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It seems like only yesterday that Prince George made his debut in front of the doors of St. Mary's Hospital in London. Now, the second in line to the British throne is growing up so fast. As the Future King, George is slowly starting to come into his own as a royal. He's attended a number of royal events alongside his parents, William and Kate, but also makes appearances at sporting games and other more laid-back family moments. Each member of the British Royal Family understands their role and responsibilities from a young age, and George is no exception. He knows that one day he will be King of England.
Princess Kate is helping to prepare her eldest child for his future role from a young age. It has been reported that Kate and William have tried to keep George in the dark about his important future position as King in order to protect him as a child and allow him a normal upbringing for as long as possible. The entire royal family has reportedly rallied around George to help him understand his important position without revealing too much about his duties too soon. William, Kate, and other senior royals want George to have as normal a childhood as possible before taking on royal responsibilities.
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It's a unique challenge balancing George's royal duties with protecting his childhood. One particularly morbid royal protocol is that all senior royals are asked to help plan their own funerals from the age of 16. Back in 2000, it was revealed that then-teenage Prince William and Prince Harry had been asked to start planning details for their future funerals, such as guest lists, music choices, and other ceremonial aspects. The late Prince Philip is also known to have planned his own funeral for almost 18 years, overseeing refinements and modifications to the plans up until his death in 2021.
The late Duke of Edinburgh spent 16 years working with Land Rover to design the custom hearse that would carry his coffin in a solemn procession from Windsor Castle to St. George's Chapel after his death. On the day of the funeral in 2021, his modified Land Rover Defender vehicle followed precisely behind senior royals and members of the family as they walked in the procession, just as Philip had envisioned. It was a very personal and involved process for Philip to have planned his own funeral in such detail and royal protocol expects other senior royals to do the same, no matter their age.
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Another protective royal protocol states that heirs to the throne under the age of 12 cannot travel together by air in order to safeguard continuity of the monarchy. The restriction is in place to protect successors to the crown in case of a plane accident or other unforeseen circumstance. While heirs can travel separately if necessary for royal duties and engagements, it is generally discouraged for very young heirs like Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis to fly together before a certain age in order to preserve the line of succession.
William and Kate have slowly started introducing their three children to more public-facing royal duties and appearances over the years as they've grown. George, now age 9, has been spotted at a couple of soccer games cheering on Aston Villa FC with his father. Meanwhile, 7-year-old Princess Charlotte recently joined her mother Kate at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships. Youngest child Prince Louis, who is only 4, mostly remains behind the scenes for now but does make an appearance each year waving from the palace balcony during Trooping the Colour.
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According to one royal expert, William has likely drawn on his own experiences growing up in Buckingham Palace when guiding George through his royal duties. As children, William and Harry were very aware that they had different futures - one would be king while the other had a supporting role. This sometimes caused arguments between the two brothers. For many years, George knew he was a prince but did not fully understand that he would one day be king too. Speaking about his eldest son, William has said in the past:
"There will be a time and a place to bring George up and understand how he fits in in the world. We are very normal. For now, with George, it’s keeping a stability around him and showing how normal life is—having a normal family avoids conversation.”
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But gradually George will learn more about what it means to be in the public eye through observing his parents and grandparents during official duties. While trying to maintain normalcy in George's childhood for as long as possible, his future responsibilities will also be part of his upbringing and early education. Time will tell how this delicate balancing act unfolds as the young prince grows into his royal role.
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