Princess Diana Thought Prince Harry ‘Would Have Been Better Equipped’ to Be King — Royal Expert
Princess Diana believed Prince Harry might have been “better equipped” to become king than Prince William. That’s according to royal expert Charles Rae, a former correspondent for The Sun. Diana even gave Harry a nickname that reflected that and helped make him feel a little extra special sometimes.
Despite all that, insiders say Diana didn’t believe William would make a lousy king. But there was supposedly part of his personality that made her nervous about his future when he was younger. And they claim that what he lacked, she thought Harry might have had in abundance.
Princess Diana dubbed Prince Harry ‘Good King Harry’
Speaking on behalf of Slingo, Rae explained that Diana’s nicknames for her sons reflected how she thought Harry could make a better monarch. He said, “Diana dubbed Harry GKH (Good King Harry) because she thought he would have been better equipped for the role as a future king.”
“It was also used to make Harry feel that extra special,” Rae added.
As for Diana’s nickname for William? “Both she and Charles referred to Willam as Wombat when he was much younger,” Rae said, adding, “It was given to him by Diana.”
Princess Diana didn’t think Prince William wanted to be king
For more background into why Diana might have felt Harry’s personality might be a better match for the throne, it wasn’t that she thought William wouldn’t be a good king. In the biography Harry: Conversations with the Prince, Angela Levin wrote that William’s hesitance toward royal life made Diana nervous.
“Harry’s seeming ability to cope, his ease with people and general gusto led Diana to believe that he would handle being king more easily than William,” Levin wrote (per Express). She also pointed out that his mother “even called him Good King Harry.”
“Diana felt less confident in William,” the author added, noting the princess said, “William doesn’t want to be king, and I worry about that. He doesn’t want his every move watched.”
Notably, William was only 15 when Diana died and has had decades to grow into his future role since then. But there might have been another reason she was concerned about her oldest son’s compatibility with the throne as a teenager.
Princess Diana wouldn’t answer whether she thought Prince William should inherit the throne from Queen Elizabeth
In Diana’s famous Panorama interview with the BBC, she opened up about her marital woes with the future King Charles. Journalist Martin Bashir asked directly if she thought William should take the throne after Queen Elizabeth, and she gave a non-answer.
“… 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,” she said (per People).
So, Bashir asked if it was her wish for William to take over when he came of age. She replied, “My wish is that my husband finds peace of mind, and from that follows others things, yes.”
