Prince George’s arrival at Eton College may look like a son simply following in his father’s footsteps. But the path taking the 13-year-old future king through those famous gates can be traced back to a grandmother he never had the chance to meet.

More than 30 years before George prepared to wear Eton’s black tailcoat, Princess Diana made a significant decision about Prince William’s education — breaking with the route followed by previous generations of royal men.

William went to Eton rather than Gordonstoun, the Scottish boarding school attended by both his father, King Charles, and grandfather Prince Philip.

According to royal author Simon Vigar, that change was “very much a Diana decision.”

Now William and Princess Catherine’s eldest son is continuing the tradition she helped create.

Diana broke with an established royal path

Sending William to Eton was far from inevitable in the 1990s.

Gordonstoun had already educated two generations of the family. Prince Philip attended the school before Charles was sent there, maintaining a clear precedent for the future king.

But Charles famously had an unhappy experience at Gordonstoun, which was known for its demanding regime and emphasis on physical resilience.

Diana also had a personal connection to Eton.

“Her brother and father went there, and of course, it was much closer to home than Gordonstoun, where Charles wasn’t happy anyway,” Vigar, author of The Four Wives of Windsor, told PEOPLE.

The result was a significant departure from royal convention.

Instead of heading hundreds of miles north to the Scottish Highlands, William would attend Eton, just across the River Thames from Windsor Castle.

One memorable first day in 1995

William officially began at Eton in September 1995.

Although Charles and Diana had separated three years earlier, both accompanied their eldest son for the milestone.

Harry, then still a young boy and years away from becoming an Eton pupil himself, was there too.

Photographs from the day captured the family together as William signed the school’s traditional Entrance Book.

At the time, it was simply a major educational milestone for the young prince.

In hindsight, Diana’s choice would have consequences stretching across generations.

Eton became William’s refuge after Diana died

William was only 15 when Diana died in August 1997.

His school subsequently became more than somewhere to study.

Royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith has described Eton as a “much-needed haven for William” during the devastating period that followed his mother’s death.

Away from the relentless attention surrounding the Royal Family, William was able to return to the routines and friendships of school.

Vigar says William ultimately had a “good time” at Eton.

That positive experience inevitably became part of the background when William and Catherine later faced one of their biggest decisions as parents: where to send George.

George wanted to follow his father

William and Catherine considered different possibilities before deciding on Eton for their eldest child.

But according to a source close to the family, George himself had a clear preference.

“George has always wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps,” the source told PEOPLE.

For William, the choice therefore carries an unusually personal symmetry.

He once arrived at Eton with Diana beside him.

Three decades later, he is the father accompanying another future king along the same path.

Yet Diana’s influence remains woven into that moment.

Had she not pushed the family away from its previous educational tradition, William’s own experience — and consequently George’s idea of following his father — could have looked very different.

Why Eton appealed to William and Catherine

Vigar said the school “ticked so many boxes for William and Catherine.”

Location is one obvious advantage.

Eton sits close to Windsor, making it considerably more convenient for the Wales family than Gordonstoun.

But its academic reputation and emphasis on preparing pupils for positions of responsibility were also important factors.

Bedell Smith said the Prince and Princess of Wales were ultimately attracted by Eton’s “academic excellence and the many ways it develops its students for leadership roles.”

That could have particular significance for George.

Second in line to the throne, his adult life is likely to involve responsibilities unlike those of almost any of his classmates.

A school with centuries of history

Eton was founded by King Henry VI in 1440 and has become one of Britain’s most famous educational institutions.

Its former pupils include 20 British prime ministers as well as generations of prominent figures from politics and public life.

Bedell Smith noted that while Eton remains closely associated with tradition, the school itself has changed considerably.

It now has a more diverse student population than it did even when William was there.

George will nevertheless inherit some unmistakably old Eton traditions.

Among them is the school’s distinctive uniform, including a black tailcoat, waistcoat and pin-striped trousers.

For the young prince, it will also mark another step towards greater independence as he moves into his teenage years.

Three generations connected by one decision

There is a poignant element to George’s Eton story that goes beyond the school itself.

He never met Diana, who died more than 15 years before he was born.

Yet one of the choices she made as a mother is still influencing the childhood of her grandson.

Diana chose a different path for William because of her own family connections, Eton’s proximity to home and Charles’s difficult experience at Gordonstoun.

William subsequently found happiness there — and, after his mother’s death, a degree of sanctuary.

Now George wants to experience the school his father remembers so well.

When the future king walks through Eton’s gates at 13, he will be following William.

But behind William’s footsteps are Diana’s.

More than three decades after she made a decision that quietly broke royal convention, its impact is still being felt by the next generation of the family.