Diana's Response When Asked If William Should Succeed the Queen

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published 1 August 2020

Back in November 1995, Princess Diana was asked if she thought her oldest son, Prince William, should succeed Queen Elizabeth on the throne instead of his father, Prince Charles.
Diana initially dodged the question, which came during her famous BBC1 Panorama interview, noting that William was only 13 at the time and too young for that responsibility.
"My wish is that my husband finds peace of mind, and from that follows others things, yes," she finally answered.

Princess Diana always knew that her oldest son, Prince William, had what it took to be a great king.

In November 1995, the late royal sat down for what would turn out to be an explosive interview with BBC1 Panorama about her divorce from Prince Charles. During the interview Martin Bashir asked Diana if she thought Will, who was 13 at the time, should succeed Queen Elizabeth as the reigning monarch on the British throne. You know, as in instead of his father, Charles.

"Do you think it would make more sense in the light of the marital difficulties that you and the Prince of Wales have had if the position of monarch passed directly to your son Prince William?" Bashir asked.

"Well, then you have to see that William's very young at the moment, so do you want a burden like that to be put on his shoulders at such an age? So I can't answer that question," Diana answered, dodging the heart of the question.

"Would it be your wish that when Prince William comes of age that he were to succeed the Queen rather than the current Prince of Wales?" Bashir pressed.

"My wish is that my husband finds peace of mind, and from that follows others things, yes," Diana said.

So, there you have it.

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Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with more than 10 years of professional experience. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.