The Duke of Cambridge also noted that the country is where he also met his wife, Kate Middleton.
Prince William reflected on his time in Scotland, and how it reminds him of his "saddest memory."
The Duke of Cambridge opened up about finding out about his mother Princess Diana's death while in the country, while speaking with the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland on Saturday during his royal tour.
"Scotland is incredibly important to me and will always have a special place in my heart. I've been coming to Scotland since I was a small boy," he said in video shared by the BBC. "As I grew up, I saw how my grandmother relishes every minute she spends here. And my father is never happier than when walking among the hills."
"Scotland is the source of some of my happiest memories. But also, my saddest," William, 38, continued. "I was at Balmoral [Castle] when I was told my mother had died. Still in shock, I found sanctuary in the service at Crathie Kirk that very morning. And in the dark days of grief that followed, I found comfort and solace in the Scottish outdoors. As a result, the connection I feel to Scotland will forever run deep."
Diana died in 1997 at the age of 36. At the time, William was 15 years old. However, the royal noted that Scotland also brings him many more wonderful memories, as it is where he met his wife, Kate Middleton.
"And yet alongside this painful memory, is one of great joy. Because it was here in Scotland, 20 ago this year, that I first met Catherine," he said of the mother of his three children. The two met while they were studying at St. Andrews. "Needless to say, the town where you meet your future wife holds a very special place in your heart."
William added that their love for the country is something they hope to pass onto their kids. "George, Charlotte and Louis already know how dear Scotland is to both of us, and they are starting to build their own happy memories here too," he shared. "We have no doubt they will grow up sharing our love and connection to Scotland from the Highlands to the Central Belt, from the Islands to the Borders."
Kate is expected to join William during his royal tour of Scotland on Monday. The duke served as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. This marked the first time he carried out the role, which was appointed to him by Queen Elizabeth II.
William's tour and speech comes after he, as well as Prince Harry, released statements about the findings from the investigation of how the BBC procured an interview with his mother in 1995. Calling the results, "extremely concerning," William went on to list the wrongdoing of BBC employees, stating that they "lied and used fake documents to obtain the interview with my mother, made lurid and false claims about the royal family which played on her fears and fueled paranoia, displayed woeful incompetence when investigating complaints and concerns about the program, and were evasive in their reporting to the media and covered up what they knew from their internal investigation."
"It is my view that the deceitful way the interview was obtained substantially influenced what my mother said," William's statement continued. "The interview was a major contribution to making my parents’ relationship worse and has since hurt countless others."
Harry, however, took it one step further and noted in his statement, "Our mother lost her life because of this" Hear more of what the brothers expressed in the video below.
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