Prince William and Kate Middleton Honor Princess Diana With Stunning Visit to the Taj Mahal
Prince William and Kate Middleton honored the late Princess Diana with a visit to the Taj Mahal on Saturday.
The royal couple concluded their incredible trip to India by making their way to the famous mausoleum in Agra, where took a moment at the same stone bench that William's mother famously sat on 24 years ago. The seating area, which rests in front of a long reflecting pool, has become known as Princess Di's Bench.
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The Duke and Duchess looked happy and peaceful as they posed for a number of photos at the iconic spot. Kate looked stunning in a gorgeous blue-and-white printed short-sleeve Naeem Khan dress and nude heels, while William looked equally as dapper in a navy blue blazer, white button-down and khakis.
Kensington Palace also shared a few photos of William and Kate from their trip to the monument, tweeting, "TRH want to say thank you to the people of India for their hospitality and warmth."
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were fully aware of how important it was to see the Taj Mahal, so much so, in fact, that they released an official statement on their website acknowledging Diana's 1992 trip there before they even stepped foot in Agra.
"The Duke of Cambridge is of course aware of the huge esteem his mother, the late Princess of Wales, is held in India and he appreciates the iconic status of the images that exist of The Princess at the Taj," the statement read. "He feels incredibly lucky to visit a place where his mother's memory is kept alive by so many who travel there."
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"24 years on from her visit to the Taj, The Duke and The Duchess are looking forward to seeing this beautiful place for themselves and creating some new memories as they say thank you to the people of India at the conclusion of this tour," the statement added.
The stunning image is one of Diana's most iconic and, though beautiful, it's also steeped in sadness, a marked difference from William and Kate's joyous, history-making visit.
Diana took the trip with her then-husband, Prince Charles, but visited the Taj Mahal alone because he was apparently attending meetings.
The princess was reportedly very upset that Charles refused to join her at the famous monument. Diana had told a Sky TV News Reporter that the visit "was a fascinating experience -- very healing," but when pressed about what that meant, she paused and simply said, "Work it out for yourself."
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Diana and Charles would separate a few months later, in December 1992, and officially divorce in August 1996. One year later, Diana died in a car accident in Paris on August 31, 1997.
William and Kate began their seven-day tour of India and Bhutan on April 10. The week-long trip -- which they're taking on behalf of Queen Elizabeth, who turns 90 on April 21 -- was the first in either country for both of them.
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The successful tour took the pair to a number of historic and fascinating places throughout the two nations, including stops at the Oval Maidan public park in Mumbai, a safari at the Kaziranga National Park in Assam, and an archery demonstration in Thimphu. The historic visit has truly been quite an eventful one -- the royals even felt the tremors after the 6.9-earthquake in Myanmar!
Kate showed off her well-documented athletic prowess at an archery event -- see her shoot a bow and arrow in the video below.
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