On July 29, 1981, millions of viewers around the globe tuned in to watch a real-life fairytale unfold as Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles.
But behind the massive silk dress with its 25-foot train, a historic cathedral, and the wave of royal celebration lay a quiet wave of tension. Just hours before making her way to the altar, the 20-year-old bride made a decision not to wear a gift from her soon-to-be husband. Her decision foreshadowed the heartbreaking reality of their marriage before it even began.
As revealed in Andrew Morton's tell-all book, Diana: Her True Story, Prince Charles gave Diana a signet ring engraved with the Prince of Wales feathers the night before they said, "I do."
The meaning behind the gesture wasn't lost on Diana. Taking on the role of Princess of Wales meant stepping into line and putting her husband's royal duties first.
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Diana shared her story with Morton. “[Charles] sent me a very nice signet ring the night before to Clarence House, with the Prince of Wales feathers on and a very nice card that said: ‘I’m so proud of you and when you come up I’ll be there at the altar for you tomorrow. Just look ’em in the eye and knock ’em dead.'”
However, when she left Clarence House to enter the royal carriage with her father, John Spencer, the ring stayed behind. The Prince of Wales' gold signet ring is engraved with a crown, feather, and the phrase “ich dien,” which translates to “I serve.”
Jayne Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty ImagesReportedly, she didn't wear it because she was unsure about their union, even hours before walking down the aisle. She had learned, just a short time earlier, that Charles refused to give up his friendship with his former lover, Camilla Parker Bowles, after their marriage.
Diana knew Charles had previously dated Camilla. Her reported breaking point came just two weeks before the wedding, when Diana walked into the office of Charles’s secretary and opened a package that was delivered to his desk.
Inside was a custom gold bracelet engraved with the letters "F" and "G"—short for "Fred" and "Gladys," the secret nicknames Charles and Camilla used for one another, according to The Sun. According to Diana's account for Morton, the discovery left her completely devastated.
The author said that event, coupled with wedding jitters, led Diana to feel a sense of doom before her wedding day. He shared her thoughts just before saying "I do."
“The night before the wedding, I was very calm, deathly calm," Diana explained. "I felt I was the lamb to the slaughter. I knew it, and I couldn’t do anything about it.”
These feelings were eerily depicted in Season 4 of the Netflix series, The Crown.
Diana would wear the ring and off throughout her marriage to then-Prince Charles, which ended in 1996. After welcoming two children, sons Prince William and Prince Harry, the couple officially separated in 1992.
Princess Diana died in a tragic car accident in Paris, France, in August 1997. She was 36.
Related: Princess Diana’s Wedding Gift Gets Dramatic Makeover by Camilla Parker Bowles
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