Princess Diana and Princess Margaret's turbulent relationship has been revealed

The complicated relationship between Lady Diana and Princess Margaret has been detailed in a new book by royal biographer Andrew Morton. 

• Princess Diana's complex relationship with Princess Margaret has been revealed in a new royal book 
• Princess Margaret initially welcomed her niece-in-law into the Royal Family but began to resent Diana following her separation from Prince Charles in 1992 
• In other royal news, the Queen is a vision of Spring as she makes her first public appearance in five months.
  

Princess Diana and Princess Margaret's relationship has historically been outshined by the Queen's alleged disdain for the young royal – until now. 

Elizabeth and Margaret: The Intimate World of the Windsor Sisters explores the fascinating private lives of the Queen and her younger sister, taking an in-depth look at their differing responses to Princess Diana’s highly-publicized addition to the family in 1981. 

According to author Andrew Morton, Diana viewed her aunt-in-law as far more than a distant relative. 

Margaret was instrumental in helping the then 20-year-old to adjust to the unfamiliar territory of royal life, staying close to her in the early days inside the ‘Firm’. “Margaret did her bit...to make Diana feel at home, taking her to the theater, joining her for social events, taking her shopping, and essentially showing her the ropes,” Morton reveals. 

Unlike her sister, Margaret was known a ‘party princess’ in her early years, having reveled in many of the hallmarks of ordinary youth - drinking, smoking, and dancing. With her fondness for pleasure and disdain for rigidity, she was more relatable to the young Diana than many of the other senior royals. Margaret reportedly took her under her wing after her honeymoon, helping her to ‘navigate the social nuances of the Balmoral summer holiday with the rest of the clan.’

This kindness didn’t go unnoticed. Diana gushed about Margaret to Morton, revealing, “I’ve always adored Margo. I love her to bits, and she has been wonderful to me from day one.”

As a naïve newcomer to the Royal Family, the Princess of Wales was regularly protected by her aunt. When the Queen expressed frustration at Diana’s struggle to embrace her role, Margaret urged her to be patient. "'Let her do what she likes,' said Margaret, feeling that her sister was being too black and white. 'Leave her alone and she will be alright,'" Morton writes. 

However, this compassion was severed in 1992 when it became clear that Prince Charles and Diana’s marriage was on the rocks. 

Margaret fled to the Queen’s side to support her as she grieved the separation, which was followed shortly after by the collapse of her daughter Anne’s marriage. The double blow was exacerbated by the destruction of her childhood home, Windsor Castle. The royal residence had been struck by a terrible fire caused by a faulty spotlight, resulting in $47.5 million worth of damage. 

“She retreated to Royal Lodge and spent the weekend with Margaret and her mother, almost inconsolable,” says Morton. 

Margaret became particularly protective of her sister during this painful time, revoking any loyalties she once held for Diana. She went on to completely cut her off following her BBC Panorama interview with Martin Bashir in 1995, in which Diana divulged a number of damning details about her experience inside the Royal Family. Margaret sent a scathing letter to Diana to express her fury at the supposed betrayal, before erasing any memories of the ‘People’s Princess’ from her home. 

“Margaret was angry and upset, so much that after the interview she threw out every magazine with Diana’s picture on the cover,” said Morton. The royal author also claims that Margaret burned all Diana’s letters to her mother, in an attempt to completely wipe her from the family's history. 

The warm feelings she once held for Diana never returned. 

When the Princess of Wales died in a tragic car crash in 1997, royal fans were quick to note Margaret's distinctively cold reaction. As she waited at Buckingham Palace for the gun carriage carrying Diana’s body, Margaret was apparently chatting to the Queen about renovating the toilets at Kensington Palace. She also seemed unmoved when the funeral cortege passed her, offering a mere nod of the head in respect of the late princess. This blatant lack of emotion was likely a reflection of her belief that Diana abandoned and humiliated the royal family following her interview, leaving them to pick up the pieces in her absence.