Charles Spencer has shared a poignant tribute to his mother, Frances Shand Kydd, on what would have been her 90th birthday. Taking to Instagram on Tuesday, Princess Diana’s brother, 61, who lives at Althorp House in Northamptonshire, recalled "all the joy" Frances had brought to the world in an emotional post.
A black-and-white photo showed Frances, who passed away aged 68 in 2004 following a long illness, enjoying time at a beach whilst wearing a stylish head scarf and striped top. It was taken by Charles’s father, John, when Frances was "young and happy" and "looking glamorous in a very understated way", according to Earl Spencer's post.
In a caption, Charles recalled how his mother "died far too young" and how, during her lifetime, she tragically attended the funerals of two of her children: Diana and her older brother, John Spencer, who died shortly after he was born in 1960.
The Earl wrote: "I gave the eulogy at her funeral - recalling all the joy she brought and gave; as well as reflecting on the terrible ordeal she had to endure, burying two of her children. During her last years she found great comfort after converting to Roman Catholicism. Until her health gave out she would help take very unwell children on pilgrimage to Lourdes."
"My mother’s was a home birth in Park House, on the Sandringham estate, where we also grew up," he added. "Coincidentally on the very same day she was born - 20 January 1936 - King George V died, 1 mile away, in Sandringham House."
Seeing the resemblance
As they paid tribute to Frances, royal fans also noted that she bore a striking resemblance to her daughter, Princess Diana, who died following a car crash in Paris in 1997. One person wrote: "I see so much of Diana… Two beautiful women."
A second added: "Happy 90th birthday in heaven A beautiful woman. Her eyes and gentle strength were so clearly reflected in Diana. So much like Princess Di… the way she looks and a bit of her smile. Just like Princess Diana, she had a kind heart."
Family history: Diana and the Spencer family
Diana was born on 1 July 1961 at Park House in Sandringham, the youngest daughter of John Spencer, Viscount Althorp and his first wife, Frances.
She had two older sisters, Jane and Sarah, and a younger brother Charles. When Diana was six, her parents decided to divorce, leading to a bitter dispute over custody won by her father. At 14, her father became the eighth Earl Spencer and the Spencers moved to the family seat. He later married Raine, the Countess of Dartmouth, in 1976.
The Spencers were close to the royal family and the then-Prince Charles previously dated Diana's older sister, Sarah. He was said to take a serious interest in Diana herself from the summer of 1980, when she was 19 and he was 31.
Charles proposed in February 1981, with Diana displaying her stunning 18-carat sapphire engagement ring to the press, which is now worn by Kate, the Princess of Wales. Charles and Diana married on 29 July, 1981, at St Paul's Cathedral.