The monarch died on Thursday, September 8, at the age of 96, and while Prince George seems to understand the significance of her passing, the 9-year-old’s siblings, Princess Charlotte, 7, and Prince Louis, 4, do not.
Middleton, 40, shares her three children with husband, William, Prince of Wales, also 40.
The U.K.’s Sunday Times royal editor Roya Nikkhah—who has more than 38,000 followers on her Twitter account—revealed behind-the-scenes details about Wednesday’s procession, which brought the queen’s coffin from London’s Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, where she is lying in state.
“The Prince of Wales has said walking in the #Queen’s cortège yesterday brought back memories of walking behind his mother’s coffin for Diana’s funeral procession in 1997 when William was 15, while viewing tributes to #QueenElizabethII in Sandringham with the Princess of Wales,” Nikkhah tweeted on Thursday.
Diana, the former Princess of Wales, died on August 31, 1997, after succumbing to her injuries following a car crash in Paris.
Nikkhah wrote: “#PrinceWilliam told a well wisher that walking behind the #Queen’s coffin yesterday had been ‘very difficult’ and while speaking to an emotional member of the public at Sandringham, #William said ‘Don’t cry now, you’ll start me.’
“#PrinceWilliam also said of the #Queen ‘I’m learning that she was everyone’s grandmother—the way people have reacted.’ The Princess of Wales told a well-wisher that Prince George understands the loss of their great-grandmother, but Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis less so.”
Over the weekend, Princess Kate, Prince William, his brother, Prince Harry, and wife Meghan Markle, greeted well-wishers outside Windsor Castle in Berkshire, England.
In video footage captured by a bystander, which has since been viewed more than 2.2 million times on TikTok, Kate revealed what Louis said to her as she grieved.
“The whole nation’s having to be brave aren’t they?” Kate asked someone in the crowd. “Don’t worry. I have plenty of moments like this too.”
“My little Louis, he’s so sweet. He said: ‘Mommy don’t worry because she’s now with great-grandpa.’”
Queen Elizabeth was married to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, for 73 years. He passed away in April 2021 at the age of 99.
Following the queen’s death, Buckingham Palace released a statement to the public.
“The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral [Castle in Scotland] this afternoon. The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow,” the message read.
Her Majesty’s eldest son, King Charles III—whose previous title was Prince Charles— was proclaimed King of the United Kingdom in an official ceremony on Saturday.
Elizabeth’s funeral will take place on Monday at 6 a.m. EST at London’s Westminster Abbey.
