Prince William has taken Kate Middleton on an emotional visit to his mother’s grave just days ahead of their wedding. 

The pair are believed to have made the journey to the ancestral home of Diana, Princess of Wales, in Althorp, Northants, this month and held hands as they lay flowers in her memory.

The Prince has spoken openly of his desire to share his wedding day with his mother and knows how much it would have meant to her.

A royal source said: “It was very important for William to take Kate to visit his mum just before their wedding day. “Diana is still a huge part of her boys’ everyday life and always will be.
“It is tragic that she won’t be there to see the wedding, and that she never got to meet his bride.

“But even though Kate never met Diana she knows what an incredible woman she was and it is very important to her she can share and understand William’s love and grief for his mum.”

The young couple strolled through the grounds of the Althorp Estate, the Spencer family seat, before rowing a boat across the lake known as The Oval to the small wooded island on which the Princess was buried 14 years ago.

They paid a quiet and sombre tribute at the peaceful memorial, placing flowers on the grave.

The Prince is then understood to have shown Miss Middleton around the ancient arboretum where he and his brother, Prince Harry, planted trees as children.

Earl Spencer, the Princess’s older brother is believed to have known about the visit to his stately home.

The tiny island features a small temple as a permanent memorial to the Princess.

When the couple announced their engagement, the Prince explained that he had given his fiancée his mother’s blue sapphire ring to ensure she was a part of the celebration.

He said: “It was my way of making sure my mother didn't miss out on today and the excitement and the fact that we're going to spend the rest of our lives together."

Miss Middleton described the Princess as “an inspirational woman” and that that she would have loved to have met her.

Prince Harry has also acknowledged that their mother would “no doubt” be on their minds during the April 29 wedding.

Speaking during a training session for his charity trek to the North Pole earlier this month, he said: “Myself, my brother and my father, there will be all sorts of people and the rest of the family that will be no doubt be thinking about it.

"And I hope she would be very, very proud that the big day has come upon him.

"We all thought that it was never going to happen for him. But it has happened, and I think everyone's going to be very proud of him."

He said Miss Middleton was a “fantastic girl” but admitted that she was more likely to be taking him under her wing than the other way around.