Prince Charles and Princess Diana have agreed to separate but have no plans to divorce, Prime Minister John Major said Wednesday, confirming years of speculation of a royal romance gone sour.
"This decision has been reached amicably, and they will both continue to participate fully in the upbringing of their children," Major said, reading a statement issued by Buckingham Palace.Because there will be no divorce, he said Diana remains eligible to be crowned queen once Charles takes the throne. The couple will continue to appear together in public from time to time, he added.
The decision was the latest development in what Queen Elizabeth II recently confessed was a horrible year. Her daughter Anne was divorced; her son Andrew separated from his wife, Sarah, who later was photographed in a topless romp with her American "financial adviser;" and the queen's home at Windsor Castle was devastated by fire Nov. 20.
"The queen and the Duke of Edinburgh (Prince Philip), though saddened, understand and sympathize with the difficulties that have led to this decision. Her majesty and his royal highness particularly hope that the intrusions into the privacy of the prince and the princess may now cease," Major said.
Charles and Diana wanted the announcement to be made before their sons returned to boarding school after the Christmas holidays, Major's aides said.
Royal affairs rarely intrude into the House of Commons. It was 56 years ago, on Dec. 11, 1936, that the speaker of the House of Commons read to the hushed chamber King Edward VIII's announcement that he was abdicating the throne so he could marry Wallis Simpson, a divorced American.
The romance of Charles, the serious-minded prince, and Diana Spencer, the bashful kindergarten teacher, captured the world's attention, and their marriage at St. Paul's Cathedral on July 29, 1981, was a global television spectacular.
Diana bore two sons - William in 1982 and Henry in 1984 - and became the public's darling as she matured into a confident spokeswoman for compassionate causes.
Recent opinion polls found the public overwhelmingly sided with Diana in the couple's presumed marital problems.
Charles, 44, and Diana, 31, appeared together Monday night at the Royal Variety Show but were not seen speaking to each other. They made separate public appearances Wednesday.
The announcement came four days before Princess Anne, 42, was to take 37-year-old naval Cmdr. Timothy Laurence as her second husband.
Throughout the year, Charles and Diana made unwanted headlines about their marital troubles, but speculation became feverish after the publication in June of "Diana: Her True Story," by Andrew Morton. The book claimed Diana had been in such despair over the marriage that she attempted suicide.
In August, The Sun newspaper published transcripts of what appeared to be a telephone conversation between Diana and longtime friend James Gilbey, who called her "Squidgy" and told her many times that he loved her.
A four-day visit to Korea in November provided the tabloids with a stream of pictures of Charles and Diana looking glum and awkward. When Diana returned to London, she issued an extraordinary statement denying there was any rift between her and her in-laws, but she said nothing about the marriage.
Later, the Daily Mirror reported it had heard a tape recording of Charles having an affectionate telephone conversation with Camilla Parker Bowles, an old girlfriend.