The tragic death of Diana,
Princess of Wales occurred on Sunday, 31 August 1997 following a car accident in Paris,
France. The vehicle in which the Princess was travelling was involved in a high-speed
accident in the Place de l'Alma underpass in central Paris shortly before midnight on
Saturday, 30 August. The Princess was taken to the La Pitie Salpetriere Hospital, where
she underwent two hours of emergency surgery before being declared dead at 0300 BST. The
Princess's companion, Mr Dodi Fayed, and the driver of the vehicle died in the accident,
whilst a bodyguard was seriously injured.
The Princess's body was subsequently repatriated to the United Kingdom in the
evening of Sunday, 31 August by a BAe 146 aircraft of the Royal Squadron. The Prince of
Wales and the Princess's elder sisters, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes,
accompanied the Princess's coffin on its return journey. Upon arrival at RAF Northolt, the
coffin, draped with a Royal Standard, was removed from the aircraft and transferred to a
waiting hearse by a bearer party from The Queen's Colour Squadron of the RAF. The Prime
Minister was among those in the reception party.
From RAF Northolt the coffin was taken to a private mortuary in London, so that
the necessary legal formalities could be completed. Shortly after midnight, it was moved
to the Chapel Royal in St James's
Palace, where it lay privately until the funeral on Saturday, 6 September, in Westminster Abbey. The Princess's
family and friends visited the Chapel to pay their respects.
Following the funeral service, the coffin then was taken by road to the family
estate at Althorp for a private interment. The Princess was buried in sanctified ground on
an island in the centre of an ornamental lake.
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