Diana's enduring legacy
25 ways the Princess of Wales changed the Royal Family
It’s hard to believe, but this week marks 25 years since Diana, Princess of Wales died on August 31, 1997. A quarter of a century later, we’re still watching documentaries, reading books and making movies about the People’s Princess.
To honour this anniversary, Kerry compiled 25 ways the princess changed the Royal Family, for The Sunday Telegraph. Here’s why Diana’s impact has lasted:
She made it normal to grieve openly
When Diana died, there was an outpouring of grief of a type never seen before – with the gates of Kensington and Buckingham Palace becoming a sea of flowers. The era of the stiff upper lip, as William later said, was over.She cuddled children
Considering the Queen only did the first walkabout in 1970, it was a big leap when Diana started cuddling children on her public outings, a decade later.…and got down to their level
Diana crouched down to talk to children, sharing personal information with them and making them feel special. Catherine continues to do this.She took off her gloves
It sounds silly now, but Diana dispensed with gloves, so she could touch people properly. Gloves, and formality, would become a thing of the past.She embraced AIDS patients
When Diana touched and hugged AIDS patients in the late 1980s, it was radical, but she knew the power she had to change public perception.Diana championed causes others would not
She also campaigned for homeless and mine-clearing charities, literally walking through a mine-field in Angola for the Halo Trust. William and Harry continue to work with these charities.She showed William and Harry real life
Diana was keen her sons see all sides of life and took them to meet AIDS patients and homeless people, off camera. It had a profound effect on both.She made it OK to talk about mental health
Diana was extremely open, even about her bulimia. It paved the way for William and Harry to start their Heads Together mental health initiative and share their emotional journeys.Her death made the Queen break protocol
One of the most symbolic changes came when the force of public opinion made the Queen lower the flag to half-mast over Buckingham Palace, breaking protocol, but moving with the times.…and show emotion
It also forced a shocked Queen to make a much more emotional speech than she had ever done, saying, “What I say to you now, as your Queen and as a grandmother, I say from my heart.”Her legacy lives on through the wives
At the time much was made of Diana being technically a “commoner”, yet she was aristocratic compared to the women her sons married – Catherine, whose mum Carole was an air hostess and Meghan, a Hollywood actress.She took the royals to America
Diana brought rock-star qualities with her when she visited the US and it paved the way for William and Catherine’s rapturous reception in Hollywood in 2011 and later Harry and Meghan.And she considered moving there
Diana loved the USA so much, her butler Paul Burrell said she wanted to move there. Harry did just that.Harry continues her complicated relationship with the press
Diana courted press, often tipping off columnists about her whereabouts, but was also tormented by it. This complex relationship continues with Harry.She started new wedding vows
Does any bride vow to “obey” their husband anymore? That’s thanks to Diana, who was seen as modern for refusing to say it when she wed Charles in 1981.She was a hands-on mum
Diana was pictured splashing in the pool with her sons, or taking them to amusement parks. She parented in a loving, modern way and every royal mother who followed, did the same.She picked nearby schools
While the Queen had been home-tutored and Philip packed off Charles, Andrew and Edward to Gordonstoun in Scotland, Diana chose Ludgrove Prep, then Eton, near Windsor, where she visited regularly.William and Catherine chose even more egalitarian schools
Diana’s thoughts on schooling were taken further by William and Catherine, who chose London day school Thomas’s Battersea for George and Charlotte, followed by Lambrook School in Berkshire.She flew with her babies
Unlike the Queen, who left baby Charles at home when she travelled, Diana took infant William with her on their Australian tour in 1983. William and Catherine did the same with George in 2014.She ‘wrote’ that book
Diana was determined to get her voice heard in Andrew Morton’s seminal book Diana: Her True Story, in 1992. Thirty years later, Harry is about to do the same with his autobiography.The Queen became much more fun
Diana would never have believed the Queen would one day agree to “skydive” into the Olympic Stadium, or take tea with Paddington.She set a fashion template
While the young Elizabeth and Princess Margaret were all glamour in their day, model-like Diana was a fashion phenomenon, her clothes selling out and starting trends. This continued with Catherine, and Meghan.She was down-to-earth
Diana wasn’t afraid to show her silly side, messing about with Fergie on the ski slopes, for example. William and Catherine are also regularly playful in public.She was philanthropic
Diana didn’t just attend events to raise awareness, she sold her gowns for charity in 1997 in New York. Both Catherine and Meghan have also launched charity initiatives to raise money.She planned to make documentaries
Before her death, Diana was excited to be starting to make documentaries, her first being on illiteracy. Harry and Meghan continued this vision.
Take a Diana pilgrimage
If this inspires you to re-visit the places dear to Diana’s heart, this week’s sister newsletter The British Travel List is all about Diana sites worth visiting, from Kensington Palace and beyond. Here’s what to put on your list:
Kensington Palace
Everyone should put Kensington Palace on their London must-do list, as it’s such a lovely place to visit. You can tour the State Apartments and see the exhibition, Life Through a Royal Lens, as well as the new statue of Diana in the Sunken Garden. To book, visit www.hrp.org.uk
Princess Diana Memorial Walk, Fountain and Playground
The memorial fountain built to honour Diana is in neighbouring Hyde Park, near the Serpentine. For more information, click here. Nearer to Kensington Palace is the Diana Memorial Playground, which is enjoyed by one million children every year. See details here. Super-fans can take the seven-mile Diana Memorial Walk, following a trail of markers that take you past Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, St James’s Palace and Spencer House. Download the map here.
Buckingham Palace
Only open in the summer, the working hub of the Royal Family is a fascinating place to tour. You can even take afternoon tea in the restaurant overlooking the vast gardens. This summer it includes the special Platinum Jubilee: The Queen’s Accession exhibition. To book, click here.
St Paul’s Cathedral
One of London’s most famous landmarks, it was, of course, also where Charles and Diana wed in 1981. You can’t walk up the steps outside of Sir Christopher Wren’s masterpiece and not think of 20-year-old Diana in her puff-sleeved Emanuel gown giving a glance back over her shoulder. For info on St Paul’s click here.
Althorp Estate
Diana’s childhood home and final resting place is Althorp Estate, near Northampton. You can tour the house every summer and see inside the home of Charles, Earl Spencer, Diana’s brother. There is a Diana memorial, but her grave is not accessible to the public. For tickets, click here.
Coleherne Court
Perhaps the nicest landmark is where Diana was the happiest – in her first flat in Coleherne Court, Old Brompton Road. Diana lived here with three friends before she got engaged and described her time there as full of laughter. Last year a blue English Heritage plaque was placed on the building to commemorate her home.
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