How Did Princess Diana Die? The True Story of Her Tragic Car Accident

The world lost Princess Diana in a car crash in August 1997. Here is a look at what happened the night she died and the lasting legacy she left behind

In late August 1997, Princess Diana was newly divorced and ready to begin a brand-new chapter of her life.

Then 36 years old, the royal mom to Prince William, then 15, and Prince Harry, then 12, was in a blossoming relationship with Dodi Al Fayed, the son of Harrods department store owner Mohamed Al Fayed. The new couple, making the most of summer, had been vacationing in France together.

On Aug. 31, 1997, Diana and Al Fayed were traveling in a car in Paris — with a driver and bodyguard— pursued by paparazzi when their vehicle slammed into a support column, flipped and came to a rest in front of oncoming traffic. Al Fayed and the driver died instantly, while medical workers attempted to keep Diana alive for hours before her death was announced at nearly 5:00 a.m. on Aug. 31.

Season 6 of The Crown depicts Diana's life right before the deadly crash and its aftermath, but PEOPLE confirmed in October 2022 that the series would not show the actual moment of impact. However, the show does go into detail about the last moments of the princess's life before she left The Ritz with Al Fayed — including a final phone call with her sons that happened in real life.

Here is a look at what happened when Princess Diana died, as well as the legacy she left behind.

How did Princess Diana die?

The princess was in Paris with Al Fayed when the paparazzi followed the car she was traveling in, hoping to get a photo of the couple.

The driver of the car, Henri Paul — who was later found to be inebriated — turned into a tunnel that ran next to the Seine River in an attempt to evade the photographers. But the vehicle quickly spun out of control while being driven at a speed of 121 mph.

Jerome Laumonier, who was near the crash site, later told PEOPLE, "There was this huge, violent, terrifying crash followed by the lone sound of a car horn."

When did Princess Diana die?

Princess Diana died on Aug. 31, 1997. The news was quickly confirmed by British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, who commented, "I am greatly shocked by this news. Our first thoughts must be with her children and family at this time of immense loss to them."

Following Diana's death, Prince Charles was joined by Princess Diana's sisters Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes on a flight to Paris to bring Diana's body back to London. When the trio arrived at the hospital, Diana's body was alone with her butler, Paul Burrell, and her driver, Colin Tebbutt. A friend previously told PEOPLE of Burrell, "It was his sad duty to supervise her going into the casket and the way she looked."

Where did Princess Diana die?

Princess Diana died in Paris following a vacation with her sons in St. Tropez. Diana and Al Fayed traveled to the French city via a jet that belonged to Al Fayed's father and were staying in a $2,000-a-night suite in the Ritz, also owned by the Al Fayed family.

The couple had dinner at the hotel's restaurant that night, with one employee of the hotel telling PEOPLE, "They looked like two love-struck teenagers." The pair were then notified that nearly 30 photographers were waiting outside the Ritz and decided to head to Al Fayed's apartment off the Champs Elysees instead of staying at the hotel. Despite using three decoy cars to try to get away from the photographers, most stayed put until Diana and Al Fayed got into a car with Paul and drove away.

Who else died in the car accident?

Both Princess Diana's boyfriend Al Fayed and the driver, Paul, died instantly. Paul, who was an employee of the Ritz at the time, was later found to be driving with an illegal blood alcohol level.

Al Fayed's bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones was the only survivor of the crash and the only passenger who wore a seat belt, although he suffered serious injuries.

How old was Princess Diana when she died?

Princess Diana was 36 years old when she died. She celebrated her final birthday on July 1, 1997, by attending an event in support of the Tate Gallery's Centenary in London. She took time to greet fans and well-wishers who had shown up outside the event to hand her birthday gifts such as cards and flowers.

What were Princess Diana's last words?

In 2015, firefighter Xavier Gourmelon revealed Princess Diana's last words in an interview with The Independent. Gourmelon said that Diana momentarily gained consciousness and asked, "My God, what has happened?"

Gourmelon was also one of the people who revived Diana after delivering chest compressions. At the time, he believed Diana would be okay. He said, "It was a relief, of course, because as a first responder you want to save lives — and that's what I thought I had done." He added that finding out she had died the next day was "very upsetting" and "I know now that there were serious internal injuries, but the whole episode is still very much in my mind. The memory of that night will stay with me forever."

The Crown season 6 portrays the final moments before Diana's death, including a phone call with her sons, Prince Harry and Prince William, who were at Balmoral Castle in Scotland at the time. This fictional phone call mimics a real moment that Harry and William reflected on in the 2017 documentary Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy. "Harry and I were in a desperate rush to say goodbye, you know, 'See you later.' " William said of the phone call. "If I'd known now obviously what was going to happen, I wouldn't have been so blasé about it and everything else."

Harry added, "I can't really necessarily remember what I said but all I do remember is probably regretting for the rest of my life how short the phone call was."

How did the public react to Princess Diana's death?

The general public was rocked by the loss of the royal who had been nicknamed the People's Princess. Thousands of people lined the streets outside Buckingham Palace, leaving notes, flowers and mementos in honor of Diana's life.

The royal family kept a distance between themselves and the public mourners at first. The family hid away at the Queen's residence at Balmoral, where the Queen and Prince Charles hoped to give Prince William and Prince Harry a bit of respite before their mother's funeral on Sept. 6, 1997.

Why was Prince Charles questioned about Princess Diana's death in 2004?

Years after Princess Diana died, the British Metropolitan Police opened an inquiry into her death and requested to interview and question Prince Charles. The police had been told about a note that Princess Diana wrote in 1995 that read, "My husband is planning 'an accident' in my car, brake failure and serious head injury." Diana reportedly believed that Charles might be planning such an accident so that he could marry Prince William and Prince Harry's nanny at the time.

Nothing came of the investigation, and Charles participated fully.

What legacy did Princess Diana leave behind?

Princess Diana is as relevant now as she has ever been, and that is in part due to the work that her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, have done to ensure that her legacy lives on both through themselves and through their own children.

While speaking at the Diana Awards on his mother's birthday in 2022, Prince Harry shared with attendees that he can see his mother's work lives on through them. He said, "I see her legacy in all of you. I see her legacy in a Diana Award community that spans multiple generations. I see her legacy every time I meet with families, young people, and children from all corners of the world. And, I see my mum's legacy when I look at my own children every day."

This echoed what Prince William told Diana Awards honorees in 2019 when they visited his home, Kensington Palace. As Tessy Ojo, the chief executive of the Diana Award charity, told PEOPLE, "He asked me, 'How did you find these young people? These are truly world changers.' And the other thing he said to the group was 'my mother would be so proud of you.' "

Prince William and Prince Harry have also continued to honor their mother by carrying on with her work in their own lives. In May 2021, William worked with the organization Centrepoint, the same organization his mother had been a patron of in her lifetime, on a project aimed at combating homelessness. In January 2022, Harry showed that his mother is never far from him as he traveled to Angola to walk the same landmine walk that his mother traversed in January 1997.

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