Prince George may be turning 8 this year, but he's already been told about what lies ahead for him by
his parents, Prince William and Kate Middleton. In his book "Battle of Brothers: William & Harry
- The Inside Story of a Family in Tumult," royal expert Robert Lacey revealed that, in the summer
of 2020 when Prince George turned 7, his parents told him that he was going to become king someday.
Lacey's nugget fits in with what one royal insider told Us Weekly back in August of 2020,
alleging that Prince William had already told George of his fate. The future king
was apparently not stunned, but George was reportedly interested in learning more about his
family in history class in preparation for his future regal role. The insider went on to say,
"As George is only 7 years old, William tries not to overwhelm him with too much information,
but George is aware that there's a lot more to being king than how
the role is portrayed in Disney movies and children's books."
Admittedly, 7 is a bit young to be told that the rest of your life isn't likely going to be easy,
but, as Lacey points out, Prince George probably found out about his fate much
later than most royal children in his position do. During a 2016 interview with the BBC, when
asked whether Prince George knew that his family wasn't like other families, Prince William said,
"Within our family unit, we are a normal family [...] There will be a time and a place to bring
George up, and understand how he fits in in the world. But right now it's just a case of
keeping a secure, stable environment around him and showing as much love as I can as a father."
"I love my children the same way any father does, and I hope George loves me the same way."
Prince William has some experience with finding out that his future was
predetermined before he was ready to hear it. Like him, his mother Diana,
Princess of Wales, had been determined to give him as normal an upbringing
as possible. And according to royal author Andrew Morton, before he had started school,
"[Prince William] genuinely had no idea that he was any different from anyone else."
But, Morton says, that changed as soon as William started school,
as other students reportedly let the prince know who he was. Morton said,
"On one occasion a classmate reportedly asked him:
'Don't you know the Queen?' William looked at him and replied: 'Don't you mean Granny?'"
Princess Diana has also told outsiders in the past that William didn't want to be
king when he was growing up. British broadcaster Jeremy Paxman recalls,
"[Princess Diana and I] talked about our children and she said William often told her that he didn't
really want to be king, and then Harry would say, 'If you don't want the job I'll have it.'"
In a 1969 interview, via the International Business Times,
William's father, Prince Charles, described the experience as one of gradual awakening. He said,
"I didn't just wake up in my pram one day and say 'Yippee!'
I think it just dawns on you slowly, that people are interested,
and slowly you get the idea that you have a certain duty and responsibility."
Prince William's decision to speak to George in the manner that he
did reflected the disquiet he felt over his own upbringing, as Lacey wrote in his book,
"[There was] unhappiness at the haphazard fashion in which the
whole business of his royal destiny had buzzed around his head from the start."
Other royal experts like Katie Nicholl have said that George understands that
he's a bit different from his siblings, but that has to do with the fact that he gets to
take photos with his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth. But Nicholl also told OK! in 2020,
"I don't think William and Kate have made a big thing of saying to George,
'One day you will be King.' They want to protect him from that moment,
so it's an idea that's being introduced to him gradually.
The true enormity of what his life will one day be isn't something he's fully aware of yet."
Like Lacey, Nicholl said that William had struggled with the
idea of one day becoming king, telling OK!,
"As a young man, William really struggled with that notion of kingship.
The realization that he had no choice about which path his life would take,
that he couldn't become a doctor or a vet if he chose, weighed very heavily on him."
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