"Thirty-two years after Diana, Princess of Wales, took her young son William to a homeless shelter to learn about having empathy for those who don’t have a home, he took his own son there.
But as Prince William and Prince George helped make lunch at The Passage in London the other day, William was doing more than introducing his 12-year-old son to one of his main philanthropic pursuits.
He was continuing George’s cautious but deliberate introduction to the public side of his life ahead, while also offering a reminder of the influence Diana had on his own upbringing.
“We’re seeing a great deal of emphasis on continuity, as Prince William had previously visited The Passage with Diana, Princess of Wales, and had volunteered there as a child,” Toronto-based royal author and historian Carolyn Harris said in an interview.
She said that along with the family tradition of public outreach, that visit just before Christmas also offered a reminder of Diana’s influence over William.
His younger brother, Prince Harry, “has spoken so often about Diana’s influence on him that sometimes in the popular imagination, William becomes very associated with [their father] King Charles, because he is the future King and Harry, who is going his own way, has become associated with Diana,” said Harris.
“But this is a subtle reminder that Diana had a profound influence on William as well and his approach to public service.”
George being gradually introduced to public duty at a young age did not start with Diana introducing William and Harry to public duty when they were George's age. The future Queen Mary was helping her mother, Mary Adelaide, with clothing drives at that age, and the late Queen Mother started helping her mother with various charities when she was even younger than George is now. The late Queen and her sister regularly accompanied their parents on Royal engagements, as did Charles and his siblings. Diana was just the latest one.
I think that George is getting an updated version of participation in public occasions. From what I see, and that is only via the media of course, he is interacting with the people person to person rather than behaving more formally and remotely as a visiting royal.
Royals have always acted person to person. Diana just had better publicity, that's all. I absolutely applaud the way George is being introduced to public duties, but I get irritated by Diana's name being dragged up all the time. It's understandable--somewhat--in this instance, but it's still important to note Diana wasn't the first "hands on" Royal.
Very true. In ye olde days of yore, royal ladies would take soup and bread and hand it out to starving peasants. Kings would send emissaries on horseback to visit areas of devastation and report back. They would appear at festivals and celebrations and join in the merriment. The pr machine was rudimentary, but it was churning on wooden wheels. Diana did not invent the hospital visit, but she looked good doing it and photos of her sold, making money for the publications and the photographers. And she mastered press manipulation while the internet was expanding, giving her a platform the BP pr machine had not yet mastered.