Princess Diana's Relative, the Duke of Marlborough, Denies Strangling His Wife 3 Times By Janine Henni and Simon Perry

A relative of the late Princess Diana has denied strangling his estranged wife on three separate occasions.

On Jan. 5, Charles James Spencer-Churchill appeared at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court and indicated not guilty pleas to strangling his wife, Edla Marlborough, on three occasions between November 2022 and January 2024, The Guardian reported.

Spencer-Churchill, 70, is the Duke of Marlborough, a distant relative of Princess Diana through her Spencer side of the family. He is also the first cousin, three times removed, of former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.

While appearing in court on Monday, the Duke of Marlborough listed his address as Blenheim Palace, his family’s ancestral estate in Woodstock and where Churchill was born, and indicated that he would not plead guilty.

According to the BBC, Spencer-Churchill is accused of striking Edla several times before squeezing his hands around her neck on November 13, 2022. The court heard that this happened following an argument in the garden of their home.

On April 23, 2023, he allegedly grabbed her hair, punched her and grabbed her neck, an attack that purportedly happened after Edla ran into a laundry room.

Months later, on Jan. 29, 2024, Spencer-Churchill allegedly grabbed his wife “tightly around the neck” before throwing her onto a bed.

The aristocrat indicated that he would not plead guilty to three counts of intentional strangulation, BBC said. He was released on bail and due to appear at Oxford Crown Court on Feb. 5.

PEOPLE has reached out to Spencer-Churchill’s rep for comment.

Can’t get enough of PEOPLE’s Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more! 

Spencer-Churchill married Welsh ceramicist Edla Griffiths, his second wife, in 2002, Sky News reported. The pair share two children, daughter Lady Araminta Spencer-Churchill, 18, and Lord Caspar Spencer-Churchill, 16. 

Charles became the 12th Duke of Marlborough when his father died in 2014, and the outlet said that his family calls him Jamie. The Duke is also called Jamie Blandford, in a nod to his former Marquess of Blandford title.

According to Sky News, Spencer-Churchill and Edla separated in 2024.

In December 2025, the Thames Valley Police confirmed to PEOPLE that the Duke was charged with three counts of intentional strangulation after allegedly attacking someone three times over the course of 18 months. The update came after his arrest in May 2024.