20 ways Princess Diana’s legacy of good lives on

NEWCASTLE, AUSTRALIA – 1983: Princess Diana And Prince Charles watch an official event during their first royal Australian tour 1983 IN Newcastle, Austrlia. (Photo by Patrick Riviere/Getty Images)

10. Not your average wife

Diana broke rules before she was even officially royal, picking out her engagement ring from a catalogue instead of following the tradition of having royal  jewelry custom-made.

Another big no-no: Princess Diana  chose to write her own wedding vows. She ditched the royal tradition of saying she would “obey her husband” at her wedding ceremony at St. Paul’s Cathedral. Instead, Diana only agreed to ”love him, comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health.” Kate Middleton followed her mother-in-law’s controversial lead when she married Prince William in 2011 and wrote her own vows as well.

Diana took charge again when it came to naming her children. Charles wanted to name their firstborn Arthur and their second Albert. She said no.

She was a very different mom than Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen was accustomed to leaving young Charles with his grandparents when she and her husband went on trips across the world. Royal expert Christopher Warwick said Diana wouldn’t raise her kids the same way:

"“Diana and Charles bucked the royal trend of separation by taking nine-month-old William, as well as his nanny, with them on the six-week tour to Australia and New Zealand. William and Harry were very, very fortunate with Diana as a mother because her ideas were so different to the previous generation.”"