Princess Diana was a wonderful mother to her two children, Prince William and Prince Harry. Before her tragic death in 1997, the Princess of Wales instilled in them the importance of compassion and humility by leading them by example, kept them out of the public eye as best she could, and tried to keep their undeniably unusual upbringing as normal as possible – be it with doing the school run every day to taking them to Alton Towers for a treat. In honour of Mother's Day, we have taken a look back at some of Princess Diana's most wonderful mothering moments.
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After welcoming her second son, Prince Harry, in 1984, she revealed that her two boys adored each other in a letter to a palace steward, Cyril Dickman. She wrote that William "could not stop kissing" Harry after his birth. Adding: "William adores his little brother and spends the entire time swamping Harry with an endless supply of hugs and kisses, hardly letting the parents near!" She also updated Cyril with their boarding school education a few years later, writing: "The boys are well and enjoying boarding school a lot, although Harry is constantly in trouble!"
© Photo: Getty ImagesThroughout their lives, Princess Diana kept the two boys grounded. From teaching them how to play piano at Kensington Palace to taking them to their first days at school in adorable matching red school uniforms, the philanthropist had countless duties but always had time for her children.
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She often led the boys by example by doing extensive charity work, and Prince Harry revealed that he hoped his mother would be "proud of him" after joining her Landmine charity as the patron in 2013. Prince Harry also followed in his mother's footsteps by raising awareness about AIDs. Speaking at the Durban summit, he said: "When my mother held the hand of a man dying of Aids in an east London hospital, no one would have imagined that, just over a quarter of a century later, treatment would exist that could see HIV-positive people live full, healthy, loving lives… We cannot lose a sense of urgency, because, despite all the progress we have made, HIV remains among the most pressing and urgent of global challenges - 1.1 million people died of Aids and 2.1 million were infected last year alone."
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© Photo: Getty ImagesPrince William also followed his mum's footsteps after giving a speech at the launch of the Child Bereavement Charity. He said: "Twenty-one years ago last month, my mother attended the launch of the Child Bereavement Charity. Fifteen years later, I was honoured to be invited to become Patron of Child Bereavement UK to continue my mother's commitment to a charity which is very dear to me."
