Prince Charles’ sons walked behind their mother’s casket back in 1997. At the time, Philip told his grandsons that he would walk alongside them. In an interview recorded for broadcast after the Duke of Edinburgh’s death, Princess Anne spoke about her father’s decision to walk with Harry and William. She told ITV News, “I seem to remember him saying that in fact, it was a question of, ‘If you’ll do it, I’ll do it.’ And that was him as a grandfather saying to them, ‘If you want me to be there, if that’s what you want to do and if you want me to be there, I will be there.’” During the documentary Diana, 7 Days, William called walking behind his mother’s coffin “one of the hardest things” he’s ever done. Meanwhile, Harry told Newsweek in 2017 that he didn’t “think any child should be asked to do that, under any circumstances.” Though he later admitted to BBC that looking back on it, he was glad to be a part of the day. Like at their mother’s funeral over 20 years ago, William and Harry were separated as they followed their grandfather’s coffin on April 17. Peter Phillips, the Queen’s eldest grandchild, separated Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle’s husbands as they walked in the procession through the grounds of Windsor Castle. Although the Duke of Sussex told Oprah Winfrey earlier this year that his and William’s relationship is “space at the moment,” HELLO! reported that Diana’s sons did not walk next to each other during the procession due to “protocol.” Next, Prince Philip’s Life in Pictures: Celebrating the Duke of Edinburgh
