31 August 2023 , 05:59
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Prince William once made his mum Princess Diana cry when he made her a devastating promise a year before she died.
The Prince of Wales, who was just 14 at the time, vowed to give his beloved mum her title back. Diana was stripped of Her Royal Highness after her divorce from King Charles.
After marrying Charles in a fairytale royal wedding at St Paul's Cathedral in 1981, Diana became HRH The Princess of Wales. But in 1996, almost a year after she infamously said there were "three of us" in her marriage to Charles, in reference to his love for Camilla in the tell-all BBC Panorama interview, the pair divorced - and Diana said goodbye to her HRH.
Charles reportedly insisted she be rid of her titles, despite the Queen being happy for Diana to keep them (Getty Images)Charles reportedly insisted she be rid of her titles, despite the Queen being happy for Diana to keep them as she was the mother of the future King. She was then only known as Diana, Princess of Wales.
The loss meant that friends and staff no longer had to bow or curtsey to her, but she would have to curtsey to her ex husband and sons, as well as other members of the Firm. This led to a heartbreaking conversation between Diana and a then 14-year-old Prince William.
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In his book 'A Royal Duty', Diana’s butler and friend Paul Burrell claimed William promised to restore her title. The young prince reportedly told his mum: "Don’t worry Mummy, I will give it back to you one day when I am King."
Mr Burrell claims the conversation left Diana in tears. However, William’s promise was sadly left unfulfilled as his mother died in a car crash almost exactly a year to the day of the divorce, on August 31, 1997. Her companion Dodi Fayed also died.
Today marks 25 years since her death, which changed the royals forever. The mourning prompted soul-searching among members of the House of Windsor. They set about to better understand why Diana’s death had prompted such an overwhelming spectacle, said Sally Bedell Smith, a historian and author of “Diana in Search of Herself.’’
“I think her legacy was something that the queen in her wisdom (sought) to adapt in the early years after her death,’’ Smith said of focus groups and studies the monarchy used to grasp Diana’s appeal. “The queen was more likely to interact with people, and I think you see the informality magnified now, particularly with William and Kate,” she said.
William and Kate have made improving mental health services a main goal, even discussing their own struggles publicly. Harry is also a champion for wounded military veterans. And while outrage continued to pour following Diana's death, Charles' reputation plunged.
Only in recent years following his marriage to Camilla and accession to the throne has he managed to rebuild this, but it appears the royals still have more to learn. The Firm continues to struggle with the fallout following Prince Andrew's links to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Then, there's Meghan and Harry's decision to step down as working royals for a new life in California. Meghan said she felt constrained by palace life and her mental health suffered in the months after her marriage to Harry.
Despite Diana's struggles, she was firm in the way she wished to be remembered: "I’d like to be a queen of people’s hearts, in people’s hearts, but I don’t see myself being queen of this country. I don’t think many people will want me to be queen.”