On the 50th anniversary of her birth, TIME looks at Princess Diana’s life from her childhood to her years as a mother, fashion luminary and philanthropistBy Feifei Sun and Yumi Goto
Carriage Couture
In 1963, a 2-year-old Diana Frances Spencer sits in her pram at Park House, the estate where she grew up in Sandringham, Norfolk. The future princess was born at home on July 1, 1961, the daughter of Johnnie Spencer, Viscount Althorp, and Frances Ruth Burke Roche. Diana's parents had wed at Westminster Abbey in a big society wedding. They later divorced.Central Press / Hulton Archive / Getty Images
Maternal Instinct
Diana as a nanny with two kids in 1980, the year before she would marry Prince Charles.Hulton Archive / Getty Images
Paparazzi Magnet
Photographers confront Diana Spencer in London on Nov. 20, 1980. The future princess became a tabloid target with the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles, the future King of England.HFP / HFP / ZUMA Press
A Grand Departure
Diana leaves the gardens of Buckingham Palace following the announcement of her engagement to Prince Charles in 1981. Thirty years later, her son William would be photographed in an almost identical image with Kate Middleton following their nuptials. Diana's ring inspired a huge sapphire rush at the time, and when her son proposed to Kate with the same ring nearly 30 years later, the sapphire piece inspired countless knockoffs.Tim Graham / Getty Images
A Romantic Break
Diana cuddles with Charles as he takes a pause from a polo match in 1981.To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Diana Spencer's birth, LIFE has assembled a celebratory chronicle of her too short yet vibrant time in the public eye. You can get a copy of LIFE's Diana at 50 here.PATRICK LICHFIELD
The People’s Very Shy Princess
Already displaying her legendarily shy charm, Diana has her hand kissed by a schoolboy during a visit to Cheltenham.Hulton-Deutsch Collection / CORBIS
Black-Tie Affair
Lady Diana and Prince Charles attend their first official event as an engaged couple in 1981. The duo attended a charity gala at Goldsmith's Hall in London.Press Association / AP Images
Wedding Party
Under the Queen's watchful eye, Diana talks to bridesmaids Clementine Hambro, Sarah Jane Gaselee, India Hicks and Sarah Chatto on her wedding day.To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Diana Spencer's birth, LIFE has assembled a celebratory chronicle of her too short yet vibrant time in the public eye.You can get a copy of LIFE's Diana at 50 here.PATRICK LICHFIELD
Wedding of the Century
In 1981, Lady Diana Spencer marries Prince Charles at London's St. Paul's Cathedral in an elaborate gown with a 25-ft. (7.6 m) train. On April 29, 2011, her son William married Kate Middleton at Westminster Abbey, where the bride wore a much less intricate dress, designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen.Quadrillion / CORBIS
Picture-Perfect
An official wedding portrait from Charles and Diana's ceremony in 1981. Approximately 750 million people watched their wedding globally, making it one of the most viewed television events ever.PATRICK LICHFIELD
Fairy-Tale Ride
The newlyweds ride a carriage across Westminster Bridge after their wedding ceremony on July 29, 1981. Although her future daughter-in-law Kate Middleton arrived to her 2011 nuptials in a car, she maintained tradition by leaving Westminster Abbey in a carriage.Bettmann / CORBIS
Sitting Pretty
Diana, 2, rests in a chair in her home in 1963.Keystone / Getty Images
Scotland Escape
The newlyweds pose by a river during their 1981 honeymoon in Deeside.Quadrillion / CORBIS
Gibraltar Getaway
Diana wears a Donald Campbell outfit on the first day of her 1981 honeymoon cruise.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Victorian Flair
Diana wears a plaid blouse with a high collar while watching the Braemar games in Scotland in 1981.Bob Thomas / Popperfoto / Getty Images
Vision in White
Diana poses on Ayres Rock during a 1983 royal tour of Australia. Her striking modern looks were a departure for the royal family.Penny Tweedie / Corbis
Princess in Profile
Diana wears a fuchsia Jasper Conran suit to a charity event in 1984.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Big, Bold ’80s Style
Princess Anne, Princess Diana and the Queen Mother attend the premiere of A Passage to India in voluminous ball gowns in 1985. From the beginning, Diana reportedly had a frosty relationship with the Queen Mother's daughter Queen Elizabeth II, which continued after her divorce from Charles in 1996.Hulton-Deutsch Collection / CORBIS
Mother Diana
In April 1983, Diana and Charles pose with Prince William during his first official photo shoot.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Tiny Dancer
The prince and princess take to the dance floor in the early 1980s. Diana accessorized her blue dress with a bold jeweled headband.Corbis
Seemingly in Love
Diana kisses Charles after presenting him with a polo prize in Cirencester in 1985.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Cycling Crew
The royal family ride bikes while vacationing in the Scilly Isles in Britain in 1989.AP
Toddler Strut
A 3-year-old Diana walks around with a pram inside her Park House residence in 1964.Central Press / Hulton Archive / Getty Images
Mom and Harry
Diana watches over her younger son Harry on Necker Island during a 1989 vacation.Patrick Durand / Sygma / Corbis
Uniform Fashion
Diana stands with her sons on Harry's first day at Wetherby School in 1989.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Beloved in Britain
In 1990, Diana visits Cullompton in Devon in a Catherine Walker dress. Known as the "people's princess," Diana was hugely adored by the public.Terry Fincher / Princess Diana Archive / Getty Images
Fun in the Sun
Princes William and Harry, with friends, bury their mother under the sand while on vacation on Necker Island in April 1990. It's hard to imagine previous generations of royals allowing themselves to be buried in sand by a group of kids like this — never mind wearing a leopard-print suit.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Royal Duties
The Princess with her son during his first official engagement in Wales, in 1991.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Pure Joy
Princess Diana takes a dip while in St. Kitts in January 1992.Reuters / CORBIS
The Philanthropic Princess
Diana visits a hostel for abandoned kids in São Paulo, Brazil, in 1991. It was one of several visits with children in need. As a royal, she was known for her displays of genuine affection on charity visits, often hugging and cuddling sick children. She made news by showing up at HIV and AIDS treatment facilities and actually touching the patients — a sensational act early in the age of AIDS, especially for someone in her position.Tim Graham / Getty Images
A Not So Happy Affair
The royal couple appear at an official welcoming ceremony in Toronto in 1991. The prince's continued and oftentimes indiscreet romance with Camilla Parker-Bowles, a woman he had dated in the early 1970s, worsened his already tumultuous marriage to Diana. Parker-Bowles was also married at the time, and her husband sought a divorce after Prince Charles publicly admitted to the extramarital affair.Jayne Fincher / Princess Diana Archive / Getty Images
All Aboard
Diana with William and Harry in 1991 aboard the Maid of the Mist at Niagara Falls. While Charles was lampooned for his affair and the leaks of "Camillagate" in the British press, Diana's image as a great mother remained intact.Hans Deryk / CP / AP
Touring the Taj Mahal
In 1992, Diana wears a bright red blazer as she poses in front of the famous Indian landmark. The fact that she was photographed alone in front of a monument to eternal romantic love was reported in the press; it ginned up sympathy for her plight. The image became symbolic of her loneliness and hinted at the divorce to come.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Closeup
A snapshot of Diana circa 1965.Central Press / Getty Images
Hide and Peek
Diana and Harry peer around a corner after running away from paparazzi in 1994.BRENDAN BEIRNE / Rex Features / Everett
Candid Camera
In 1995, Diana gave a sensational interview to Martin Bashir, in which she spoke of Prince Charles' affair with Camilla Parker-Bowles and the "rampant bulimia" it caused her to develop.Corbis
Activism in Angola
Diana visits a land-mine-riddled area in Huambo, Angola, in 1997. She received wide recognition for her efforts on behalf of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.Tim Graham / Getty Images
Support System
Diana visits an HIV/AIDS patient at the London Lighthouse in 1996. Princess Di was the first royal to have contact with AIDS victims; her activism was met with disapproval from the Queen. However, Diana's willingness to embrace those suffering from the disease helped dispel early misconceptions about AIDS.Jayne Fincher / Getty Images
Caring for Kids
Diana holds a young amputee while meeting victims of land mines in Huambo, Angola, in 1997. Her charity work in this area angered many in the government — one Defense Minister even called her a "loose cannon" for wading into the issue.Reuters / Corbis
View from Saint-Tropez
In July 1997, Diana, now divorced, takes a holiday at Egyptian businessman Mohammed al Fayed's home in the south of France. That same summer, Diana began dating Mohammed's son Dodi Fayed. The relationship caused a stir because Dodi was Muslim and Diana was still a royal.Andanson-Durand / Sygma / Corbis
Suited Up
Diana soaks up the sun in Saint-Tropez in 1997.Andanson-Durand / Le Segretain / Sygma / Corbis
A Last Image
One night before her fatal accident, Diana and Dodi Fayed were captured on camera checking into the Ritz Hotel in Paris. On Aug. 31, 1997, Diana and Dodi were killed in a car crash in a Parisian road tunnel after trying to escape from hounding paparazzi. There were several conspiracy theories surrounding the death — Dodi's father even accused Prince Philip of planning the tragedy — but the accident was ultimately blamed on Diana's driver, Henri Paul, who was driving drunk.Reuters TV / Reuters / Corbis
A Final Farewell
Princess Diana is laid to rest in a funeral ceremony at Westminster Abbey on Sept. 6, 1997.Richard Wayman / Sygma / Corbis
Nation in Mourning
Tens of thousands of grieving citizens left cards, flowers and photographs outside Kensington Palace for Diana's funeral in London in September 1997.Ralf-Finn Hestoft / CORBIS
Big-Sister Embrace
In 1967, Diana plays with her brother Charles near the grounds of Park House.Hulton Archive / Getty Images
Princess Diana, 1961–97
Almost 15 years after her tragic death on Aug. 31, 1997, fascination with Diana Spencer continues, even as her sons assume the spotlight.Gemma Levine / Hulton Archive / Getty Images
A Young Athlete
Diana poses with a croquet mallet while on vacation in Itchenor, West Sussex, in 1970.Bettmann / CORBIS
Strike a Pose
Long before she became a fashion icon as the Princess of Wales, a young Diana modeled a casual outfit for this family-album portrait taken in the late 1960s.To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Diana Spencer's birth, LIFE has assembled a celebratory chronicle of her too short yet vibrant time in the public eye.You can get a copy of LIFE's Diana at 50 here.Spencer Album / Camera Press / Retna Ltd.
All in the Family
The future princess, with her parents and siblings Sarah, Jane and Charles, at home circa 1970.Keystone / Getty Images
Hat Trick
The tender 10-year-old wears a black hat during vacation in Itchenor, West Sussex, in 1971.Central Press / Getty Images
