Princess Diana Feared "Assassination," Claims Bodyguard in New Book

When Princess Diana married the heir to the throne, Prince Charles, in 1981, she became one of the most beloved public figures in the world. However, when she split ways with her husband in 1992, reportedly as a result of his affair with his now wife, Camilla, and eventually divorced him in 1996, things changed dramatically for her, culminating in the 1997 car crash that would take her life. Over the years there has been great speculation over that crash, with some people believing that the Princess was murdered. According to one expert, Diana herself feared that herself. 

Lee Sansum, a bodyguard who once protected Princess Diana and recently published an ebook titled The Bodyguard, told The Sun when hired to watch over her and her partner, Dodi Fayed, in 1996 in Saint Tropez, that the Princess would wake up and chat with him daily at 7 am. "She had been happy on that holiday," he said. 

However, she wasn't always happy. "But I had seen her in tears too, when she learned of the murder of her friend, the fashion designer Gianni Versace. She confided in me her own fears that she might one day be assassinated," he continued. "She asked if I thought his murder outside his home was a professional killing."

"I thought it was. Then she said something that always stayed with me — 'Do you think they'll do that to me?' She was shaking and it was clear from her tone that she really thought that they might, whoever 'they' might be," he said. "I spent some time reassuring her that no one was going to try to kill her and she was safe with us, but she definitely thought there was a risk that one day she might be assassinated."

Her brother, Earl Spencer, also confirmed that the late Diana, Princess of Wales, was concerned about her security, convinced that her phone was bugged and she was being spied on. "I think part of what happened after she left the Royal Family is that she began to feel quite exposed because, of course, for years, she was used to having this protective presence around her. She did feel that her phones were being tapped, things like that. She was being spied on," he said in a press conference. 

Paul Burrell, her former butler, also alleges that Princess Diana penned a letter about her fear of being a target. During his appearance on the I'm a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! reality show, he said: "Her words were, 'These next few months are the most difficult months of my life. I fear my husband is going to kill me. In an automobile accident with head injuries. In order that he can remarry.'" Prince Charles has vehemently denied these claims.