Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have made sure that their two young children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, feel a connection to one very special member of the Royal Family

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex may be an ocean away from Buckingham Palace but they make sure their children understand their royal heritage.

In particular, Prince Archie has a touching link with a Royal Family member who has helped shape Harry as a person, influencing him to create a life on his own terms, even in the face of fierce criticism. The Prince was just 12 years old when he lost his mother, Princess Diana. Even those who’d never met Diana wept as her coffin was carried through the streets of London, with little Harry walking behind.

For the young Prince Harry, the loss was incalculable. Now a father himself, Harry has endeavoured to make sure his mother remains a part of his children’s lives – even if she can’t be here to see them grow up. Eldest child Prince Archie even had a beautiful black and white photograph of his iconic grandmother displayed in his nursery, providing a precious link to the past.

In the 2022 Netflix documentary Harry & Meghan, footage shows the now five-year-old Archie as a baby, babbling happily. Sweet footage shows Meghan holding the tiny Prince as he reaches out to touch the framed photo, telling him: “Who’s that? Grandma? Yeah. It’s your Grandma Diana.”

Harry spoke movingly about the photo in his 2021 documentary, The Me You Can’t See, revealing that ‘grandma’ had been one of little Archie’s first words. He shared: “I got a photo of her in his nursery, and it was one of the first words that he said – apart from ‘mama’, ‘papa’, it was then ‘grandma’. Grandma Diana. It’s the sweetest thing, but at the same time, it makes me really sad because she should be here.”

Although Diana, who was only 36 when she died, can’t be with him in person, it’s clear Harry keeps her in mind as he raises his own two children. Following the birth of his daughter Princess Lilibet, Harry paid tribute to his inspirational late mother, naming the little girl Lilibet Diana. During an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in early 2023, Harry reflected that he saw his mum in both Archie and Lilibet, who have both inherited the fiery red hair often found among members of her aristocratic Spencer family. Championing ‘gingers’, Harry remarked: “The Spencer gene is very, very strong. I actually really, genuinely thought at the beginning of my relationship [with Meghan] that should this go the distance and we have kids that there’s no way the ginger gene will stand up to my wife’s genes, but I was wrong! Go gingers.”