Diana at the Taj Mahal

Posted on by S.Za.

The Story Behind Princess Diana's Iconic 1992 Taj Mahal Photo

Photo by Tim Graham for Getty

.

It was more symbolic than anything. During her trip to India with Prince Charles in 1992, Lady Diana is pictured alone at the Taj Mahal. On a bench in front of the greatest monument to love, the Princess of Wales was photographed alone.

The rumours of marital trouble between the couple were not new. Since the birth of their second child, the couple had been distant. In 1987, Diana didn’t go Charles to Balmoral, leading press speculations about a “Royal break.” The following year, Vanity Fair wrote: “She was the love object of everyone in the world except her husband.”

By early 1992, Charles was in a full-fledged affair with his former girlfriend Camilla Parker Bowles and Diana knew all about it. When their official tour of India began in February – just days before Valentine’s Day – the world’s press was eagerly watching. One photographer asked royal press secretary Dickie Arbiter if he could get a shot of the couple kissing. Arbiter laughed. “We’re not going to get anything like that.” Charles did attempt, but Diana brushed him off by turning her head, resulting in a very awkward photo of him kissing the side of her neck.

The royal couple kept conflicting schedules, but the press thought they would visit the Taj Mahal together. Instead, Prince Charles remained in meetings and Diana went to the monument alone.

She sat on a bench (now affectionately known as Lady Di’s Chair) for photos. When asked by a reporter about her visit, she replied, “It was a fascinating experience – very healing.” When pressed for more, she smiled and simply said, “Work it out for yourself.” The photograph shifted the public sympathy from the stoic prince to seemingly vulnerable princess. 

For the couple, it would get worst in the following months. In May, Andrew Morton published Diana: Her True Story, a tell-all of the collapse of their marriage. (Secretly, Diana had cooperated with Morton, giving him audio recordings). By their November official trip to South Korea, the couple looked so miserable that the press dubbed them “the Glums.” Before the year was out, they would be separated.

atOptions = { ‘key’ : ‘c2c53b72bd0b7868918b53757d390660’, ‘format’ : ‘iframe’, ‘height’ : 90, ‘width’ : 728, ‘params’ : {} }; document.write(”);

34 thoughts on “Diana at the Taj Mahal”

  3. Diana and I were born in the same year and I felt so much for her and now I’m 48 and she never reached it, I am going to be there at the Taj mahal in a few weeks and seem to follow in her footsteps threw broken marriages, I am going to sit were she sat and have my picture taken. As far as we are concerned Di was our Queen and always will be. I’m an Australian and proud of it…Thanks for the memories Di, you were the best xx

  4. Good luck having a photo like this taken. Just remember there will be about a million other people in the shot, trying to do the same thing! The Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays -perhaps that’s when Princess Diana was there.

    1. They close the Taj to regular tourists when there is a visiting dignitary – it is also closed on Fridays. Keep this in mind as when we were there we heard of a lady who arrived on Thursay arvo and a US Dignitary arriving on the Saturday – she missed out!!

  6. The Iconic photo as it is called was actually quite manufactured, that bench was not there prior to dianas’ visit in 1992, i was there in 1990 & 1991 and where the bench is in these photos was actually bushes, so to call it iconic and suggest that people always sat there is rubbish, given the fact that for the previous 439 years there was not even a seat!

    1. no one suggested that people always sat there or that it had been there before. it is iconic because it became a metaphor for her failing marriage (alone in front of a monument to love – get it?), not because it’s some old bench that has been put there by the original construction workers to have lunch breaks on.

  8. […] At the time we reckoned our tushes were warming the exact bench on which Princess Diana was photographed in 1992 during a state visit to India while her marriage to Charles was in a state of collapse. (They separated later the same year.) After researching for this post, I’m afraid it was the wrong bench. The one behind Hubby’s head appears to be more accurate. You can check for yourself here. […]

  17. […] companions taken at the Taj. Striking poignant poses , sitting on whats come to be known as ‘Lady Di’s chair’ named after Princess Diana ( sitting alone) ! Our guide told us of Shah Jehans plans to build a replica of the Taj adjacent to the current […]

  23. […] companions taken at the Taj. Striking poignant poses , sitting on whats come to be known as ‘Lady Di’s chair’ named after Princess Diana ( sitting alone) ! Our guide told us of Shah Jehans plans to build a replica of the Taj adjacent to the current […]

  26. I was born three years after lady Di died but while reading about her I got to know that she was not only beautiful from outside but also beautiful from inside .She did so much for the people ,she had helped so many
    people but unfortunately led a tragic death.

  28. […] It was simply breath-taking and the structure looked divine with its white marble gleaming against the clear blue sky. Slowly, as if waking up from a slumber, I began the touristy ritual of taking photographs from all angle. Moving ahead I saw people were lined up to get their photos taken on the famous Princess Diana bench. […]

  30. ge superstarGetty Images6Mbappe and Radamel Falcao have formed a deadly partnership in Ligue 1AS Monaco fans take over Manchester City centre ahead of Champions League tieThe Sun.

Leave a Reply