Prince William and Princess Kate have decided to take a more hands-on approach to parenting with their children. As a result, the royal couple are breaking away from several traditions.
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Indeed, the Prince and Princess of Wales may not send their eldest son to Eton College, a boarding school several members of The Firm attended, including King Charles, Prince William and Prince Harry. Instead, the couple may send Prince George to Princess Kate’s old school, Marlborough College. But the choice still hasn't been made.
Moreover, the couple has also decided that they will not force their children to serve in the military, which has been a part of the Royal Family tradition for many, many years. Despite not forcing military service on Prince George, it is believed that he may follow in his father’s footsteps.
Prince George could become a pilot
As reported by Hello!, Prince William attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace on May 21, where he spoke with Squadron Leader Chrissie Lacey, a padre serving at RAF Coningsby near Lincoln.
During the exchange, the Prince of Wales revealed that his eldest son, Prince George, 10, would love to visit the base as he is a ‘potential pilot in the making’, as per Hello!.
This isn’t the first time that it has been mentioned that Prince George wants to become a pilot, indeed, back in 2016, Princess Kate revealed that Prince George, who was three at the time, was ‘obsessed with planes and wants to become an air cadet’.
Moreover, as reported by Daily Mail, Prince George showed an interest in the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire in 2023. The young Prince was allowed to partially raise the ramp on a C-17 transporter aircraft and was more than happy to sit in the cockpit and ‘flick some switches’.
Prince George has shown a passion for aircraft since a young age, as per Hello!, Prince George was delighted when he was given a tour of a helicopter in Hamburg back in 2017 when the Prince and Princess of Wales were touring Germany and Poland.
Despite his passion for aviation, Prince William and Princess Kate will not force their son to go into military service, however, some experts believe this decision may impact Prince George.
Prince George may lack key character development from military service
As reported by Daily Mail, some royal experts believe that if Prince George skips his military service, he may not acquire a key character development that all members of the Royal Family have and ultimately need.
Royal biographer Robert Jobson explained that the military service offers a ‘sense of discipline’ and as they have to ‘obey the rank’ it means the royals ‘don’t get above themselves’. Jobson told the tabloid:
It gives them a sense of discipline. When you're in the army there's no Lieutenant Wales or Captain Wales. They're not generals, so they have to sort of obey the rank, which I think is very important so they don't get above themselves.
Historian Dominic Sandbrook adds that members of The Firm joining the military, no matter how briefly, ‘lends crucial legitimacy to the monarchy’.
Fellow historian Hugo Vickers believes that perhaps military service for the young Prince may not be the best option for him, instead, he may benefit more from the Duke of Edinburgh gold award, which is non-competitive.
Vickers adds that for members of the Royal Family, undergoing military service gives them a ‘sense of normal life’ and provides them with valuable skills.
Military service allows members of the Royal Family to have a sense of normal life, grants them a certain amount of freedom and teaches them all sorts of timekeeping and presentation skills which prove to be important for Royal duties.
As many royal fans know, the monarch is Commander-in-Chief of Britain's forces, therefore it may be harder for Prince George to take on that role if he doesn’t do military service, like his father, uncle, grandfather, great-grandmother and great-grandfather.
Duke of Edinburgh gold award
The Duke of Edinburgh gold award was launched by Prince Philip in the 1950s. Its first edition took place in 1956 and, as explained by the website, 'just involved national voluntary youth organisations' that attended a conference. Since then, the charity has evolved in many ways and is now made of four distinct formats that young people can take part in: Volunteering, Physical, Skills and Expedition. In 2024 over 130 countries and territories take part and offer placement. The mission remains the same: 'to empower young people; to support them as they learn new skills, overcome obstacles, and build confidence and resilience'.
Prince George may rule like King Charles
Prince George is currently second in line to the throne, just after his father, Prince William. Even though King Charles has only been monarch for close to 2 years, there are already speculations on the way young Prince George will rule.
Indeed, on May 18, a documentary aired on Channel 5, predicting the way George will be king. The documentary was entitled Prince George: A King for the Future. As per Daily Mail, it is believed that Prince George will inherit his grandfather’s smaller inner Firm circle.
Since Charles has been King, he has opted for a slimmed-down monarchy, meaning there are fewer working royals. Simon Vigar, the royal correspondent for 5 News, believes that when Prince George becomes King, he will follow the same structure:
It is less formal, it's not quite as starchy as it used to be, and I think George will continue that.
Vigar adds that Prince George will be the first future monarch to have a ‘commoner’ as a mother, meaning tradition will already have been broken.
Moreover, Richard Key, Editor-at-Large at Daily Mail, explains that by the time Prince George is King, the British Monarch will be more like the monarchies in mainland Europe, as reported by Daily Mail.
We have to adjust our expectations and by the time George becomes king, the monarchy will be very different.
Read more:
⋙ King Charles will become Prince George's mentor as he gets older
Sources used:
Daily Mail: ‘Prince George will lead a 'less formal and starchy' modern monarchy when he is King - but may miss out on 'important' lessons in 'discipline' if he skips military service - royal experts say
Hello!: ‘Prince William reveals incredible way Prince George takes after him and Prince Harry’
