2024 is slowly ending, which means that the annual report of the Royal Family’s work has been released.Their royal engagements have been recorded in a document called the Court Circular.
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As expected, not every family member can work as much as another. This is reflected in the annual ranking of the hardest-working royal.
According to reports, Princess Anne has once again claimed first place, swiftly followed by her brother, King Charles. In a not-so-surprising turn of events, the future King, Prince William is not in the top five.
So, who is in the top five and how many events did the royals undertake during 2024?
Who are the top five hardest-working Royals in 2024?
Princess Anne
Princess Anne, 74, has been crowned the hardest-working royal four years in a row. As per findings from SEO Agency Reboot Online, the Princess Royal undertook a massive 217 engagements so far in 2024.
Even though the Princess Royal has undertaken more engagements than her relatives, it also hasn’t been an easy year for her.
Indeed, during the summer, Princess Anne suffered a head injury after being kicked by a horse. Naturally, following the accident, the 74-year-old was forced to cancel several engagements due to hospitalisation.
Despite her injury, the Princess Royal was still named the hardest-working Royal. Following her brother’s cancer diagnosis back in February 2024, Princess Anne stepped in on his behalf for many public engagements.
As per People, Princess Anne’s busiest month so far has been November, when she undertook 28 engagements.
Following Princess Anne is her brother, King Charles.
King Charles
Despite taking a step back earlier in the year after his cancer diagnosis, the King undertook 186 engagements throughout 2024. It is only natural that his number of engagements decreased compared to the prior year as he focused on his health.
As per Express, the King’s busiest month in 2024 was October, when he attended 26 engagements. December is said to be his slowest, with just one engagement planned so far.
Prince Richard
Third place for hardest-working Royal goes to the Duke of Gloucester, Prince Richard. The Duke of Gloucester overtook Prince Edward, who was ranked third last year. Prince Richard attended 126 engagements, compared to 113 in 2023.
Prince Edward and Sophie
Prince Edward takes fourth place this year, attending 124 royal engagements, with his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh in fifth place attending 108 events.
2024 has been an unusual year for the Royal Family due to various health reasons. As a result, several members of the family stepped up to help support the King.
Prince William didn’t make the top five in 2024
As you likely noticed, Prince William didn’t make the top five this year. This is not so surprising considering his wife, Princess Kate announced earlier in the year she also had cancer. In order to support his wife and three young children, Prince William took a step back from royal duties for several months.
As per Express, the Prince of Wales placed seventh in the list of hardest-working royals, with a total of 71 engagements.
Indeed, as per Newsweek, the father-of-three attended one engagement in January, four in February, six in March and four in April. The months of May and June saw a slight increase, with 10 and 13 engagements respectively.
However, in July and August, he took a significant break. In July Prince William attended five engagements and none in August, which is when he and his family took their summer holiday.
Towards the end of the year, the future King picked up the pace slightly, returning to his duties. In September he attended seven engagements, eight in October and 13 in November.
Prince William says 2024 was the ‘hardest year in my life’
Since Princess Kate’s cancer diagnosis, Prince William has been more open about life at home. During the earthshot prize ceremony in Cape Town, South Africa, the father-of-three gave some insight into his feelings about the year 2024.
During an interview, he revealed that with his father’s and wife’s health, 2024 has been ‘dreadful’ and the ‘hardest year’ of his life, as per People.
It's been dreadful. It's probably been the hardest year in my life.
The Prince of Wales also explained that it’s been ‘really difficult’ to keep everything running smooth.
So, trying to get through everything else and keep everything on track has been really difficult.
It was also during his visit to Cape Town that Prince William revealed he had made his daughter, Princess Charlotte cry due to his beard.
Prince William also reflected on how his wife and father dealt with their respective health issues, saying that he is ‘so proud’ of them both.
But I'm so proud of my wife, I'm proud of my father, for handling the things that they have done. But from a personal family point of view, it's been, yeah, it's been brutal.
He added that he ‘couldn’t be less relaxed’ in 2024 but he explained that he still had to get on with things and ‘keep going’. He shared that he ‘loves’ his work but also wants to maintain a healthy balance between work and home.
As per People, he said:
I couldn’t be less relaxed this year, so it’s very interesting you’re all seeing that.
But it’s more a case of just crack on and you’ve got to keep going. I enjoy my work and I enjoy pacing myself and keeping sure that I have got time for my family, too.
Read more:
Princess Anne's life in images: How she became the 'hardest working royal'
Princess Anne: This is how the royal has become King Charles right-hand woman
King Charles and Prince William accused of 'receiving millions from public bodies and charities'
Sources used:
Newsweek: ‘King Charles Worked More Days Than Prince William Despite Cancer’
People: ‘Princess Anne Continues Streak as Hardest Working Member of the Royal Family, Even After Her Concussion and Hospitalization’
People: ‘Prince William Breaks Silence on 'Brutal' 2024 amid Kate Middleton and King Charles' Cancer Diagnoses: 'Hardest Year in My Life'
Instyle: ‘How Princess Anne’s 2024 Head Injury Impacted Her Professional Ranking Among Royals’
Express: ‘Princess Anne crowned hardest-working royal again as surprise member takes third spot’
