Twitter Users Respond To Harry And William's Reunion At Princess Diana's Statue Unveiling

Jul 02, 2021

On July 1, Prince William and Prince Harry reunited for the first time since Prince Philip’s April funeral ceremony at Windsor Castle. The brothers came together at Kensington Palace on Thursday to commemorate and unveil a statue of their mother, Princess Diana, on what would have been her 60th birthday. Given the apparent rift that has grown between Harry and the royal family, the event was also notable in that it saw the Duke of Sussex return to his home country to be with his brother and other members of the royal family, whom he has openly criticized in the past year.

But reports of the July 1 unveiling have commented on the event’s low-key character and the brothers’ friendliness toward one another. The unveiling’s low-key nature is partly attributable to the fact that COVID-19 restrictions meant that the event was only sparsely attended, though Harry and William were able to reunite with their late mother’s siblings: Lady Jane Fellowes, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Charles Spencer.

Although the two princes kept Thursday’s event private and relatively quiet, thousands of fans of the royal family took to the internet to react to Harry and William’s reunion and Diana’s statue.

In fact, over 1,000 users on Twitter replied to Harry and William’s official statement regarding the unveiling, which the official Duke and Duchess of Cambridge account tweeted following the July 1 commemoration. The countless replies, tributes and remembrances from strangers just go to show that Diana’s legacy is far from forgotten and that the late princess remains an icon across the globe.

“Today, on what would have been our Mother’s 60th birthday, we remember her love, strength and character — qualities that made her a force for good around the world, changing countless lives for the better,” Harry and William wrote in their joint statement.

“Every day, we wish she were still with us, and our hope is that this statue will be seen forever as a symbol of her life and her legacy.”

The brothers went on to thank sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley, friends, donors and “all those around the world who keep our mother’s memory alive.”

One royal fan commended William for the tribute, tweeting: “Marvellous tribute to your mother.  I’m sure wherever she is, no doubt she’s proud of you, her eldest son who becomes a happy married man with three amazing children and how you are taking seriously your duties. You’ve got our back! Bless you Prince William ❤️.”

In a more somber Tweet, another royal fan wrote that they hoped Princess Diana’s memory would bring William and Harry together, indirectly alluding to the distance that has grown between the two brothers.

“May her spiritual energy bring prince William and Harry emotional healing. As beautiful as this statue is you can almost see the sadness in her eyes for her sons,” the tweet reads.

Many royal fans on Twitter echoed that tweet, commenting on the two brothers’ relationship and the state of the royal family.

“For those who say that Harry is happier to be in London than LA with his wife and two children, you are wrong. W and H will solve their problems when they want, not when the crowd wants,” a user by the name of Fay wrote.

Although Harry and his wife Meghan Markle began distancing themselves from the royal family back in January 2020 when they announced that they would be stepping back as senior royals, it wasn’t until the two spoke with Oprah Winfrey during an exclusive interview in March 2021 that they began to openly criticize the royal family and its culture. In "The Me You Can't See" documentary series, Harry makes similar criticisms, speaking specifically to the mental toll of discriminatory comments Meghan received.

Because of this perceived rift between Harry and the rest of his family, The Mirror had initially reported that Kate Middleton would help William and Harry put on a united front for Thursday’s occasion. However, new reports show that Kate was removed from the guestlist for the unveiling. Before the event, The Sun reported that this meant that Harry and William would be meeting without a "peacemaker" around them.

The historic win by England on Tuesday against Germany might be inadvertently helping the brothers overcome their difficulties, however. The first win against Germany in a knock-out world cup game in 55 years has sparked the pair texting each other about soccer, according to The Daily Mail.

And despite speculation that Thursday’s event would be awkward, Harry and William seemed to be quite cordial and friendly at the unveiling.

“It was professional and friendly and gave no obvious sense of the tensions behind the scenes,” BBC’s royal correspondent Daniela Relph wrote of the ceremony. “There was even laughter between the brothers as they prepared to unveil the bronze statue."

Do you have a favorite social media response to Thursday’s unveiling? What do you think of the ceremony? Let us know — and be sure to pass this story on.