The Special Garden At Kensington Palace Dedicated To The Memory Of Princess Diana

duchess of cambridge garden rain

Prince William, Prince Harry and Catherine braved the wet and windy weather yeaterday to mark the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana's death at her former home, Kensington Palace.

William and Harry visited the beautiful memorial that has been created to honour their mother in the grounds of the Palace. They celebrated Diana's life and incredible legacy watched by members of the general public who had also come to pay their respects.

"They will be joined by The Duchess and visit The Sunken Garden which has been transformed into a White Garden dedicated to The Princess" Kensington Palace announced.

Marking the 20 years that have passed since Princess Diana's untimely death, the Palace garden has been transformed in Diana's honour, featuring flowers and foliage that reflect Diana's life and pay homage to her style and work.

(The Princess Diana garden at Kensington Palace in full bloom in the Spring)

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, along with Prince Harry, spent time talking to Gardener Sean Harkin who designed the wonderful space, and Graham Dillamore who knew Princess Diana from his time working at Kensington Palace over 30 years ago.

The green fingered Palace employee has revealed that former gardeners who worked for the royals during Princess Diana's time as a resident of Kensington Palace have told him stories of Diana's love for the grounds around her home.

He said: "Kensington Palace was the home of Princess Diana for 15 years and there's gardeners who aren't here any more but remember, and told me stories, about when they were working here in the Sunken Garden.

"And they remember Princess Diana coming by and she would stop and she would admire the changing floral displays in the garden."

"She would stop and she would have a chat with the gardeners and comment on all their hard work."

Over the summer months, 12,000 different white flowers including tulips, daffodils and scented hyacinths have bloomed in the beautiful garden. The colour is a tribute to Diana, both as a symbol of peace and hope, and because white was a favourite colour of the Princess. The flowers are inspired by her famous ‘Elivs dress' and other notable gowns that Diana wore at royal occasions which were often white.

(The Catherine Walker ivory silk crepe evening dress and jacket which the Princess called her "Elvis Dress")

There is also a flower named after the late Princess in the garden - the Tulipa Diana. Prince William and Prince Harry will be shown this flower when they visit the garden, as well as the other flowers that have been planted as they were their mother's favourites.

At the special memorial event to be held in the garden, Prince William and Harry, as well as the Duchess of Cambridge, met with representatives from charities supported by Princess Diana. Kensington Palace says that they aim to "celebrate Diana's life and work" during the gathering.

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After meeting representatives of the many charities that Princess Diana supported in her lifetime, including Centrepoint, Child Bereavement UK and Landmine activists, William and Harry also surprised members of the public by performing an impromptu ‘walkabout' and meeting those that had gathered to wish them well on the anniversary of their mother's death.

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In scenes reminiscent of 1997, Prince William and Prince Harry took a moment to pause and look at the flowers and cards that had been left at the Kensington Palace gate in memory of their mother.

They also greeted members of the public waiting to see them, and thanked those who made the journey to Kensington Palace.

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The public can view the garden, which will be at it's best until late September, from a public walkway accessed from Kensington Gardens.