Princess Diana reportedly rejected these alternative names for the two sons she shares with Prince Charles, per a new story published by People Magazine .
The princes’ names that were handpicked by the late Princess of Wales were William and Henry. Yes, Prince Harry’s real name is Henry and his nickname is Harry. Harry is the name the prince has formally been known by since he was a young boy. In the Andrew Morton book, Diana: Her True Story, it was revealed that the two other names in consideration were Arthur and Albert.
People Magazine reported that Diana noted to Morton that she had the final say, but the second choice of monikers did make the cut as one of her sons’ middle names. Prince William was christened William Arthur Philip Louis, and Prince Harry was christened Henry Charles Albert David.
Princess Diana had a great influence on the lives of her sons. She felt that the royal family needed to change with modern times and instead of having the boys schooled at home as her husband and his siblings were, she wanted to send them to school so they could socialize with other children their age.
In fact, William became the first heir to the throne to attend public school, Jane Mynor’s nursery school near Kensington Palace.
“The decision to have William, 3, develop his finger-painting skills among commoners showed the influence of Diana, Princess of Wales,” penned George Hackett in Newsweek in 1985.
BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell noted that the reason Diana behaved differently than the royals was that she was an outsider to the royal family and able to bring her own set of beliefs to some outdated royal structures that were set in place for years prior to her arrival in the family.
Diana also pushed her sons to befriend the media, instead of feeling trapped by them. She felt that if she allowed them a statement or the photos they wanted, they would allow her the freedom to live her life.
Unfortunately, that would not be the case as Diana was the most photographed woman in the world and was hunted by paparazzi up until her death, which was caused by her driver speeding in a Paris tunnel in August of 1997 to outrun photographers who wanted an exclusive photo of the princess and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed.
The BBC reported that royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams explained that Diana’s relationship with the media influenced her sons to court them in the same way, but from a respectful distance. It appears that the media have tried to be more respectful of both William and Harry in the years since their mother’s untimely death.
Both William and Harry are also not afraid to put the media on blast when they cross the line, such as when they published a topless photo of Kate Middleton on her honeymoon with Prince William, and when Meghan Markle was being harassed by the media prior to her marriage to Prince Harry.
The young men have also taken the torch from their mother in terms of her charitable work. Diana always included her sons, when she was able, in her service work, setting a foundation for the passions they pursue to this day alongside their wives, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. Some of the causes they support are those that help the military and those afflicted by mental disorders.
“It’s really important to wind back 20 years and realize Diana was the first member of the Royal Family that people felt behaved and acted like a normal human being,” Fitzwilliams noted.
Princess Diana’s death 20 years ago is still a loss felt by royal watchers to this day, as her sons become fathers and utilize the life skills they learned from their late mother.
