It’s been more than 20 years since Princess Diana’s death, but her memory lives on through her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry; their wives, Duchess Kate and Meghan Markle; and even their children, Diana’s five grandchildren.
Harry and William shared memories of their famous mom in the 2017 HBO documentary Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy. “To myself and William, she was just the best mother ever,” Harry said. “She would just engulf you and squeeze you as tight as possible — and being as short as I was then, there was no escape, you were there and you were there for as long as she wanted to hold you.”
“Even talking about it now, I can feel the hugs she used to give us,” he added. “I miss that. I miss that feeling, I miss that part of a family, I miss having that mother to be able to give you those hugs and give you that compassion that I think everybody needs.”
As he and Harry looked at old photos of the Princess of Wales, who died at age 36 in a car accident in Paris on August 31, 1997, William explained that he and Kate talk about Diana with their kids, Prince George, Prince Charlotte and Prince Louis. “We’ve got more photos up around the house of her, and we talk about her a bit and stuff,” he said. “And it’s hard because obviously Catherine didn’t know her, so she cannot really provide that level of detail. So I do regularly, putting George and Charlotte to bed, talk about her, and just try to remind them that there are two grandmothers — there were two grandmothers in their lives. And it’s important they know who she was and that she existed.”
In July 2021, the brothers honored their mother with a statue that they commissioned as a tribute. “Today, on what would have been our mother’s 60th birthday, we remember her love, strength and character – qualities that made her a force for good around the world, changing countless lives for the better,” they said in a joint statement at the unveiling. “Every day, we wish she were still with us, and our hope is that this statue will be seen forever as a symbol of her life and her legacy.”
William later praised his mother’s legacy on what would have been her 61st birthday. “I believe there’s no better way to celebrate her life and work than through recognizing incredible people who dedicate so much time and effort to helping those around them,” he wrote in a letter to the recipients of the Diana Award in July 2022.
Harry, for his part, thanked people for keeping his mother’s “voice alive” in his own recorded message. “Today, we’re reflecting on what would have been my mother’s 61st birthday. And this year is also 25 years since her passing. There isn’t a day during the past two and half decades where I haven’t thought about the mark she left not only on me and my brother, but on all of our lives,” he added at the time.
Scroll down to how the royals have honored Diana in the past:
William proposed to Kate with Diana’s 18-carat sapphire and diamond engagement ring from Prince Charles in October 2010. “This was my way of making sure that my mother didn’t miss out on today,” he told reporters the following month as the couple announced their happy news. Shutterstock
Diana broke from royal tradition when she and Charles took William on a visit to Australia when he was 9 months old, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge followed suit in 2014 by taking 8-month-old Prince George with them to Australia and New Zealand. Rob Griffith/AP/Shutterstock
After William and Kate welcomed Princess Charlotte in May 2015, they announced that their second-born’s full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, a sweet nod to the young girl’s late grandmother. Duchess of Cambridge/Shutterstock
In Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy, William and Harry reminisced about their mom. “Our mother was a total kid, through and through,” Harry said. “When everybody says to me, ‘So she was fun, give us an example,’ all I can hear is her laugh in my head. That sort of crazy laugh of where there was just pure happiness shown on her face.” Jayne Fincher/courtesy of HBO
William followed in his mother’s footsteps in 2007 when he became president of the Royal Marsden Hospital in Chelsea, a position Diana previously held. He toured the hospital in January 2018, watching as doctors operated on a patient with an adenoid cystic carcinoma. Shutterstock
At Harry and Meghan’s May 2018 wedding, the guests sang “Guide Me, O Thy Great Redeemer,” the same hymn that was sung at Diana’s 1997 funeral and at William and Kate’s 2011 wedding. Harry appeared to get choked up during the touching moment. Gareth Fuller/AP/Shutterstock
Harry and Meghan included Diana’s sisters, Lady Jane Fellowes and Lady Sarah McCorquodale, in the July 2019 christening of the royal couple’s son, Archie. In the official christening portrait, they’re standing to the left of William. Chris Allerton/Shutterstock
Kate also honored her late mother-in-law at Archie’s christening, wearing the same Collingwood pearl earrings that Diana wore to Harry’s 1984 christening. Chris Allerton/Shutterstock; Norman Parkinson Camera Press / Mirrorpix/Newscom/The Mega Agency
Harry and Meghan shared a photo of Archie’s feet on Mother’s Day 2019, with forget-me-nots, Diana’s favorite flower, visible in the background. Meghan also included forget-me-nots in her wedding bouquet. Courtesy of Sussex Royal/Instagram
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex shared a Princess Diana quote about random acts of kindness on their official Instagram account in August 2019. “Words have the power to inspire,” the couple added in their caption. Courtesy of Sussex Royal/Instagram
Meghan and Harry announced their second pregnancy on Valentine’s Day in February 2021, the same day that Diana revealed that she was pregnant with Harry 37 years ago. Shutterstock
While she and Harry sat down for their first televised interview since their shocking royal exit, Meghan gave a touching nod to her late mother-in-law. The Duchess of Sussex wore a diamond tennis bracelet from Diana's collection during the March 2021 sit-down. Harry previously removed two stones from the same piece of jewelry to make Meghan's engagement ring. YouTube
William and Kate shared a message of love and support to all celebrating Mother’s Day in the U.K. in March 2021, revealing how their children honor their late grandmother, Diana, each year. “For those experiencing bereavement, today may be particularly challenging,” the couple wrote on the Kensington Palace Instagram page. “Each year on Mother’s Day, George, Charlotte and Louis make cards remembering their Granny, Diana, for William. Whatever your circumstances, we are thinking of you this Mother’s Day.” The family also shared photos of George, Charlotte and Louis’ handmade cards for Diana, including a touching message from Charlotte that read: “I am thinking of you on Mother’s Day. I love you very much. Papa is missing you.” Harry, who was at home in California with his wife Meghan and their son, Archie, during the English holiday, made sure to honor his mother as well. The former military pilot arranged for flowers to be laid at Diana’s grave on the Spencer family estate in Althorp in Northamptonshire, England, a royal source confirmed to Us Weekly. Courtesy of Kensington Royal/Instagram; Inset: James Whatling / MEGA
Harry and Meghan’s daughter’s middle name is Diana. “Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet. Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honor her beloved late grandmother, The Princess of Wales,” the couple said in a statement in June 2021. Dominic Lipinski/WPA Pool/Getty Images
William and Harry commissioned a statue of their late mother in 2017, attending the unveiling four years later. "Today, on what would have been our mother’s 60th birthday, we remember her love, strength and character – qualities that made her a force for good around the world, changing countless lives for the better,” the brothers wrote in a joint statement in July 2021. "Every day, we wish she were still with us, and our hope is that this statue will be seen forever as a symbol of her life and her legacy Thank you to Ian Rank-Broadley, Pip Morrison and their teams for their outstanding work, to the friends and donors who helped make this happen, and to all those around the world who keep our mother’s memory alive.” Dominic Lipinski/AP/Shutterstock
While discussing her children's book The Bench with NPR in June 2021, Meghan pointed out that there were a few special Easter eggs hidden in the illustrations. "I think you can find sweet little moments that we've tucked in there," she said. "From my favorite flower, even my husband's mom's favorite flower, forget-me-nots, we wanted to make sure they were included in there. There's a lot of special detail and love that went into that book." Shutterstock
During an April 2022 interview with the Today show, Harry revealed that he has photos of Diana in his and Meghan's California home that he points to when speaking to Archie about his late grandmother. “I don’t tell him all the stuff that happened, but certainly, ‘This is Grandma Diana,’" he explained. “For me, [her presence is] constant. It has been over the last two years — more so than ever before.” The BetterUp CIO went on to say that he feels like his mother has been "watching over" him in his early years of parenthood. "It’s almost as though she’s done her bit with with my brother and now she’s very much back to helping me," he explained. "Got him set up, now she’s helping me set up. That’s what it feels like, you know? He has his kids. I’ve got my kids. You know, circumstances are obviously different. But I feel her presence in almost everything that I do now." Shutterstock; Tim Rooke/Shutterstock
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