The Politics Of Sharing Pictures Of Prince Harry and William At Princess Diana’s Funeral Is Complicated

Some may wish to support the brothers, but posting pictures of grieving children on the worst day of their lives feels uncomfortable.

Princess Diana with William and Harry

by Georgia Aspinall |
Updated on

Today, a statue of Princess Diana was unveiled in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace. In commemoration of what would have been Diana’s 60th birthday, Prince William and Harry both paid tribute to their mother at the event.

The private memorial has seen all UK media banned apart from the Press Association and one TV operator. Despite that, all eyes still appear to be on William and Harry. According to reports, the last time they met in person was at Prince Phillip’s funeral in April where they are thought to have had cross words. The brothers were expected to arrive together, with Kate Middleton, according to The Mirror, but have planned separate entrances and speeches.

In talking about Prince Harry and William’s experience, their shared trauma and the way their relationship has drifted in recent years – it’s clear from social commentary that people want to see them reunited. They also want to look to the past, often sharing the picture of Prince Harry and William at their mothers funeral in 1997.

It’s an emotional image, one that’s clearly stuck in peoples mind. At least, it appears so according to Google searches. ‘How old were William and Harry when Diana died’ is a breakout search term on Google today, as well as ‘How old was Diana when she died’. Diana was only 36 years old when she died, making Prince William aged 15 and Prince Harry aged 12.

From the picture, you can see the three-year age gap between the brothers quite brazenly with William often looking over an emotional Harry. But what you can also see is that they are just two children, grieving their mother on what must be the most haunting day of their lives. When you note this, it raises an important question about the pictures of that day: Should we actually be sharing them?

Should Harry and William be confronted by pictures of the worst day of their lives over and over?

The politics of memorials and tributes are often complex, particularly when people want to show support for grieving family members in particular. But when it comes to the royals, so often people remove empathy or relatability from them and share the images they are the most intrigued by.

Actually, Prince Harry and William are still just two sons that lost their mother, should they be confronted by the same harrowing pictures of the worst day of their lives again and again? When the choice is between paying tribute to their mother, or posting a picture of them as grieving children – usually joined by commentary on how their relationship has changed and it’s ‘Not what Diana would want’ – is that really supportive? Or even appropriate?

They might not have an emotional reaction to seeing those pictures, they might not note people sharing them at all – but it’s still worth practising empathy when discussing the death of such a beloved woman, that still has two sons clearly incredibly affected (if not traumatised) by her untimely death.

So, before posting the pictures of Prince Harry and William at Princess Diana’s funeral today, perhaps it’s time we all think twice about how best to pay respect to Diana and her children.

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