Princess Diana's nieces wished they’d spent 'more time with her' before late royal's tragic passing
The Princess of Wales passed away in 1997 from injuries she sustained in a Paris car crash
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Princess Diana’s twin nieces Lady Amelia and Lady Eliza Spencer are opening up about their "precious memories" of their late aunt.
The twins, 29, who are the daughters of Diana’s younger brother Earl Charles Spencer, 57, have moved to London from South Africa. On Monday, they revealed to HELLO! Magazine how Diana has remained close to their hearts.
The Princess of Wales passed away in 1997 from injuries she sustained in a Paris car crash. She was 36.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Sadly, we were very young when she passed away, we were only five," Eliza told the outlet.
"Of course, I would have loved to have been able to spend more time with her," she shared. "I do have some special memories of her. I can’t explain why, but they’ve stuck very clearly in my mind."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Diana's neices Amelia Spencer and Eliza Spencer at the 10th Anniversary Memorial Service For Diana, Princess of Wales at Guards Chapel at Wellington Barracks on August 31, 2007 in London, England. (Photo by Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)
According to the outlet, the sisters grew up in South Africa but spent significant time in the U.K. after their parents split and Charles moved back to Althorp, the family’s estate.
Spencer and their mother Victoria Aitken, a fashion model, were married from 1989 until 1997.
The twins have pursued their own modeling careers and are signed to Storm Management.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We can’t wait to see what the future holds," said Amelia. "I’ve always imagined I’d end up in the U.K., it just took a little longer than I’d planned. We’re thrilled to finally be here. For me, this is where my future is."
"Whenever we go, our sibling bond is unbreakable," chimed Eliza. "The future is bright and this is only the beginning."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, is the younger brother of Princess Diana. (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Charles Sabine )
Back in January, the sisters described how Diana left a lasting mark on them.
"We always just knew her as our aunt," Eliza told Tatler’s March 2021 issue. "Growing up in South Africa, I really had very little idea of how significant she was in the world until I was much older."
Eliza described Diana as "incredibly warm, maternal and loving."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"She always made an effort to connect with us as children and had a talent for reading children’s hearts," Eliza added.
And the mother of Princes William and Harry was protective of her nieces. Eliza recalled the time when she and her sister were approached by a photographer during a beach outing with their aunt.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Princess Diana would have turned 60 on July 1. (Jayne Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty Image)
"Obviously it could have been quite terrifying for us, being so young and not understanding what was happening," Eliza explained. "But she turned it into a game of who could get us back to the car first. It was amazing how she protected us in a way that made us feel safe and not frightened. We had no idea what she was doing at the time."
"As a child, I realized the enormity of the loss for my father and family," Eliza continued. "It was only later that I came to understand the significance of the loss of her as a figure in the world."
On June 1, which would have been Diana’s 60th birthday, her sons Prince William and Prince Harry unveiled a statue honoring their mother in the Sunken Garden at London’s Kensington Palace, a place the princess once found solace.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The sculpture, which shows a larger-than-life Diana surrounded by three children, was commissioned by the brothers in 2017. The style of her dress is meant to evoke the final period of her life when she gained confidence in her humanitarian work.
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Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (L) and Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex unveil a statue of their mother, Princess Diana at The Sunken Garden in Kensington Palace, London on July 1, 2021, which would have been her 60th birthday. (Photo by DOMINIC LIPINSKI/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
"Today, on what would have been our mother’s 60th birthday, we remember her love, strength and character – qualities that made her a force for good around the world, changing countless lives for the better," William, 39, and Harry, 36, said in a joint statement. "Every day, we wish she were still with us, and our hope is that this statue will be seen forever as a symbol of her life and her legacy."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.