* Spring 1982: Bettmann/Corbis HRH, THE PRINCESS OF WALES En español | Diana posed for this portrait to commemorate her upcoming 21st birthday. At the time of the photo she was a newlywed

bride, pregnant with her first child, Prince William, who arrived on June 21, 1982. 1 of 19 * Feb. 24, 1981: Tim Graham/Getty Images ONCE UPON A TIME When the Lady Diana Spencer and Charles,

the Prince of Wales, became engaged, the press and public gawked over Diana's 12-carat sapphire ring, which is now worn by the daughter-in-law she would never meet: Prince William’s

wife, the former Kate Middleton, aka the Duchess of Cambridge. 2 of 19 * July 29, 1981: Getty Images THE FAIRY-TALE WEDDING Diana married her prince — with both a London and worldwide

annual Braemar Gathering.  4 of 19 * July 1983: Tim Graham/Getty Images SHY DI, OR SLY DI? Visiting Canada on her 22nd birthday, Diana appears both wary and wise. Fans showered her with so

many cards and gifts that a TV reporter quipped about her husband, Charles: "The Prince’s duty was to collect the mail." 5 of 19 * July 1985: Tim Graham/Getty Images SUNNY ON A

RAINY DAY While touring Scotland’s Western Isles, a place she frequented as a child, Diana’s smile shines despite the soggy weather. 6 of 19 * November 1985: Corbis DO THE HUSTLE As the band

played a White House rendition of the Bee Gees’ “You Should Be Dancing,” Diana hit the dance floor to boogie with _Saturday Night Fever _star John Travolta. Nancy Reagan (seen on the

sidelines) had arranged for the duo to dance. 7 of 19 * April 1987: Jayne Fincher/Getty Images | April 1985: Georges De Keerle/Getty Images FASHION FOIBLES Did Diana have a secret desire to

be a drum major in a marching band, or perhaps a waiter at a five-star restaurant? It looks that way from these two — rare — fashion misses. 8 of 19 * December 1985: Tom Wargacki/WireImage

BELLE OF THE BALL Attending parties is a job requirement of being a princess. Here, Diana arrives at a banquet for the Worshipful Company of Fan Makers. (Really. It was a banquet for a

company that makes hand-held fans, particularly for royals.) 9 of 19 * June 1987: Ken Goff/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN Diana and her sister-in-law, Prince

Andrew’s wife, Sarah, the Duchess of York (ne: Sarah Ferguson, aka: Fergie), use their umbrellas to poke at Ascot-attending aristocrats. Their mother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth, was reportedly

displeased by the antics.  10 of 19 * August 1987: Reuters/Hugh Peralta /Landov FAMILY FUN With a smiling Charles watching, Diana serves as a mom chair for her sons William, 6, and Harry, 3,

during a vacation in Mallorca, Spain.  11 of 19 * January 1992: Anwar Hussein/PA Photos/Landov THE FAIRY TALE UNRAVELS By the early ’90s, the fissures in Charles and Diana’s marriage were

hard to hide. He pined for his former girlfriend (and, since 2005, wife) Camilla Parker Bowles. Diana was battling an eating disorder and is alleged to have had affairs. 12 of 19 * January

1992: Anwar Hussein/Getty Images HELPING HANDS As her marriage crumbled, Diana ventured out into the world to use her fame and influence for greater good, such as by bringing attention to

the needs of the world’s poor. She was a frequent visitor to Mother Teresa’s hospice in Calcutta, India.  13 of 19 * June 1995, January 1988, June 1994: Jayne Finher/Getty Images FASHION

FORWARD As Diana matured, so did her sense of style. Bows, stiff suits and shapeless dresses gave way to form-fitting fabrics, bare skin and plunging necklines. At 5 feet 10, the princess

was able to dress with model-worthy aplomb.  14 of 19 * November 1985: Andrew Murray/Sygma/Corbis WHO’S THAT GIRL? Among Diana’s many charms, and one that made her so relatable, was that she

regularly set aside the pomp and dressed like a regular person. Here, she leaves a London fitness club. Yes. The princess who could exercise in her own palace gym worked out among the

people.  15 of 19 * January 1997: Reuters/Juda Ngwenya DIANA, PRINCESS OF THE WORLD Divorced from Charles in August 1996, Diana reemerged as a confident, healthy, no-longer-shy Di. She ended

her connections to dozens of charities to focus on those she cared about most, including working with the Red Cross (such as in Angola, at left) to help landmine victims. 16 of 19 * June

and July 1997: AP, Jacqueline Arzt VA-VA-VOOM Freed from the confines of her marriage, the royal family and, likely, her own insecurities, Diana became a woman about town, hobnobbing with

stars and powerbrokers on both sides of the Atlantic. She dressed to impress — and be noticed. 17 of 19 * November 1990: Reuters/Corbis FOREVER YOUNG Diana looks every bit the princess she

was at a 1990 banquet honoring Japan’s emperor. We know how the story ends. On Aug. 31, 1997, soon after vacationing with William and Harry, then 15 and 12, Diana was killed in a car crash

while being  chased by paparazzi in Paris. She was 36. 18 of 19 * SEE MORE SLIDESHOWS * No Way, They're 60 Plus * 2015 TECHNOLOGY GEAR GUIDE * VOLUNTEER WITH AARP FOUNDATION EXPERIENCE

CORP MEMBER DISCOUNTS! SAVE ON TICKET 4-PACKS TO GREAT EVENTS! 19 of 19 VIDEO: PRINCESS DIANA'S ICONIC DRESSES ON SHOW FOR ANNIVERSARY - Glittering gowns, elegant suits and bold

mini-dresses worn by the late Princess Diana will go on show starting February 24, on the 20th anniversary of her death in new exhibition charting her style reign. ALSO OF INTEREST * WHY THE

WORLD IS SO EXCITED ABOUT THE ROYAL BABY * WILLIAM AND KATE'S ROYAL WEDDING * SLIDESHOW: PRINCESS DIANA'S LIFELONG LOVE OF CHILDREN * SHARE YOUR WISDOM AND EXPERIENCE — HELP A

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