The 1 Woman Princess Diana Hated More Than Camilla Parker Bowles
The feud between Princess Diana and Camilla Parker Bowles was legendary. Though these two women were friends at first, eventually the Princess of Wales blamed Camilla for the disastrous outcome of her marriage and almost every dramatic fight that came before it. Even if it wasn’t necessarily Camilla’s fault that Prince Charles was in love with her, Princess Diana blamed her all the same.
Everyone knows about the animosity between these two. But what most royal followers may not realize is that Princess Diana didn’t believe that Prince Charles was only having an affair with Camilla Parker Bowles. In fact, there was another woman in the Prince of Wales’ life who Princess Diana may have worried about even more.
Princess Diana was jealous of her sons’ nanny
It all started when Prince Charles and Princess Diana hired Alexandra “Tiggy” Legge-Bourke to tend to young Prince William and Prince Harry. Though Diana was incredibly involved in her children’s lives, she did require help since she had such a busy schedule. Tiggy was a cheerful, motivated employee with connections to the royal family. She seemed like the perfect fit.
But Princess Diana envied how close Prince William and Prince Harry became to their energetic young caregiver. In 1993, Princess Diana and Prince Charles had just separated and Princess Diana was feeling every emotion deeply. She didn’t take too kindly to another woman becoming so close to her beloved sons.
She thought Prince Charles and Tiggy might be having an affair
Princess Diana was correct about the affair her husband Prince Charles was carrying on with Camilla Parker Bowles. But her allegations of infidelity with their children’s nanny seemed more far-fetched.
The rumors started in the late 90s when photos surfaced of Prince Charles warmly kissing Tiggy in greeting. By that point, Charles and Diana were separated, which made her far removed from the royal family’s inner circle. Princess Diana revealed to her former butler Paul Burrell that she had suspicions about Charles’ relationship with Tiggy.
Princess Diana feared foul play
In Princess Diana’s mind, things between Prince Charles and Tiggy were so serious that she thought the pair might have her killed to make way for their marriage. During the inquest into her death, a note to Diana’s lawyer revealed that Princess Diana thought Charles might be kill her and Camilla so he could marry Tiggy instead.
“It was ludicrous but at the time, she was beleaguered and felt isolated,” a friend of Princess Diana told the Daily Mail. “Also, at the time, Charles was being encouraged to drop Camilla, and it’s easy to see how the idea of the personable Tiggy — who was single and well-connected — becoming close to the Prince could take a grip in the princess’s mind.”
Tiggy is still close with Prince William and Prince Harry
Two years after Princess Diana’s tragic death, Tiggy quit her job as royal nanny and married her childhood sweetheart, Charles Pettifer. She remained close to Prince William and Prince Harry even after she no longer got to see them every day.
For example, Prince William is a godfather to one of Tiggy’s sons and Prince Harry is godfather to another. Her son Tom was a pageboy in Prince William and Kate Middleton’s royal wedding in 2011.
In January 2018, Prince Harry went far out of his way to introduce his new fiancé Meghan Markle to Tiggy, one of the most beloved people in his life. Though Prince Charles probably never had an affair with the young woman, it’s clear Princess Diana was right to believe that both her sons were very close to their childhood nanny.
