Princess Diana never got to meet her grandchildren. Prince William and Kate Middleton’s three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, are all still living in the UK. In contrast, Prince Harry and Meghan, along with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, reside in the US.
However, even though the “people’s princess” never met her grandchildren, her legacy remains very much alive. Additionally, fans have noticed striking similarities in the children’s mannerisms and appearance, which are reminiscent of those of Diana. Meanwhile, William has shared tearjerking stories about how well her children know their grandmother.
Prince William and Prince Harry lost their mother, Princess Diana, when they were only teenagers. The Princess of Wales passed away following a tragic car accident in Paris in 1997, leaving her two children without a mother. The world grieved as Diana was laid to rest.
Now, almost 20 years later, no one has forgotten the beloved princess. Meanwhile, her grandchildren are growing up quickly, with the eldest, Prince George, set to become king in the future.
Princess Lilibet, 4, is still very young, which makes it hard to see if she bears any resemblance to Diana. However, William and Kate’s daughter, Princess Charlotte, who turned ten in May, has already left fans baffled by the traits she shares with her late grandmother.
One of the most distinctive expressions Diana featured was looking up through her eyelashes with a slightly tilted head. For many, it gave the impression that she was shy, and it became known as the “Spencer Stare.” It became somewhat of a signature look for Diana, and it appeared as if Princess Charlotte is continuing the tradition.
Princess Charlotte shares “Spencer Stare” with grandma Princess Diana
Social media users have noticed that the 10-year-old has inherited her jawline and “Spencer Stare”. One wrote on TikTok, “William, Charlotte, and Diana all have the same eye shape, with William even sharing Diana’s eye colour.”
One picture taken at King Charles’ coronation had eagle-eyed fans seeing the “Spencer Stare” in Charlotte. One commented, “The little princess looks so much like her grandmother Diana, beautiful as ever.”
Prince William loved his mother, and even though his children never got to meet their grandmother, he has made sure to tell his children as much as possible about her. In a 2017 documentary, the Prince of Wales revealed how he often tells his children about Diana as a ‘bedtime story.’
“We’ve got more photos up around the house now of her (Diana), and we talk about her a bit and stuff,” William said. “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 or Charlotte to bed, talk about her and just try and remind them that there are two grandmothers, there were two grandmothers in their lives, and so it’s important that they know who she was and that she existed.”
Charlotte wrote emotional Mother’s Day card to Diana
In 2021, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis all wrote Mother’s Day cards to their late grandmother, Princess Diana.
“Each year on Mother’s Day, George, Charlotte and Louis make cards remembering their Granny, Diana, for William,” William and Kate wrote on Twitter, alongside three adorable homemade cards created by the youngsters.
In 2023, William and Kate once again took the opportunity to share their children’s lovely Mother’s Day cards. It wasn’t only their mother that Princess Charlotte and her siblings decided to honor, but also Princess Diana.
“Dear Granny Diana, I am thinking of you on mother’s day,” Charlotte wrote in her card. “I love you very much. Papa is missing you. Lots of love, Charlotte”.
Meanwhile, George wrote: “Dear granny Diana, Happy happy Mother’s Day. I love you very much and think of you always, sending lots of love from George.”
Prince Louis was only two years of age at the time and created a cart with a heart and some animals, all of which had been stuck onto the Mother’s Day card.
Besides talking about Diana to his children, Prince William also mirrors some of his mother’s own parenting skills, including addressing complex topics such as homelessness to his children.
How Prince William keeps her mother’s legacy alive through his children
William is trying to give his children as much love as Princess Diana gave him. The fact that he and his wife, Kate Middleton, are trying to raise Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis as normally as possible has been seen as one of the key ways in which they want to modernize the monarchy.
Just as the Prince and Princess of Wales do today, Diana felt it was essential that her children understood the harsh realities of the world beyond Buckingham Palace walls.
William now wants to teach his children that not everyone is as fortunate as they are. Speaking with the Sunday Times, he revealed he wants George, Charlotte, and Louis to know that “some of us need a helping hand.”
Diana took him and Harry to a homeless shelter when they were young, and the future king intends to do the same with his children.
“My mother introduced me to the cause of homelessness from quite a young age, and I’m really glad she did,” William explained. “I think when I can balance it with their schooling, they will definitely be exposed to it. On the school run, we talk about what we see. When we were in London, driving backwards and forwards, we regularly used to see people sitting outside supermarkets and we’d talk about it.”
He continued: “I’d say to the children, ‘Why are they there? What’s going on?’ I think it’s in all our interests, it’s the right thing to do, to expose the children, at the right stage, in the right dialogue, so they have an understanding.”
“An understanding of normal life”
Royal expert Katie Nicholl explained to OK! that she finds it fitting that Prince William is passing on his mother’s values.
“It wasn’t just Diana – Charles also wanted his sons to have a better understanding of life outside the Palace walls,” she said. “They both came from the same perspective of wanting to raise those boys with an understanding of normal life outside the confines of royal protocol.”
“William and Kate’s children are probably more aware of homelessness than most children from privileged backgrounds, because it’s something their father campaigns passionately for and has done since he was 18. I think their eyes have been quite wide open from an early age – and that is largely because of William and Kate’s hard work,” she added.
What’s your best memory of Princess Diana? Please share it in the comment section!
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