Lady Diana Spencer decided to make a major change on her wedding day to Prince Charles in July 1981 as rumours swirled around his relationship with Camilla Shand

Prince Charles and Princess Diana waving to crowds on their wedding day from the steps of St Paul's Cathedral

Diana and Charles were married on 29 July 1981 (
Image: Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Princess Diana broke with royal tradition on her wedding day to Prince Charles amid concerns she had over his relationship with Camilla.

The Queen, Princess Margaret and Princess Anne were part of a long line of royal brides who promised to “obey” their husbands in their wedding vows, as prescribed in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer dating from 1662. But the then-Lady Diana Spencer instead said in the ceremony at St. Paul’s Cathedral that she would ”love him, comfort him, honour and keep him, in sickness and in health’.’ Prince Charles and his fiancée were said to have held ”very serious” discussions on the point with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Robert Runcie, The New York Times reported at the time.

Dr Edward Carpenter, the Dean of Westminster Abbey said in an interview that he was ”absolutely delighted” by the royal couple’s decision, adding: ”Marriage is the kind of relationship where there should be two equal partners, and if there is going to be a dominant partner, it won’t be settled by this oath. ‘I think this is much more Christian.”

The decision was controversial at the time and other royal brides who followed did vow obedience when they married into the royal family, including Sarah Ferguson and Sophie Rhys-Jones in 1986 and 1999, respectively. But both Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle followed Diana’s lead and kept “obey” out of their wedding vows.

Diana’s concerns about Camilla were revealed by journalist Andrew Morton. The late Princess recorded tapes for Morton, transcripts of which he later published in 1992’s Diana: Her True Story. In those tapes, Diana recalled her growing suspicion that Charles and Camilla were still having an emotional affair having reportedly discovered a personalised bracelet that Charles had bought for Camilla shortly before the wedding.

The Princess said she wanted to call off the wedding but that her sisters talked her out of it, and claimed that on their honeymoon, Charles wore cufflinks that Camilla had gifted him. Diana’s updated wedding vows weren’t the only surprising aspect of the nuptials, which took place on 29th July 1981. The nervous 20-year-old bride famously got Prince Charles’ name wrong while reciting her vows, calling him Philip Charles Arthur George rather than Charles Philip Arthur George.

The marriage was not a success. The couple – who welcomed Prince William in June 1982 followed by Prince Harry in September 1984- separated in 1992, soon after the breakdown of their relationship became public knowledge. Their marital difficulties were widely publicised, and Charles and Diana divorced in 1996.