Princess Diana Had A Revenge Dress Moment Long Before The One We All Know

Princess Diana wearing a strapless black taffeta dress designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel, attends a fundraising concert and reception at Goldsmiths Hall in aid of The Royal Opera House on March 9, 1981 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Anwar Hussein/Getty Images)

Before she was the People’s Princess, a young Diana Spencer was known as a bit of a wallflower. “Shy Di” was even the monicker U.S. Vogue published upon news of her engagement to Prince Charles in 1981. In fact, it was this very modesty that reportedly gained her favour with the Queen Mother.

As time went on, though, the late royal would go on to shed her girlish reticence and become one of the most beloved and powerful women in the world. One way we saw this unfold was in her sartorial risk-taking, where the princess would often buck against the system and make statements through her wardrobe choices.

It’s the iconic ‘Revenge Dress’ that first springs to mind when we think of this. From its snug fit and hiked asymmetrical hem to its shoulder-baring neckline, the Christina Stambolian-designed LBD was a headline-grabbing outfit that Diana chose to wear in 1994—specifically, on the night that her recently separated husband, Prince Charles, sat for a TV interview about infidelity.

Princess Diana (1961 – 1997) arriving at the Serpentine Gallery, London, in a gown by Christina Stambolian, June 1994. (Photo by Jayne Fincher/Getty Images)

But before this legendary moment of fashion rebellion, another equally daring dress came before it. In turn, heralding a new era that would redirect the course of Princess Diana’s style legacy.

As noted by Vogue, Diana’s mother, Frances Shand Kydd, had taken it upon herself to dress her daughter in the early days of her courtship with Prince Charles, resulting in a revolving door of frumpy floral dresses and matronly blouses. Aside from an infatuation with another woman, insiders also reported that Charles struggled to view his bride in a serious light, even referring to her as a “child”. And in all fairness, he wasn’t too far off, considering their 12-year age gap. Despite getting engaged when Diana was 20 and Charles was 32, the princess felt her soon-to-be husband’s attention eluded her.

After a fated introduction to the Emanuels—the brains behind her wedding dress—though, the winsome royal became determined to shake things up.

Having tasked the designers to make her an outfit for her first public date with her fiancé in London, the story goes that Diana arrived at the studio only to spy a dress that singer Alvin Stardust’s wife, Liza Goddard, had worn to a charity event.

“It felt so different to anything she’d worn before,” Elizabeth Emanuel recalled of the gown, which was controversially strapless with a plunging heart-shaped bodice. “She looked so grown up, like a movie star, and she loved the idea of breaking the mould.”

9th March 1981: Prince Charles and his fiancee Lady Diana Spencer (1961 – 1997) attend their first public engagement together, a recital at London’s Goldsmith’s Hall in aid of the Royal Opera House Development Appeal. (Photo by Central Press/Getty Images)

Black is famously avoided by royals but paired with bold jewels and patent pumps, the look was undeniably more sensual than anything she had worn before, which was exactly the point.

“They all got frightfully excited,” Diana told Andrew Morton about her appearance that evening. And the bold choice of attire was reportedly not lost on Prince Charles, either.

Prince Charles and his fiancee Lady Diana Spencer (1961 – 1997) attend their first public engagement together, a recital at London’s Goldsmith’s Hall in aid of the Royal Opera House Development Appeal, London, UK, 9th March 1981; Diana wears a low-cut Emmanuel evening gown. (Photo by Terry Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Hulton Royals Collection/Getty Images)

The marriage didn’t last, but the significance of this dress will definitely go the distance.