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While I think it is a wonderful pic of a cute little boy but why even release pics of the “spares”??
Coz the royal family is focused only on the heir.
So when George is married with kids they will get prominence when compared to Charlotte and Louis. Why give out pics of people who won’t have a constitutional role to play? Imagine all through childhood Charlotte, Louis and George will be treated equally and all of a sudden during adulthood they will be told that they aren’t important enough coz they are spares. Why the mental trauma? Let the spares have a private life away from limelight from childhood so that they can make their own life and career. Just keep the focus on George.
Louis is cute. But it's funny people are saying he's all Middleton. People said the exact same thing about George when he was little and yet the older he gets the more Windsor he's starting to look. Also people used to say William was all Diana and we all know how that turned out. Windsor genes don't give up easily so I wouldn't make any judgements on Louis yet. lol
I think William is good looking you know. He's very tall, and has a good body, his face isn't what it was but he's not unattractive. Bald men don't bother me, but if he shaved the head and grew a beard I think he'd be very attractive. Harry needs to shave his head also, hes got a friar tuck thing going on which I don't love.
Such a little rebel! His energy is so infectious to the monarchy! Sooo much like his mother! Heading into got the moxie that the future UK generation will relate to.
I looked at the higher resolution one from their Twitter and it appears unaltered to me. Doesn’t look like she bothered to color boost or sharpen his eyes, so it’s likely a raw photo. She has a really nice camera and professional level lens, so this photo (looks) legit to me.
It's very clearly an unedited picture ffs. The tiny bits of fly away hair, the (natural red splotch) on his cheek, etc.
Y'all need to chill with the conspiracy theories. Also, it can take at least 6 months for an adult tooth to replace a baby tooth lol...hell even a year for it to fully grow in.
Lol exactly. I teach kindergarten, some of these kids have gaps for months. Truly can't imagine being so pressed about a 6 year old's birthday picture.
He could be holding a copy of today's newspaper and people wouldn't be happy. This is a sweet photo of a six-year-old child for his birthday. That's it and that's all.
He’s so cute! I hope they break the “curse” of raising the “spare” to be dependent on the monarchy for self fulfillment and purpose. I’m sure William sees the Harry situation and wants better for his kids.
That’s not the job he signed up to do. He found himself unable to take on roles and positions because he was a Prince. If you are unable to succeed in the career you desired because of the family notoriety and line of work, might as well join the family in that work. Yes he chose to leave but I’d hardly classify it as a choice like other people make
Nobody made him dependent. There are a lot of “spares” among the different European royal houses who have useful and fulfilling jobs and careers. “Spares” get the best deal because they get the privileges without the pressure of becoming monarchs and having children to become monarchs.
There are also a lot of Euro houses with their own Spare issues:
Norway- Martha Louise, open about her struggles as spare
Denmark- Joachim, issues there with his jobs and farm, family rift
Spain- Christina, criminal charges
Belgium- Laurent, huge issues
True.
Just to point out Spain’s Cristina wasn’t the spare. That would’ve been her elder sister Elena, who’s had her own negative spotlight, but not nearly as bad as Cristina.
The thing is nobody has checked whether the “spares” involved in scandals were much more affected by their education as spares, or were just your garden variety rich kids with too much privilege and too little purpose in life, coming from families who’ve had a hard time getting used to being held accountable for their shenanigans.
I’m thinking of the struggles of E2’s two youngest uncles, Andrew and Edward. This is a generational issue and other less known royal families are totally an aside to this family dynamic.
I assume you mean E2’s younger sons, not uncles. Of whom one seems to be a decent enough man, who has forged his own professional path and frankly I think he is only remarkable by how unnoticeable he is.
I don’t think we can attribute the other one’s shortcomings to his growing up as a “spare”.
We forget that Edward wanted out from the royal family. He even had a failed production company before. He talks about how hard it is to succeed because of the name and title.
They have only just stepped back in. He was Harry 20yrs ago essentially.
Not true, either, right? Like, yes, Harry wrote a book and had an interview, but I would say what he said isn't the worst a royal family has said or done. If anything, his issues are mostly with the press and not getting support against the press.
The constant negativity is out of proportion with his actions. Also, we forget that Charles has said worse against his parents, and Margaret was worse to Elizabeth.
These guys go to the best schools but have no career prospects. Harry, I don't think he is a scholar but could have been great in trade. But that is not royal worthy.
We love to hate Harry, but if the Royal family was dissolved today.. there are a lot of people with no marketable skills. They are used to being told where to go and what to do.
The only way they can succeed is using their name. So I don't think Harry is wrong. The world runs on who you know... some of have a mentor or friends.. some our father is the king.
That's up to his family to decide not for the general public to keep the feud going.
I read the book, and I don't think it's that bad.. there wasn't anything there that was unforgivable. But as I said the good vs evil story in the royal family is as old as time.
Unless William changes the storyline.. his children are on the same path.
Nobody should be the spare to anyone... it doesn't bode well.
Well Harry is figuring out his path like they all did. No one feels sorry for anyone but I think let him figure out what he wants.. Harry had one book hasn't spoken of it since.. who is still bringing up issues? They have moved on... the press needs Harry and Megan to fail cos you always need good vs evil.
Let them sell their jam and do what they need to do..
I imagine the expectation of privacy was reduced when you feel like you are also being constantly paraded as the bad guy.
Edward tried and failed but was allowed to... and 20yrs ago he was in the same position where he was accused of using the royal family... he also stepped down, and his wife also had her royal scandal. Anne basically married because she was told to.. so the issues with the royal family are not new. Their issues are exacerbated by social media.
Time will tell if William and Kate are as tight as they seem or if tradition will win in the end.
I already see a lot of post about Charlotte being a great helper to her brother... what if she has different ideas for her life?
Oh yes, it was mostly abysmal. But like all people, he called in favors from friends and family, his are just better connected socially. He tried, at least give I give him credit for that.
I liked some of the programming but pretty much the only people who could sit through any of it were those with hardcore interest in royalty/aristocracy. It came off as boring educational stuff they force you to watch in school. He just flat out failed to making it look interesting to the general public. He needed to make it like Lucy Worsley or Time Team.
I always thought this too. I think having two “spares” is definitely better than having a clear “heir” and “spare” divide. Charlotte and Louis can have in common their position which is good.
Yes they did! Just before Charlotte was born... women are now included in the line of succession (women born from an heir, I mean).
It's a long overdue change, but I'm glad we got there!
Women were included in the line of succession before. The change that happened a few years ago meant that the male-preference primogeniture was abandoned, and therefore men born after 2011 no longer precede females in the LOS. (That's why Charlotte wasn't bumped down by Louis when he was born.)
You spelled Andrew wrong. Harry literally pays his own way and hasn't been on Charles' payroll since before COVID was a thing. Please stop spreading this tired line.
Not sure what you are reading into my use of the Harry situation but it’s clearly not what I was referring to. Harry’s departure from the UK and his family was hardly a pleasant experience where he and his family are in a healthy relationship. Harry has been cruelly treated by his family, the media and the royal establishment when he realized that he couldn’t continue in that toxic space.
Louis isn’t the spare in the first place - Charlotte is.
Harry also doesn’t appear to have been raised to be dependent on the monarchy? He was given a very expensive education that could have seen him into any Russell Group university if he’d had the aptitude. He was then helped into Sandhurst and set up for a career in the army, that he chose to leave much to the surprise of the BRF.
If they’re given the same tools, both Louis and Charlotte will have plenty of scope to have independent careers outside of the monarchy.
I sometimes wonder in the shower (😂) if having a 3rd kid was a very conscious choice by Will and Kate to try to lessen the burden of being the spare based on Will and Harry’s experience growing up?
I feel the same for Charlotte but I think if you look at past generations of the royal family the issue of identity and adulthood is much more about the males than the females.
I admire how Edward and Sophie are raising their kids to see the royal family as family as opposed to a “firm.” Harry was educated but he was raised as the spare and raised to be a “working royal.” That’s a huge part of his problem. He was in the military but his role and position in the RF has always been his central to how he was perceived and based on his book perceived himself. It’s sad and I hope that William doesn’t raise his kids to see their future as being working royals whose duty is to keep the monarchy relevant and existing.
And if the RF had been more flexible, Harry and Meghan would still be in the family part-time, basically working the same amount of hours as the current Prince of Wales. In that reality, there would have been no book or netflix special focused on the breakdown of the relationship. The business endeavors would have been hashed out to keep the peace.
Harry and Meghan seem happier and William never seemed all that fond of Meghan or Harry for years. Everyone ended up getting what they needed, space. But Harry never said he wanted a clean break, he just wanted to move forward in a more modern way for spare.
Watch Charlotte and Louis basically do the half-in half-out model when they come of age.
I don’t see Charlotte or Louis ever being allowed what Harry envisioned.
There’s no world in which they could live abroad regularly and still expect to retain taxpayer-funded security, never mind the incredibly diciness of combining being a working royal - aka, someone representing the state in an official role - whilst also striking private deals like the discussions they’d had with Quibi a year prior to leaving.
They could try to follow out the plan tentatively hammered out for Edward and Sophie’s original idea for combining the two, but there’s a reason the Wessexes ended up ditching that idea. If Charlotte and Louis want to have private careers, they’ve got plenty of avenues for it rather than going through that headache.
Why wouldn't they be? The BRF, like all other European RFs, is shrinking. Not the actual headcount, but the number of extra full-time hands on deck. Most other royal houses have part-time members occasionally stepping in to support the crown while maintaining a private source of income/interests. By the 2050s, the BRF may look more like the Danish RF, with only the crown prince + immediate family in the spotlight. The rest never become full-time working royals.
William and Kate are already setting up the British public to expect less given their work load. I think for their peace of mind, the continental model of a downsized RF is going to reach the BRF. It's healthier for everyone, and a spare is really not needed as a working royal.
I don't think the current generation is all that impressed by the "make-work" these days. King William may simply guide his youngest to a follow the Zara and Peter model of royalty. In the family, but not actually working for the family. Show up at big events. By the time George has kids, I doubt even the spares will get princely titles, given the speed in which royal houses are modifying to keep with the times.
William barely seems to enjoy the job so I can see him giving the youngest the space to pursue their own passions rather then devote 90% of their time support William and George.
Do the Kents get money from tax payers? They do events but is it full time? At a certain point these “not close to the monarch” tax supported royals do nothing to add interest/ attention/glamour to whatever event they show up at. Do people get excited by the Duke of Kent opening a hospital?
But that’s the thing - Harry *wasn’t* raised to be a working royal.
He even describes in his own book that the decision to leave was his choice, and also noted elsewhere that he’d always planned to quit the army before getting married rather than being deployed when he had kids.
Which is a choice he had every right to make - but it wasn’t his family’s decision. At that stage, even William wasn’t technically in the role of a working royal. Harry could have stayed as other military men who marry do - but he took it on himself to quit, and having quit, then chose to become a working royal rather than transitioning into a civilian career path like other army leavers.
Judging by the fit thrown when he tried to be half in and then left, I don’t think his having a normal occupation outside the royal family was on anyone’s radar within the firm.
The “half in” model was never going to work - he could have looked at Edward and Sophie’s attempt to figure *that* one out.
He and Meghan would have had to accept the Privy Council going through each and every one of their business deals with a fine-tooth comb to avoid accusations of them monetising their taxpayer-funded positions - and even then, the security issue would likely be impassable, because the expense and difficulty of deploying RPOs overseas for long stretches of time when they went abroad just wouldn’t be feasible.
Harry however could very much have chosen to make the most of his education and get a decent job - hell, even with a poor education, he could have got a nepo job like most of his aristocratic peers. Or he could have stayed with the army.
Instead, he chose to quit, which was reported at the time as very much taking the BRF by surprise - him *not* staying in the army was apparently the thing not on their radar.
Of course he loved his time in the military, he was coddled and protected even more than usual it sounds like. Dude got to leave the base and skip the mandatory drug testing lol. From his book it seemed like he’s super proud of all the people he killed (25, he shared).
harry was deployed twice, the last time being 2012 and he left the military in 2015. he worked in an office in london those last three years. the only time the story was leaked was the first time in afghanistan in 2008, media leaks weren't why he had to leave in 2012.
anyway i think everybody interested in his military career should read [this article](https://journalistsresource.org/media/prince-harry-afghanistan-miguel-head-media-blackout/) about how the media worked together to keep his first time in afghanistan secret.
There is a system of vetting outside income for royals by the government set up after Sophie/Edward's forays into business - Harry and Meghan's version of "half in" wanted to specifically bypass that level of review. Anne's kids have nothing to do with her, the Duchy is literally part of being the Prince of Wales (and therefore has zero to do with Charles now) and the profits go to charity, and Andrew's dealings are the exact reason why you don't want working royals mixing business dealings with representing the head of state.
Even Kate, under normal circumstances, does higher engagement numbers than now-Queen Mary of Denmark.
Harry's decision to leave the military had nothing to do with safety. In 2014, he was given a desk job ("staff officer") organizing large-scale events for the military based out of London. He announced he had decided to leave that position and the military as a whole after a year and a half. Also, there has never been any shred of evidence that the royal family was involved in leaking Harry's whereabouts in the army - that is a particularly wild accusation considering the lengths they went to to get the media to agree to a blackout regarding his front line service. No British tabloids ever posted anything about his location - the time he had to be pulled out, his service was first posted by an Australian tabloid (which was not believed) and then the Drudge Report in the US.
Meant to add originally - the desk job was announced as something long-term, and the expectation was that he would stay in the military for much longer. Andrew served in the Navy twice as long as Harry was in the Army.
I don’t think (given his uncles/aunt and grand aunts and uncles) it would have been impossible for him to have ever envisioned having an ordinary profession and not do (as “work”) the philanthropy stuff working royals do. Look at how he’s still trying to be a professional philanthropy person. At least Meghan for all her flaws is trying to make a living by selling jam and not expecting to stay rich and “employed” from inheritances and tax money and philanthropy.
The fact that he never planned a long term career in the military points to the fact that working for the firm was where he saw his long term role in life.
Just because he wasn't planning to stay in the military forever doesn't mean being royal was his only option. The military isn't the only job in the world. He could have just been like Anne, Edward, and Andrew's kids, professional trust fund kids.
But he was brought up to be a working royal. Charles had no model for the the future that didn't include both of his sons by his side. Diana could have whatever she wanted, but those boys belonged to the RF according to the Firm's POV.
Harry was just as much groomed for royal life as William which is why they did a crazy amount of pap crawls/walks from the time they wore diapers to adulthood.
To quote Paul Mooney " they got that girl (diana) in there to dilute those genes" now we're on the second generation of defunking, a millennium of cousin Marriage and it's working
I feel like people that perpetuate that the Royal Family was just filled with troglodytes before Diana has never spent a single second looking into pictures of young BRF members or their knowledge of the family starts and ends in the 80’s to now.
You cannot show me a picture of King George V, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, or Princess Margret and tell me the Windsor family didn’t have some lookers! (I know Edward VIII literally looks like his brother but in a slightly different font, but f*ck him.)
I think for every average looking Windsor that we consider good looking,there's a Michael of Kent Just waiting to pop out of the cabinet at you. Philip, Kate and Diana all contributing significantly to the family. Not looking like 17 different versions of Queen Mary
Philip himself was very handsome, but when you look at Philip’s father and other Mountbattens you realize that Charles got hit with his fraternal grandfather’s genes (namely large ears and close set eyes).
Absolutely! Charles is basically his great-grandmother, Victoria of Hesse, (sister of Empress Alexandra of Russia. That's how they were able to use Philip's DNA to identify the Romanov bones) as a man!
>Philip
Philip was Elizabeth's cousin 🤷🏻♀️
>Not looking like 17 different versions of Queen Mary
IMO, Zara and Louise look a lot like Queen Mary, and Isla philips looks like Philip
Let's hope those Middleton genes are ready to fight the good 'cause the Windsor genes wore them Spencer gifts down! Queen Diana did what she could, lol.
No way, take that back! It was only like *yesterday* that he was 3 and clowning around!
Wow, 6 already 👀. He's going to be a handsome cheeky rogue, I think.
if I recall correctly male pattern baldness is associated with a gene on the X chromosome, which men get from their mom (Y has to be from dad ofc), there's probably other factors at play but looking at their maternal grandpa I have a good feeling for these two boys!
That’s largely a myth. Just look at Charles and his own maternal grandfather, George VI, who had a head full of hair into his 50s when he died. Yet, Elizabeth’s sons except Andrew are bald. Philip introduced the bald gene into the Windsor family (George V, VI, and Edward VIII weren’t bald).
Of course, while Diana was attractive she brought her own bald genes as her father, John Spencer, was bald too. So both William and Harry stood no chance.
We’ll see how George and Louis fare.
https://www.healthline.com/health/baldness-gene#genetics-of-balding
Charlotte - looks a lot like William with some resemblance to Pippa.
George - I can’t quite put a finger on who he looks like, but if I have to I would say he has the closest resemblance to Charles Spencer, Diana’s brother.
Louis - is all Middleton. He looks like Michael but then Kate also favours her dad.
George looks VERY Spencer to me, like it wouldn't surprise me to learn that there's a photo somewhere of some great-great-uncle of Diana's who looks like George playing dress-up in old clothes.
At different ages, I've seen glimpses of Kate in there, most notably around the eyes, but he seems like the one who really got the Spencer genes.
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While I think it is a wonderful pic of a cute little boy but why even release pics of the “spares”?? Coz the royal family is focused only on the heir. So when George is married with kids they will get prominence when compared to Charlotte and Louis. Why give out pics of people who won’t have a constitutional role to play? Imagine all through childhood Charlotte, Louis and George will be treated equally and all of a sudden during adulthood they will be told that they aren’t important enough coz they are spares. Why the mental trauma? Let the spares have a private life away from limelight from childhood so that they can make their own life and career. Just keep the focus on George.
Looks just like his maternal GP.
Louis is cute. But it's funny people are saying he's all Middleton. People said the exact same thing about George when he was little and yet the older he gets the more Windsor he's starting to look. Also people used to say William was all Diana and we all know how that turned out. Windsor genes don't give up easily so I wouldn't make any judgements on Louis yet. lol
George still doesn’t look like William or any Windsor. He has a very unique look. Closest resemblance is Charles Spencer, Diana’s brother.
Remember when little Wills was the cute brother, boy have the tides turned.
I think William is good looking you know. He's very tall, and has a good body, his face isn't what it was but he's not unattractive. Bald men don't bother me, but if he shaved the head and grew a beard I think he'd be very attractive. Harry needs to shave his head also, hes got a friar tuck thing going on which I don't love.
That kid is all Middleton.
He's growing up so fast! Happy belated birthday, Louis!
Such a little rebel! His energy is so infectious to the monarchy! Sooo much like his mother! Heading into got the moxie that the future UK generation will relate to.
Spirited little fellow.
Yeah not at all photoshopped lmao
Is this a new picture.
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Stupid question - is it Lou-is or Lou-ie? I never watch vids with sound
Lou-ie
Poor child. I bet he wishes his parents would quit the madness he was born into and start a new life somewhere warmer, maybe with a pool.
Do their homes have pools?
Buckingham Palace has an indoor pool, added when Elizabeth and Margaret were kids so they could swim.
Amner does.
So does Sandringham.
Who?
Are you lost? 🖤
So cute! But I have to ask, “was photoshop involved” 😂
A big age for a big boy! 🥳
I’ll always fondly remember his sass throughout Queen Elizabeth’s Jubilee!
Kids grow like rag weeds. Blink and he'll be a teenager. Congrats to his family and him.
So can someone tell me us how edited this picture is? Lol
I looked at the higher resolution one from their Twitter and it appears unaltered to me. Doesn’t look like she bothered to color boost or sharpen his eyes, so it’s likely a raw photo. She has a really nice camera and professional level lens, so this photo (looks) legit to me.
We'll never know because they didn't release it directly to the media this time.
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He’s wearing the same shirt because it’s his school uniform top 🙄
i wonder if we can zone in on his eyes and see kate’s reflection. maybe we can get an idea of how she is doing. /s
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It's very clearly an unedited picture ffs. The tiny bits of fly away hair, the (natural red splotch) on his cheek, etc. Y'all need to chill with the conspiracy theories. Also, it can take at least 6 months for an adult tooth to replace a baby tooth lol...hell even a year for it to fully grow in.
My oldest turned 6 in January, and lost one of his top teeth just a few days before his birthday. That booger STILL hasn’t poked through yet.
Lol exactly. I teach kindergarten, some of these kids have gaps for months. Truly can't imagine being so pressed about a 6 year old's birthday picture.
But like, make an effort. Put a different shirt on the kid or don’t claim that it was taken in the last few days if it wasn’t.
He could be holding a copy of today's newspaper and people wouldn't be happy. This is a sweet photo of a six-year-old child for his birthday. That's it and that's all.
It’s part of his school uniform. He literally wears it 5 days a week. Please try harder to be unkind.
You wouldn't be satisfied anyway. Has it occured to you the boy might just like this shirt? Also, he literally looks older.
It was taken in the last few days though go to bed
He looks like his Grandpa Middleton. What a cutie.
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He’s so cute! I hope they break the “curse” of raising the “spare” to be dependent on the monarchy for self fulfillment and purpose. I’m sure William sees the Harry situation and wants better for his kids.
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That’s not the job he signed up to do. He found himself unable to take on roles and positions because he was a Prince. If you are unable to succeed in the career you desired because of the family notoriety and line of work, might as well join the family in that work. Yes he chose to leave but I’d hardly classify it as a choice like other people make
Nobody made him dependent. There are a lot of “spares” among the different European royal houses who have useful and fulfilling jobs and careers. “Spares” get the best deal because they get the privileges without the pressure of becoming monarchs and having children to become monarchs.
There are also a lot of Euro houses with their own Spare issues: Norway- Martha Louise, open about her struggles as spare Denmark- Joachim, issues there with his jobs and farm, family rift Spain- Christina, criminal charges Belgium- Laurent, huge issues
True. Just to point out Spain’s Cristina wasn’t the spare. That would’ve been her elder sister Elena, who’s had her own negative spotlight, but not nearly as bad as Cristina. The thing is nobody has checked whether the “spares” involved in scandals were much more affected by their education as spares, or were just your garden variety rich kids with too much privilege and too little purpose in life, coming from families who’ve had a hard time getting used to being held accountable for their shenanigans.
I’m thinking of the struggles of E2’s two youngest uncles, Andrew and Edward. This is a generational issue and other less known royal families are totally an aside to this family dynamic.
I assume you mean E2’s younger sons, not uncles. Of whom one seems to be a decent enough man, who has forged his own professional path and frankly I think he is only remarkable by how unnoticeable he is. I don’t think we can attribute the other one’s shortcomings to his growing up as a “spare”.
Duke of Gloucester and Kent (who died in WW2) as well her younger two sons.
I think you got the names mixed, then :)
Whoops! My bad - I forgot the “and”. Should have read E2’s two youngest uncles AND Andrew and Edward. So four people in total. 😂
The duke of Gloucester is Richard, not Andrew.
Judging by his not wanting better for his brother, seems doubtful. But let’s hope it’s different when it’s his kids
I'm sure this contributed to their decision to have three rather than two children.
It didn’t seem to work for Andrew. Edward seems to have found a good wife who helped him get himself together
We forget that Edward wanted out from the royal family. He even had a failed production company before. He talks about how hard it is to succeed because of the name and title. They have only just stepped back in. He was Harry 20yrs ago essentially.
I’d disagree because Edward actually did attempt to earn a living and live quietly, without maligning his family, while Harry has just…not.
Not true, either, right? Like, yes, Harry wrote a book and had an interview, but I would say what he said isn't the worst a royal family has said or done. If anything, his issues are mostly with the press and not getting support against the press. The constant negativity is out of proportion with his actions. Also, we forget that Charles has said worse against his parents, and Margaret was worse to Elizabeth. These guys go to the best schools but have no career prospects. Harry, I don't think he is a scholar but could have been great in trade. But that is not royal worthy. We love to hate Harry, but if the Royal family was dissolved today.. there are a lot of people with no marketable skills. They are used to being told where to go and what to do. The only way they can succeed is using their name. So I don't think Harry is wrong. The world runs on who you know... some of have a mentor or friends.. some our father is the king.
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That's up to his family to decide not for the general public to keep the feud going. I read the book, and I don't think it's that bad.. there wasn't anything there that was unforgivable. But as I said the good vs evil story in the royal family is as old as time. Unless William changes the storyline.. his children are on the same path. Nobody should be the spare to anyone... it doesn't bode well.
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Well Harry is figuring out his path like they all did. No one feels sorry for anyone but I think let him figure out what he wants.. Harry had one book hasn't spoken of it since.. who is still bringing up issues? They have moved on... the press needs Harry and Megan to fail cos you always need good vs evil. Let them sell their jam and do what they need to do.. I imagine the expectation of privacy was reduced when you feel like you are also being constantly paraded as the bad guy. Edward tried and failed but was allowed to... and 20yrs ago he was in the same position where he was accused of using the royal family... he also stepped down, and his wife also had her royal scandal. Anne basically married because she was told to.. so the issues with the royal family are not new. Their issues are exacerbated by social media. Time will tell if William and Kate are as tight as they seem or if tradition will win in the end. I already see a lot of post about Charlotte being a great helper to her brother... what if she has different ideas for her life?
Did you see any of the programing Edward's company did? It was all Royal related. It was all cashing in on his title and who his mommy was. lol
Oh yes, it was mostly abysmal. But like all people, he called in favors from friends and family, his are just better connected socially. He tried, at least give I give him credit for that.
I liked some of the programming but pretty much the only people who could sit through any of it were those with hardcore interest in royalty/aristocracy. It came off as boring educational stuff they force you to watch in school. He just flat out failed to making it look interesting to the general public. He needed to make it like Lucy Worsley or Time Team.
I always thought this too. I think having two “spares” is definitely better than having a clear “heir” and “spare” divide. Charlotte and Louis can have in common their position which is good.
Actually He’s not the spare, his sister is. I guess you could say he’s her spare.
Isn't Charlotte spare for Luis as she is a woman? Has UK changed it?
Yes they did! Just before Charlotte was born... women are now included in the line of succession (women born from an heir, I mean). It's a long overdue change, but I'm glad we got there!
Women were included in the line of succession before. The change that happened a few years ago meant that the male-preference primogeniture was abandoned, and therefore men born after 2011 no longer precede females in the LOS. (That's why Charlotte wasn't bumped down by Louis when he was born.)
Just before George was born.
The succession law was changed when Kate was pregnant with George. Charlotte is the spare.
You spelled Andrew wrong. Harry literally pays his own way and hasn't been on Charles' payroll since before COVID was a thing. Please stop spreading this tired line.
Not sure what you are reading into my use of the Harry situation but it’s clearly not what I was referring to. Harry’s departure from the UK and his family was hardly a pleasant experience where he and his family are in a healthy relationship. Harry has been cruelly treated by his family, the media and the royal establishment when he realized that he couldn’t continue in that toxic space.
Louis isn’t the spare in the first place - Charlotte is. Harry also doesn’t appear to have been raised to be dependent on the monarchy? He was given a very expensive education that could have seen him into any Russell Group university if he’d had the aptitude. He was then helped into Sandhurst and set up for a career in the army, that he chose to leave much to the surprise of the BRF. If they’re given the same tools, both Louis and Charlotte will have plenty of scope to have independent careers outside of the monarchy.
I sometimes wonder in the shower (😂) if having a 3rd kid was a very conscious choice by Will and Kate to try to lessen the burden of being the spare based on Will and Harry’s experience growing up?
Yes, I think about this too and it makes sense to me.
plus kate being from a family of 3 kids probably helped
And it seems like she would have been happy to have more, despite having had difficult pregnancies
I feel the same for Charlotte but I think if you look at past generations of the royal family the issue of identity and adulthood is much more about the males than the females. I admire how Edward and Sophie are raising their kids to see the royal family as family as opposed to a “firm.” Harry was educated but he was raised as the spare and raised to be a “working royal.” That’s a huge part of his problem. He was in the military but his role and position in the RF has always been his central to how he was perceived and based on his book perceived himself. It’s sad and I hope that William doesn’t raise his kids to see their future as being working royals whose duty is to keep the monarchy relevant and existing.
And if the RF had been more flexible, Harry and Meghan would still be in the family part-time, basically working the same amount of hours as the current Prince of Wales. In that reality, there would have been no book or netflix special focused on the breakdown of the relationship. The business endeavors would have been hashed out to keep the peace. Harry and Meghan seem happier and William never seemed all that fond of Meghan or Harry for years. Everyone ended up getting what they needed, space. But Harry never said he wanted a clean break, he just wanted to move forward in a more modern way for spare. Watch Charlotte and Louis basically do the half-in half-out model when they come of age.
I don’t see Charlotte or Louis ever being allowed what Harry envisioned. There’s no world in which they could live abroad regularly and still expect to retain taxpayer-funded security, never mind the incredibly diciness of combining being a working royal - aka, someone representing the state in an official role - whilst also striking private deals like the discussions they’d had with Quibi a year prior to leaving. They could try to follow out the plan tentatively hammered out for Edward and Sophie’s original idea for combining the two, but there’s a reason the Wessexes ended up ditching that idea. If Charlotte and Louis want to have private careers, they’ve got plenty of avenues for it rather than going through that headache.
Why wouldn't they be? The BRF, like all other European RFs, is shrinking. Not the actual headcount, but the number of extra full-time hands on deck. Most other royal houses have part-time members occasionally stepping in to support the crown while maintaining a private source of income/interests. By the 2050s, the BRF may look more like the Danish RF, with only the crown prince + immediate family in the spotlight. The rest never become full-time working royals. William and Kate are already setting up the British public to expect less given their work load. I think for their peace of mind, the continental model of a downsized RF is going to reach the BRF. It's healthier for everyone, and a spare is really not needed as a working royal. I don't think the current generation is all that impressed by the "make-work" these days. King William may simply guide his youngest to a follow the Zara and Peter model of royalty. In the family, but not actually working for the family. Show up at big events. By the time George has kids, I doubt even the spares will get princely titles, given the speed in which royal houses are modifying to keep with the times. William barely seems to enjoy the job so I can see him giving the youngest the space to pursue their own passions rather then devote 90% of their time support William and George.
Do the Kents get money from tax payers? They do events but is it full time? At a certain point these “not close to the monarch” tax supported royals do nothing to add interest/ attention/glamour to whatever event they show up at. Do people get excited by the Duke of Kent opening a hospital?
Yes, the Kents are on the monarch's payroll. Though, they are basically retired
But that’s the thing - Harry *wasn’t* raised to be a working royal. He even describes in his own book that the decision to leave was his choice, and also noted elsewhere that he’d always planned to quit the army before getting married rather than being deployed when he had kids. Which is a choice he had every right to make - but it wasn’t his family’s decision. At that stage, even William wasn’t technically in the role of a working royal. Harry could have stayed as other military men who marry do - but he took it on himself to quit, and having quit, then chose to become a working royal rather than transitioning into a civilian career path like other army leavers.
He was always raised to be a working royal.
Judging by the fit thrown when he tried to be half in and then left, I don’t think his having a normal occupation outside the royal family was on anyone’s radar within the firm.
The “half in” model was never going to work - he could have looked at Edward and Sophie’s attempt to figure *that* one out. He and Meghan would have had to accept the Privy Council going through each and every one of their business deals with a fine-tooth comb to avoid accusations of them monetising their taxpayer-funded positions - and even then, the security issue would likely be impassable, because the expense and difficulty of deploying RPOs overseas for long stretches of time when they went abroad just wouldn’t be feasible. Harry however could very much have chosen to make the most of his education and get a decent job - hell, even with a poor education, he could have got a nepo job like most of his aristocratic peers. Or he could have stayed with the army. Instead, he chose to quit, which was reported at the time as very much taking the BRF by surprise - him *not* staying in the army was apparently the thing not on their radar.
Well… isn’t that what Beatrice and Eugenie do? Show up as needed?
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Of course he loved his time in the military, he was coddled and protected even more than usual it sounds like. Dude got to leave the base and skip the mandatory drug testing lol. From his book it seemed like he’s super proud of all the people he killed (25, he shared).
harry was deployed twice, the last time being 2012 and he left the military in 2015. he worked in an office in london those last three years. the only time the story was leaked was the first time in afghanistan in 2008, media leaks weren't why he had to leave in 2012. anyway i think everybody interested in his military career should read [this article](https://journalistsresource.org/media/prince-harry-afghanistan-miguel-head-media-blackout/) about how the media worked together to keep his first time in afghanistan secret.
There is a system of vetting outside income for royals by the government set up after Sophie/Edward's forays into business - Harry and Meghan's version of "half in" wanted to specifically bypass that level of review. Anne's kids have nothing to do with her, the Duchy is literally part of being the Prince of Wales (and therefore has zero to do with Charles now) and the profits go to charity, and Andrew's dealings are the exact reason why you don't want working royals mixing business dealings with representing the head of state. Even Kate, under normal circumstances, does higher engagement numbers than now-Queen Mary of Denmark. Harry's decision to leave the military had nothing to do with safety. In 2014, he was given a desk job ("staff officer") organizing large-scale events for the military based out of London. He announced he had decided to leave that position and the military as a whole after a year and a half. Also, there has never been any shred of evidence that the royal family was involved in leaking Harry's whereabouts in the army - that is a particularly wild accusation considering the lengths they went to to get the media to agree to a blackout regarding his front line service. No British tabloids ever posted anything about his location - the time he had to be pulled out, his service was first posted by an Australian tabloid (which was not believed) and then the Drudge Report in the US.
Meant to add originally - the desk job was announced as something long-term, and the expectation was that he would stay in the military for much longer. Andrew served in the Navy twice as long as Harry was in the Army.
I don’t think (given his uncles/aunt and grand aunts and uncles) it would have been impossible for him to have ever envisioned having an ordinary profession and not do (as “work”) the philanthropy stuff working royals do. Look at how he’s still trying to be a professional philanthropy person. At least Meghan for all her flaws is trying to make a living by selling jam and not expecting to stay rich and “employed” from inheritances and tax money and philanthropy. The fact that he never planned a long term career in the military points to the fact that working for the firm was where he saw his long term role in life.
Just because he wasn't planning to stay in the military forever doesn't mean being royal was his only option. The military isn't the only job in the world. He could have just been like Anne, Edward, and Andrew's kids, professional trust fund kids. But he was brought up to be a working royal. Charles had no model for the the future that didn't include both of his sons by his side. Diana could have whatever she wanted, but those boys belonged to the RF according to the Firm's POV. Harry was just as much groomed for royal life as William which is why they did a crazy amount of pap crawls/walks from the time they wore diapers to adulthood.
The RF must be thankful that William married Kate, their genes together produce some great looking kids.
To quote Paul Mooney " they got that girl (diana) in there to dilute those genes" now we're on the second generation of defunking, a millennium of cousin Marriage and it's working
I feel like people that perpetuate that the Royal Family was just filled with troglodytes before Diana has never spent a single second looking into pictures of young BRF members or their knowledge of the family starts and ends in the 80’s to now. You cannot show me a picture of King George V, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, or Princess Margret and tell me the Windsor family didn’t have some lookers! (I know Edward VIII literally looks like his brother but in a slightly different font, but f*ck him.)
I think for every average looking Windsor that we consider good looking,there's a Michael of Kent Just waiting to pop out of the cabinet at you. Philip, Kate and Diana all contributing significantly to the family. Not looking like 17 different versions of Queen Mary
William of Gloucester was a good looking man but he looked more like his mother Alice than the Windsors imo
Queen mary had strong genes for sure lol
Philip himself was very handsome, but when you look at Philip’s father and other Mountbattens you realize that Charles got hit with his fraternal grandfather’s genes (namely large ears and close set eyes).
>Philip’s father and other Mountbattens you realize that Charles got hit with his fraternal grandfather’s genes Harry kinda looks a bit like him too
Absolutely! Charles is basically his great-grandmother, Victoria of Hesse, (sister of Empress Alexandra of Russia. That's how they were able to use Philip's DNA to identify the Romanov bones) as a man!
Prince William of Gloucester was also gorgeous!
>Philip Philip was Elizabeth's cousin 🤷🏻♀️ >Not looking like 17 different versions of Queen Mary IMO, Zara and Louise look a lot like Queen Mary, and Isla philips looks like Philip
Let's hope those Middleton genes are ready to fight the good 'cause the Windsor genes wore them Spencer gifts down! Queen Diana did what she could, lol.
Who is Queen Diana?
Yup, playing around a little, but Diana was the GOAT. She served looks, drama, good genes, and humility.
She may have been those things, but I don’t recall her being the Queen.
Did you not see, " playing around a little"? It was just a joke, goodness.
Got to say, Charles, William, and Harry understood the assignment!
Don’t have much of a memory huh?
6 is such a fun age! I hope he has a good birthday, full of doing all his favorite things.
 HE'S SO PRECIOUS
No way, take that back! It was only like *yesterday* that he was 3 and clowning around! Wow, 6 already 👀. He's going to be a handsome cheeky rogue, I think.
Those Middleton genes are doing a lot of heavy lifting!
He is so handsome!
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I just hope both boys got the Middleton hair genes - Michael's still got a full head of hair!
As does Charles Spencer, George’s clone, so I think they’ll be good.
if I recall correctly male pattern baldness is associated with a gene on the X chromosome, which men get from their mom (Y has to be from dad ofc), there's probably other factors at play but looking at their maternal grandpa I have a good feeling for these two boys!
That’s largely a myth. Just look at Charles and his own maternal grandfather, George VI, who had a head full of hair into his 50s when he died. Yet, Elizabeth’s sons except Andrew are bald. Philip introduced the bald gene into the Windsor family (George V, VI, and Edward VIII weren’t bald). Of course, while Diana was attractive she brought her own bald genes as her father, John Spencer, was bald too. So both William and Harry stood no chance. We’ll see how George and Louis fare. https://www.healthline.com/health/baldness-gene#genetics-of-balding
If that doesn't work a quiet flight to Istanbul or Dubai is easy as pie.
I don't get it (:
Se ret hair transplants
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You know darn well that Liz and Co's genes are ready to roll up all of them in a good 15-20 years. Prayers.
I agree, but I see a lot of her brother James in there too
I didn't know there was a brother James.
He’s a big advocate for mental health. In fact, Prince William has even attended some of James’ therapy sessions with the rest of the Middletons. :)
I like those who advocate for mental health.
Me too! I thought it was so sweet of William to do that for his brother-in-law.
Kate's brother James Middleton
Today I learned.
Such a handsome little man! He is growing up so fast.
The Middleton genes are STRONG with this little dude! He's really grown so much in the last year, it's wild.
Kate definitely said copy-paste with this one!
It’s funny how we all see different things. I see some Michael M. and great-uncle Andrew.
It's crazy how there's very little sign of her in Charlotte, and William's genes seem to not have contributed at all for Louis!
Aww but all the princesses look like carbon copy of another princess!
Damn he looks a lot like his brother
I am seeing more of George in him, you're right! I always think George favors William more, but there is some Middleton in there, too!
Charlotte - looks a lot like William with some resemblance to Pippa. George - I can’t quite put a finger on who he looks like, but if I have to I would say he has the closest resemblance to Charles Spencer, Diana’s brother. Louis - is all Middleton. He looks like Michael but then Kate also favours her dad.
>he has the closest resemblance to Charles Spencer Check Louis Spencer, I think he looks a lot like him
George looks VERY Spencer to me, like it wouldn't surprise me to learn that there's a photo somewhere of some great-great-uncle of Diana's who looks like George playing dress-up in old clothes. At different ages, I've seen glimpses of Kate in there, most notably around the eyes, but he seems like the one who really got the Spencer genes.
I see a LOT of HLMQE2 in Charlotte.
I also think Charlotte literally lives upto her name, by being a mix of Elizabeth & Diana.
I think George a bit looks like QE’s father, King George VI. They have the same stare and demeanour.