The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge sparked memories of Diana on the second full day of their Pakistan tour.
William and Kate were in the Hindu Kush mountain range in the foothills of the Himalayas, the same region visited by the duke’s mother during her first solo royal tour in 1991.
Diana was made an honorary Chitrali Scout and given an embroidered white coat and beret.
Like Diana, the couple were presented with traditional hats and embroidered cloaks, which Kate described as “amazing”. Usually, men wear the hats, but Diana and Kate were given them because of their status.
The duke and duchess were also given a book of photos from Diana’s visit.
They then took a helicopter to the melting Chiatibo glacier in Broghil Valley National Park, seeing how it has retreated rapidly in recent years, and were taken to a village flooded in 2015.
The prince stressed the need to fight climate change, saying “more education, more awareness and political action” were needed. “The young are starting to get engaged in it,” he added.
William joked that “my geography teacher would be well impressed that I’m back at a glacier after all these years”, prompting Kate to say: “I’ve been very impressed by William’s geography.”
The duchess opted for flat knee-high boots suitable for the terrain in Chitral, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, while the duke wore a teal shirt and beige chinos.
Dr Furrukh Bashir, of Pakistan’s Meteorological Department, told the royals there are more than 5,000 glaciers in the area but nearly 70 per cent are retreating under global warming.
Last night, the duke urged the UK and Pakistan to work together to tackle climate change.
