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Diana touches hearts, 9 years on

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LONDON, England -- Devoted admirers of Princess Diana laid flowers at the gates of her former home on Thursday, the ninth anniversary of her death in a car crash in Paris.

"England's Rose," "Queen of Hearts" and "The Only Queen We Wanted," read some fo the of the many messages on view.

"I loved Diana and I come here every year," said Kathleen Edmonds, 62, one of the first to arrive outside Kensington Palace.

"She was a nice person and I think there was a conspiracy because people used her.

"I think more needs to be done to remember her. There needs to be a statue of her or something," Edmonds told the UK's Press Association.

Some Diana fans came dressed head to toe in the colours of the Union Flag and tied bunting to the palace railings, PA reported.

Diana, 36, her boyfriend Dodi Fayed, 42, and Henri Paul, all died when their car crashed at high speed in the Pont d'Alma tunnel in the French capital.

Prayers were said for the Princess, Dodi and Princes William and Harry at a short open-air service in front of the Kensington Palace gates.

Father Frank Gelli, the former curate of St. Mary Abbots Church nearby, oversaw the annual ceremony and also included prayers for those involved in Diana's inquest.

He said: "Today Diana's memory has not faded. I don't want to say anything about the inquest which is supposed to be held at some time. This will be a difficult time for many. We also ought to pray for those whose task it is to hold the inquest."

Fr Gelli, dressed in his robes, told the 100-strong crowd that Diana was a "wonderful humanitarian."

Many of those gathered were members of the Diana Circle, who have pledged to keep her memory alive. One of the founders, Margaret Funnell, from Brighton, called for a memorial event to take place next year on the 10th anniversary of the Princess's death.

"It should be recognised as a very special day for a very special lady," she said.

Diana's sons Princes William and Harry were remembering their mother in private.

This year William, 24, was on his summer break from Sandhurst, while Harry was continuing his training at Bovington in Dorset.

The Prince of Wales was at Birkhall in Scotland with Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.

The inquest into the princess's death suffered a major setback this summer when the coroner withdrew from the case.

Michael Burgess blamed a "heavy and constant" workload for his decision and decided to pass on responsibility before Lord Stevens' report into the fatal crash became available.

Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.

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