Prince William and Prince Harry’s Uncle Robert Fellowes, Brother-in-Law of Princess Diana, Dies at 82

Fellowes was married to Diana’s sister Jane and served as private secretary to Queen Elizabeth

Robert Fellowes, the uncle of Prince William and Prince Harry and brother-in-law to their mother, the late Princess Diana, has died. He was 82.

His obituary published on July 31 in The Times said that he died on July 29 of undisclosed causes. Fellowes married Princess Diana’s elder sister, Lady Jane Spencer, in 1978, and their brother Charles Spencer shared his condolences when the obituary was released.

“My absolutely exceptional brother-in-law, Robert, is no longer with us,” the 9th Earl Spencer wrote on X on July 31, sharing the Times tribute.

“A total gentleman – in all the best meanings of that word – he was a man of humor, wisdom & utter integrity. I’m deeply proud to have been his brother-in-law,” he added.
Fellowes’ father William was the longtime land agent of Sandringham, the British royal family’s estate in Norfolk, and he was born there in 1941. After studying at Eton and serving in the Scots Guards, he joined the royal household and rose through the ranks. Fellowes began working for Queen Elizabeth in 1977, starting as an assistant private secretary before being promoted to deputy private secretary in 1986 and private secretary in 1990.

He helped the Queen navigate turbulent times in the 1990s including the 1992 fire that ravaged Windsor Castle, the divorces of three of her children the same year, Diana’s death in 1997 and public scrutiny of the monarchy during that period.

After the 1992 Windsor Castle fire and proposal for the crown to foot the refurbishment bill, Fellowes also suggested that Queen Elizabeth and the future King Charles pay tax on their private incomes at the time.

He also was key in helping the Queen draft a speech after she received criticism for remaining at Balmoral Castle after Princess Diana’s death, in which she memorably addressed the nation as “your Queen, and as a grandmother.”

Fellowed also reportedly backed the decision to have representatives from Princess Diana’s charities walk behind her coffin instead of soldiers, honoring her philanthropic legacy.

Fellowes resigned from his post as private secretary after eight years and became the chairman of Barclays Private Bank before becoming privy counselor and chair of the Prison Reform Trust.

He is survived by his wife Jane and their three children, Laura, Alexander and Eleanor. In other family ties, Fellowes is a maternal cousin of Sarah Ferguson and Laura is a godmother of Princess Charlotte.