Princess Diana was well known for her independent spirit and often challenged Royal Family traditions — including one lesser-known rule she broke after giving birth to Prince William.
Life as a royal can be tiring, full of strict customs, endless protocols, and expectations that must be followed to the letter.
But the beloved Princess of Wales often chose to go her own way, making headlines for standing up for what she believed was right.
After Prince William’s birth, Princess Diana broke with a long-standing royal tradition — a change that later influenced how Kate Middleton welcomed her own children.
Before William came along, it was customary for royal women to give birth at home. In fact, the late Queen gave birth to all four of her children at home, with King Charles being born at Buckingham Palace.
But that changed on June 21, 1982, when Princess Diana delivered Prince William at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, at 9:03 PM.
With that, William became the first future king to be born in a hospital — a move that marked a major shift in royal birthing traditions.
Diana returned to the same hospital in 1984 to give birth to Prince Harry, choosing the Lindo Wing once again.
Years later, Princess Kate followed her lead. In 2013, she gave birth to Prince George in the very same hospital wing.
Meghan Markle reportedly hoped for a home birth originally, but things didn’t go as planned — both Archie and Lilibet were born in hospitals instead.
However, she didn’t give birth in the same facility for each child.
Archie was born at Portland Hospital in London — the same place where Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie were delivered. Lilibet, on the other hand, was born in the United States at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.
In their Netflix documentary, Prince Harry has often drawn parallels between Meghan and his late mother, Princess Diana.
“She has the same compassion. She has the same empathy. She has the same confidence. She has this warmth about her.”
Both Meghan and Kate have been compared to Diana, particularly when it comes to how they raise their children.
While public displays of affection used to be discouraged within the royal family, Diana often hugged her children and made a point of getting down to their eye level when speaking to them.
Kate has followed in those footsteps — frequently seen showing affection to her kids and regularly sharing sweet, candid photos of them.
Prince William was the first heir to the throne who didn’t have a private education at home, thanks to Princess Diana’s decision to send him to school.
Before he was born, it was usual for royal children to be left behind when their parents traveled, but Diana took 9-month-old William with her on a state visit to Australia and New Zealand.
She also broke tradition with the royal dress code, refusing to wear hats and famously saying, “You can’t cuddle a child in a hat.”
Meghan Markle also challenged some royal customs. For example, while royal protocol usually forbids baby showers, she had two.
It was also tradition that the Queen be the first to hear about any royal birth. Prince William reportedly called her on an encrypted phone to share the news.