Fifteen years after the magical scenes from their royal wedding gripped the world, Princess Diana and King Charles finalised their divorce in August 1996. At the time Prince William was 14 years old and Prince Harry only 11 and Diana’s oldest son was determined to comfort her after she lost a prestigious royal honour.
Even though she and Charles were no longer married, she was known as Diana, Princess of Wales but she didn’t keep her HRH style. After seeing his mother’s “distress” over this, William apparently stepped in.
Referencing this moment in Catherine & Diana, royal expert Ingrid Seward writes, “She didn’t have her HRH style, but former royal butler Paul Burrell recalled the moment when William, seeing his mother’s distress, offered the only reassurance he could: ‘Don’t worry, Mummy, I will give it back to you one day when I am king.”
(Image credit: Photo by Manuela DUPONT/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
The author suggests that the “innocence” of the teenager’s words “undid” Princess Diana in that moment. She allegedly “wept, knowing the gesture was both loving and futile”. It’s a promise that Prince William has tragically never been able to keep, as his mother died just over a year later.
His thoughtfulness clearly meant a lot to Diana in the aftermath of her divorce and losing her HRH style, though it’s also something William could actually have done for her. The monarch can remove or bestow HRH style, like King Charles did by signing Letters Patent to strip Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s last year.
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So Prince William could have given his mother’s HRH style back to her when he ascended the throne and fulfilled his teenage promise. Whether the Princess would’ve wanted this at that point, we’ll never know, but her brother Earl Spencer alleges he turned down Queen Elizabeth’s offer to restore it after her death.
(Image credit: Photo by Jeff Overs/BBC News & Current Affairs via Getty Images)
In his controversial memoir, Swan Song, Charles Spencer describes the moment he was informed about this and writes, “She had been dreadfully hurt by the removal of that title as she exited her marriage. It had seemed so petty and vindictive. While she was no longer to be married to one future king, she would always be mother to another.”
After thinking about it, he says he “knew in [his] bones” how his sister would see “this posthumous award” and turned it down. The Earl later claims he “had no doubt that the consolation prize was hollow, however well-meaning the Queen’s gesture”. In his view, it should never have been removed so shouldn’t have needed to be offered.
Prince William hasn’t publicly commented on his uncle’s book, though Buckingham Palace released a statement ahead of its release, declaring, “His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss.”
There are, of course, many royals who either don’t have or use an HRH title, including Prince Harry and Meghan who gave up using theirs in 2020. Prince William could also still technically restore his mother’s HRH style in the future, though after so many years since his promise, he might find other ways to honour her instead when he’s King.
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Prince William
Princess Diana