Prince William's touching Mother’s Day tribute to Princess Diana showcases new bittersweet family tradition

Prince William marked UK Mother’s Day this year by sharing a previously unseen photograph of himself as a two-year-old alongside Princess Diana in the picturesque gardens of Highgrove House. Surrounded by wildflowers, including poppies which are traditionally a symbol of remembrance, this was a deeply personal snap.

In his message, the Prince of Wales said he was "remembering [his] mother, today and every day" and thinking of those who are remembering someone they love on Mother’s Day. It was a poignant and sensitive caption, acknowledging that this day can be difficult for many people.

This was also the Waleses’ only post and whilst it was special for William’s tribute to Princess Diana to have the moment it deserves, it could be seen as bittersweet in another way too. It seems that the Prince and Princess of Wales have started a new tradition of honouring mothers without involving Kate directly in pictures or videos.

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Back in 2024 when she was undergoing cancer treatment but before she’d made her diagnosis public, her Mother’s Day photo with George, Charlotte and Louis was heavily scrutinised. Kate later issued an apology saying, "Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day."

Given how much she was going through behind the scenes at the time, this attention was likely especially hard. The next year in 2025 her Mother’s Day post celebrated Mother Nature and now Prince William has shared one for his own mum.

Up until 2024 the Mother’s Day posts had generally either been tributes to Princess Diana and Carole and Kate or just the Princess of Wales herself. Now perhaps the future Queen just prefers to stay out of the spotlight entirely on this day.

It was such a huge and internationally-discussed moment two years ago that it might have taken the shine off the idea of posting with her children for the occasion. Instead, she’s free to enjoy the day privately with her kids and she and Prince William can still post on Mother’s Day, but in recognition of their own mums or Mother Nature without this level of scrutiny.

The last time Princess Diana appeared in the family’s Mother’s Day pictures was back in 2020 when they shared a selection of snaps of each of their mothers and Kate herself. A year later their caption revealed that Prince George, Charlotte and Louis write Mother’s Day cards addressed to their late grandmother for their dad.

"Each year on Mother’s Day, George, Charlotte and Louis make cards remembering their Granny, Diana, for William," they stated. "Whatever your circumstances, we are thinking of you this Mother’s Day."

This is such a sweet tradition and a lovely way to ensure she remains part of the children’s lives. Whilst some fans might be a little sad not to see Kate represented in some way in this year’s post, it was a beautiful tribute to Diana. The picture is understood to have been from the family’s private collection and was taken back in 1984.