{"id":684648,"date":"2026-01-09T14:28:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T14:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/684648\/"},"modified":"2026-01-09T14:28:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T14:28:12","slug":"kate-middleton-and-princess-diana-are-too-different-to-be-compared","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/684648\/","title":{"rendered":"Kate Middleton and Princess Diana Are \u201cToo Different to Be Compared\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li>When she married Prince Charles on July 29, 1981, Lady Diana Spencer became the Princess of Wales.<\/li>\n<li>It was a title she carried all of her royal life, and one that her daughter-in-law Kate Middleton now holds.<\/li>\n<li>The two women are \u201ctoo different to be compared,\u201d a royal commentator said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_2-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> They may have both at one point carried the same royal title\u2014the Princess of Wales\u2014but <a class=\"recommendation-inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instyle.com\/princess-diana-unexpected-mantra-when-marriage-prince-charles-became-difficult-11729099\" link-destination-recommendation=\"true\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Princess Diana<\/a> and <a class=\"recommendation-inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instyle.com\/kate-middleton-monochrome-blue-suit-8410895\" link-destination-recommendation=\"true\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kate Middleton<\/a> are two different women.\n<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_4-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> The current Princess of Wales has faced comparisons to Diana all of her royal life, and even before it technically began. During their November 16, 2010 interview, <a class=\"recommendation-inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instyle.com\/prince-william-diana-award-kate-middleton-8609611\" link-destination-recommendation=\"true\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"internalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Prince William<\/a>\u2014after giving Kate his mother\u2019s sapphire and diamond engagement ring\u2014eschewed comparisons of his mother and his bride-to-be. \u201cNo one is trying to fill my mother\u2019s shoes,\u201d he said at the time. \u201cIt\u2019s about carving your own future and your own destiny, and Kate will do a very good job at that.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p> Prince William and Kate Middleton pose for photographs on November 16, 2010 following the announcement of their engagement.<\/p>\n<p>Chris Jackson\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_7-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> On January 9, the future queen turned 44 years old. As she grows deeper into her role as Princess of Wales\u2014a role she\u2019s held since September 2022\u2014she continues to forge a path that\u2019s different than her mother-in-law\u2019s, royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/royals\/article-15427051\/Kate-44-Princess-Wales-helping-ease-monarchys-Harry-Meghan-problem-total-loyalty-William-shes-succeeded-totally-different-Diana.html\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Daily Mail<\/a>, who said that the two women \u201care too different to be compared.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_11-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> \u201cCatherine\u2019s legacy will be one of total loyalty to her husband and the institution of the monarchy,\u201d he said, adding that, though Diana \u201creached out to others brilliantly,\u201d she was also \u201cdeeply unhappy.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p> Princess Diana.<\/p>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_14-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> Of Kate\u2014who often honors Diana through her fashion choices\u2014Fitzwilliams added, \u201cShe is regal yet also has a contemporary look. Her fashion choices are iconic, and she will be known as one who was fashionable and famous, but in a relatable way.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_16-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> Fitzwilliams called the job of a future queen \u201cone of the world\u2019s most demanding jobs,\u201d adding that \u201cone of Kate\u2019s legacies is certain to be as someone who, together with William, prioritized work-life balance successfully.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_18-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> \u201cShe, together with William, brought up three children, ensuring they were shielded\u2014save on special occasions\u2014from the glare of the international media in an age of social media,\u201d Fitzwilliams continued. \u201cThis will have been a challenge.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p> Prince William and Kate Middleton on April 29, 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_23-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> So concerned was Kate about avoiding \u201cstressful\u201d comparisons to Diana that royal biographer Robert Jobson said that she debated turning down the prestigious Princess of Wales title, one Diana made so famous before her death in 1997 at just 36 years old.\n<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_25-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> \u201cShe knew she\u2019d inevitably be compared with Diana, whose untimely death had provoked such a tsunami of anger and grief. And she was right,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/royals\/article-13676757\/Kate-monarchy-Royal-insiders-ROBERT-JOBSON-truth-Charles-Williams-helicopter-clash.html\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jobson wrote<\/a> in his book Catherine, The Princess of Wales: A Biography of the Future Queen. \u201cKate found all such talk stressful. Indeed, it got to the point where she felt she might follow Camilla (who opted to become Duchess of Cornwall) in refusing\u2014when the time came\u2014to be known as HRH Princess of Wales.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p> Kate Middleton on March 17, 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p id=\"mntl-sc-block_28-0\" class=\"comp mntl-sc-block mntl-sc-block-html\"> Ultimately, of course, Kate accepted the title\u2014but a royal source told <a href=\"https:\/\/people.com\/kate-middleton-debated-refusing-princess-wales-title-comparisons-princess-diana-8687924\" data-component=\"link\" data-source=\"inlineLink\" data-type=\"externalLink\" data-ordinal=\"1\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">People<\/a> that \u201cthe new Princess of Wales appreciates the history associated with this role but will understandably want to look to the future as she creates her own path.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When she married Prince Charles on July 29, 1981, Lady Diana Spencer became the Princess of Wales. It&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":684649,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7708],"tags":[5105,7710,519,448],"class_list":{"0":"post-684648","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-royals","8":"tag-royal","9":"tag-royal-families","10":"tag-royal-family","11":"tag-royals"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115865616530584544","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/684648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=684648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/684648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/684649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=684648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=684648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=684648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}