Prince William Paid Tribute to Late Grandmother Queen Elizabeth

Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales speaks on stage inside Windsor Castle grounds at the Coronation Concert, in Windsor, west of London on May 7, 2023.

(Image credit: Photo by Stefan Rousseau / Getty)

published 8 May 2023

Prince William is next in line to the throne, and as such he played an integral role in his father King Charles III's Coronation this past weekend.

At the Coronation concert, which took place on Sunday, May 7 in Windsor, the Prince of Wales took to the stage to share a few emotional words about his dad and his predecessor, the late Queen Elizabeth II, William's grandmother and the U.K.'s longest reigning monarch.

Himself a father of three, William started his speech with the king of dad jokes, saying, "A huge thank you to everyone for making this such a special evening. I want to say a few words about my father, and why I believe this weekend is so important. But don't worry, unlike Lionel, I won't go on all night long" (via Hello!).

If you didn't catch that reference, the royal was talking about Lionel Richie, who was one of the headliners at the concert, alongside Katy Perry and Nicole Scherzinger and more. (If you recall, many A-listers reportedly declined to perform at the concert—including Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles, Elton John and the Spice Girls.)

William went on to pay tribute to the late Queen, whose coronation was the last one before Charles', back in 1953.

"As my grandmother said when she was crowned, coronations are a declaration of our hopes for the future. And I know she's up there, fondly keeping an eye on us. She would be a proud mother," her grandson said.

He then praised the King's commitment to service, his decades-long fight to preserve the environment, and his philanthropic work through the Prince's Trust.

He added, "My father has always understood that people of all faiths, all backgrounds, and all communities, deserve to be celebrated and supported."

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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.