wasn't really focused on Charles in the same way."

After the Privy Council sanctioned their wedding, Lady Diana Spencer and Prince Charles pose with Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace, London, in March 1981
(Image credit: Getty Images/Bettmann)
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Much has been written about Princess Diana and King Charles's doomed union. Now, Princess Margaret's trusted lady-in-waiting, Lady Glenconner, is reflecting on the couple's marriage, including what Queen Elizabeth II could have done differently.

Lady Glenconner's new book, Manners and Mischief: An A–Z of Royal Tales and Surprising Wisdom from Princess Margaret's Lady in Waiting, is due for release in November. In an extract from the book published by the Daily Mail, Glenconner wrote, "I do slightly feel that the late Queen Elizabeth could have worked harder to try to find Prince Charles a suitable wife."

Glenconner continued, "The queens of Greece and Spain used to entertain royal princesses from other European countries in order to find a wife for their sons, but I think because The Queen had fallen in love and had such a successful marriage to Prince Philip, she wasn't really focused on [King] Charles in the same way."

However, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip reportedly weren't the only people urging Charles to marry Princess Diana. "The Queen Mother and Lady Fermoy [Diana's maternal grandmother] were keen that the marriage to Diana should happen," the former lady-in-waiting wrote.

According to Glenconner, the Queen Mother went so far as to express "her delight at the proposed marriage" in written correspondence. "Prince Philip was also very much in favor of the union," she explained.

Lady Glenconner also reflected on how Charles and Diana met "at a party in 1980...following the death of Lord Mountbatten." The former lady-in-waiting noted that Diana was allegedly "terribly sympathetic" to Charles, who had "a girlfriend at the time." Still, Diana "clearly made an impression on him."

Princess Diana sitting on a cushion next to Prince Charles in front of a big table of food

Diana "clearly made an impression on him."

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Writing in her new book, Glenconner said of Princess Diana, "She was so young when they married and had very little life experience. And I think when she became so incredibly popular with the public, it was very hard for Prince Charles."

Diana and Charles married on July 29, 1981, before finalizing their divorce on August 28, 1996.

Amy Mackelden
Amy Mackelden
Weekend Editor

Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.