ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, July 13, 1996 TAG: 9607150073
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LONDON
THE FRACTURED FAIRY TALE ENDS with a reported $24 million ``secret'' deal. But there are royal leaks.
It's over. His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales and Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales have finally concluded a divorce deal that will rob Diana of part of her title but make Charles and his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, about $24 million lighter.
Both Charles and Diana will be free to marry again, but neither is expected to do so in the immediate future. For Charles to remarry before he becomes king would require the permission of both the queen and parliament.
With the divorce of Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, and the Duchess Sarah Ferguson in May, the end of the Charles-Diana mismatch removes from the royal cupboard the messy clutter of shattered relationships that have cracked the credibility of the royal family in the eyes of the British public.
Diana's lawyers announced the agreement Friday, just after President Nelson Mandela of South Africa left the country. The royal family did not want the deal ending the 15-year marriage to detract from Mandela's state visit.
Financial details of the agreement remain secret, and both Charles, 48, and Diana, 35, agreed not to discuss their marriage or the divorce settlement publicly.
But news reports based on royal leaks said Charles has agreed to pay Diana a cash settlement of about $23.5 million, thought to be three or four times his net worth, plus about $620,000 a year to support her staff. To make the payment, Charles must dip into the queen's pocket.
Some news reports said the settlement would pay Diana about $750,000 a year, which indicates the $23.5 million would be put into a trust fund and she could live off the interest.
Diana will lose the title ``Her Royal Highness,'' and will be known simply as Diana, the Princess of Wales. As the mother of a future king, she will remain part of the royal family, not entirely escaping the ``prison'' she has complained about.
She will be free to raise money for charities and to represent the royal family on trips abroad with the permission of the queen, which is the situation now. She will be able to travel abroad without the queen's permission only when she is vacationing. She will keep her living quarters in Kensington Palace, and her offices will be moved there from St. James Palace.
Charles and Diana will share equal access to their children, Prince William, 14, and Prince Harry, who will be 12 in September.
Lawyers will appear Monday in the family division of the High Court to begin the final proceedings that will bring the marriage to its legal end six weeks later, on Aug. 28.
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