The Dukes of Cambridge and Sussex have united to unveil a statue of Diana, Princess of Wales, saying “every day we wish she were still with us”.
William and Harry came together for a ceremony in Kensington Palace’s redesigned garden , on what would are their mother’s 60th birthday.
It was their introduction together since the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral in April.
“We remember her love, strength and character,” they said.
“Qualities that made her a force permanently round the world, changing countless lives for the higher .”
They said they hoped the statue would “be seen forever as a logo of her life and her legacy” and thanked “all those round the world who keep our mother’s memory alive”.
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The pair were seen laughing and talking animatedly with guests, who applauded as they achieved a green covering the statue.
They remarked on changes to the garden , which Kensington Palace said had been “one of the princess’s favourite locations” when she lived there.
Prince Harry and Prince William next to the statue of Diana
Prince Harry has hinted at difficulties between him and Prince William since stepping back from royal duties last year.
He told Oprah Winfrey in March that the 2 were on “different paths”.
Then, in May, he spoke of his family’s unwillingness to speak about his mother’s death, and the way he was expected to “suffer” in silence.
He said he had been willing to drink and take drugs to deal with the pain of losing her.
Harry, who lives within the US together with his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, and their two children, arrived within the UK last week so as to finish his quarantine before Thursday’s event.
Prince Harry
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Analysis box by Daniela Relph, royal correspondent
It was a low-key event – quiet and intimate.
There were just a couple of guests at the revealing of the statue – Prince William, Prince Harry, Diana’s two sisters, her brother and members of the statue committee.
William and Harry walked out together into the garden . Harry, especially , hung out together with his two aunts and uncle in animated conversation.
Neither of them spoke publicly at the event. there have been no speeches or fanfare.
It was professional and friendly and gave no obvious sense of the tensions behind the scenes. There was even laughter between the brothers as they prepared to unveil the bronze statue.
They don’t want the day to be about their own broken relationship. they need it to be about their mother and her legacy.
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Diana’s siblings were among those at the ceremony at Kensington Palace, Diana’s former range in London.
The dukes were seen warmly greeting their aunts, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and woman Jane Fellowes, and their uncle, Earl Spencer.
Earl Spencer
Tributes for Diana outside Kensington Palace
image captionTributes to Diana were seen outside Kensington Palace on Thursday
The statue’s sculptor, Ian Rank-Broadley, was also at the ceremony, along side the Sunken Garden’s designer Pip Morrison.
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What the critics say
Ruth Millington, historian and critic: Rank-Broadley was given a really difficult task – to honour a lady who still means such a lot to numerous .
She was a name , a campaigner and an activist, also as what she considered her most vital role: a mother.
Within humanistic discipline , there are far too many overly romanticised representations of mothers. But there’s nothing overly sentimental about this statue. While opening her arms symbolically to the three children, Diana clasps the girl’s hand with strength.
While using the normal medium of bronze, Rank-Broadley has broken the mould of royal monuments. He has focused on rendering the folds of cloth to point movement: Diana seems like she might step down from the plinth and keep walking. it is a monument which invites engagement and embodies her openness.
With this poignant memorial, the artist has created a characterful depiction of Diana, which does her justice.
Rank-Broadley has managed to capture the various sides of Diana with this complex statue: she’s determined and graceful, brooding and warm, commanding and compassionate.
Far from elevating her to a high pedestal, he has represented her – as she is going to always be remembered – as a princess of the people.
Elizabeth Fullerton, art critic: It’s an uncontroversial, accessible representation of a female icon.
Is it good art? Well that depends on your taste.
It’s pretty conservative, made during a naturalistic style and doesn’t move the conversation forward in terms of innovation in contemporary art – on the other hand again, that clearly wasn’t the aim. this is not the Fourth Plinth in any case .
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Diana, Princess of Wales together with her sons in 1993 at Thorpe Park in Surrey
image captionPrincess Diana together with her sons in 1993 at Thorpe Park in Surrey
Princess Diana was killed during a car crash in August 1997, when William and Harry were aged just 15 and 12.
When they commissioned the statue of their mother in 2017, they said they hoped it might help visitors to the palace “reflect on her life and her legacy”.
More than 4,000 flowers are planted for the Sunken Garden’s redesign, which has taken 1,000 hours to finish .
The garden – which sits within London’s Kensington Gardens, next to Hyde Park – are going to be hospitable the general public to go to for free of charge from Friday, in line with Kensington Palace’s opening hours.
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