How Prince William Supported Mom Diana During Her Split From Charles

Diana said that William asked her if his dad’s relationship with Camilla (who the young prince wouldn’t meet until 1998) was the reason they split up.

“And I said, ‘Well, there were three of us in this marriage, and the pressure of the media was another factor, so the two together were very difficult,'” Diana continued. “‘But although I still loved Papa I couldn’t live under the same roof as him, and likewise with him.'”

William apparently wasn’t ignorant of his mother’s indiscretions, either. After Princess in Love—written by her former lover James Hewitt with Anna Pasternak—hit shelves in October 1994, much to Diana’s distress, “the first thing I did was rush down to talk to my children,” she told Bashir. “And William produced a box of chocolates and said, ‘Mummy, I think you’ve been hurt. These are to make you smile again.'”

Diana also reiterated to Bashir her prediction that she’d never be queen—and her suggestion, originally made to Morton, that Charles might be best served by doing something other than becoming king one day.