Do the Brits love Kate Middleton as Lady Diana?

At the end of May, an Ipsos survey carried out in Great Britain confirmed that the subjects, among all their royals, they prefer Queen Elizabeth. 45% of the sample indicates it because it best represents the traditional values ​​of the country. If the first place in the ranking is not surprising, the second makes you think, because there 32% of the interviewees wanted to raise Kate Middleton: also higher than Prince William which, liked by 28%, is in third place. What features do you like most about the Duchess of Cambridge? Knowing how to be modern, full of personality, appropriate to make Great Britain appear well internationally as well.

Such popular appreciation raises a question: Did the Duchess of Cambridge succeed to take the place of Lady Diana in the hearts of the subjects? The media more and more often dwell on Kate Middleton’s style choices to emphasize the continuous references to the mother of her husband. Other observers are convinced that the royal family wants her more and more protagonist and that she is now “Ready to fly alone”just like the Princess of Wales did.

Diana, in truth, for the subjects it will always be unforgettable. From the first time they saw her, with her shy smile, in love with her prince her elder than her (when they got married, Diana was 20, Charles 32), they were captivated by that look that always remained melancholy. It is estimated that their marriage was followed by 750 million people worldwide. Diana, a part-time kindergarten teacher who shared an apartment with her friends in London, it seemed the girl next door catapulted into a fairy tale. Stephen Bates, who was in charge of Windsor for the Guardianhe explains: «It was considered a real stroke of luck for the royal family, able to give them back lifeblood. She would have refreshed her image, she would have made her glamorous. It was proof that the crown was not an institution stuffy and swampy“.

Diana’s popularity grew to levels never known before. She liked her talk to people, she was available and playful, she seemed happy to be loved by people. She was famous as Hollywood stars, so much so that on a visit to the White House in 1985 she was seen dancing with John Travolta (and the dress she wore that night was sold at auction in 2019 for £ 264,000). Continuously followed by photographers, she bent notoriety to bring attention to issues of social relevance, such as AIDS or anti-personnel mines.

The sentimental vicissitudes, which culminated with the divorce from Carlo in 1996, did not remove popular sympathy. In 1995, speaking to the BBC, she caused a sensation at the sincerity of her with which she revealed to 23 million spectators the betrayals suffered and inflicted, i food disordersthe depression. When he died, says Ingrid Seward, author of several royal biographies, “it was immediately sanctified. Speaking of her they remembered only the good things, forgetting the bad ones “and Diana became the” people’s princess “.

Kate, who is now compared to her on a daily basis and who is becoming so popular, it couldn’t be more different. She didn’t have a childhood devoid of affection like Diana, she doesn’t do anything to get attention and yet she succeeds perfectly. She never overshadows her husband: when someone tells her that “she will be a splendid princess of Wales”, she thanks moved and, pointing to the future king, William, assures: “I’m in good hands”. Kate Middleton absorbed all the etiquette rules imposed by the role, but she remained genuine. In the capacity of empathy the greatest resemblance to Diana can be found.

And then she is the bride of the heir to the throne, that is, the son of the beloved princess of Wales. William is the trait d’union stronger between the two women, able to carry his wife into the hearts of the subjects who loved his mother. To do this, the prince used a ring: that of sapphire and diamonds, which belonged to Diana and given to Kate for the engagement. “I wanted my mother to be present somehow today,” she said then. The subjects understood this from the bottom of their hearts and they seem ready to love Kate as they loved Diana. Perhaps also because in this way they dream of being able to keep something about her in their lives.