She has been born into an extraordinary world of wealth and privilege and, as the granddaughter of the current King and daughter of the next, has a lifetime of public duty ahead of her. For the moment though, Princess Charlotte will be just like every other little girl, looking forward to her birthday and the host of treats it might bring.
After an emotional and challenging few months for the family, with both her grandfather King Charles and mum, the Princess of Wales, receiving a diagnosis of cancer, the little princess’s ninth birthday on Thursday, 2 May will surely provide a much-needed boost for her parents and the wider Royal Family.
“I’m certain the children will have been bringing Kate some much needed distraction and laughter at this tough time,” former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond tells OK!. “Children are quite resilient and Charlotte is clearly such a sweet and caring little girl.”
While Charlotte will be spending much of the day itself in the classroom at Lambrook School, Jennie predicts William and Kate will throw all their energy into making the day as memorable as possible when the birthday girl arrives back home. “Hopefully Kate is getting her strength back more every day and she will be able to concentrate on making Charlotte’s birthday as magical as possible in the circumstances," she shares.
"She’ll make sure all the attention is on her daughter, and not on her. And that’s quite a healthy approach. Dwelling on illness doesn’t help anyone, so the children will be a significant part of Kate’s recovery.
“William and Kate are making every effort to keep things as normal as possible for George, Charlotte and Louis’ sake. They don’t want Kate’s diagnosis to overshadow their lives and want their happiness to very much be their priority.
“Even though it will be a school day, I’m sure William and Kate will celebrate Charlotte’s birthday on Thursday in Windsor with her friends as usual and make it as special as possible. It’s a busy time for the family with Prince Louis ’ birthday and their wedding anniversary a few days before, so there’s been a lot to celebrate recently after everything that has happened.”
On 23 April, a new photograph of Prince Louis – which was taken by Kate – was released on the Prince and Princess of Wales’ social media channels to mark his recent sixth birthday. Understood to have been taken in the preceding days, it came with a caption that read, “Happy 6th Birthday, Prince Louis! Thank you for all the kind wishes today,” and was understood to have been a way of thanking those who had wished the family well, while maintaining their privacy.
And there can be little doubt that the young prince’s trademark sense of fun runs in the family. During his engagement in the West Midlands at St Michael’s Church of England High School, Prince William joked about his daughter’s sense of humour and shared her favourite knock-knock joke about an interrupting cow, saying: “That’s one I hear a lot at home at the moment!” As the youngsters around the table asked, “Interrupting Cow who?” the royal let out an abrupt “Moo”.
It’s Charlotte’s humour and playfulness that will not have only provided her mother with a boost during her treatment, but also her grandfather Charles. Jennie muses: “We know that Charles was desperate for a daughter, and he’s absolutely found one in his ‘darling daughter-in-law’ Kate – but even better is that he’s got a really special bond with his little granddaughter, who he clearly adores.
"The King had a magical relationship with his grandmother, the Queen Mother. And I’m sure his dearest wish is to give his grandchildren a similar strong and loving relationship. For all his serious ponderings on the state of the world, Charles is quite a soppy old thing really and I’m sure he hugely values the time he spends with his grandchildren.”
Princess Charlotte has certainly made her mark on royal watchers all over the world for the way she has pointedly reminded her brothers of protocol during official engagements – most poignantly when she appeared to tell George “You need to bow” when Queen Elizabeth’s coffin came past them at her funeral – and shared affectionate moments with her parents in public.
“Charlotte strikes me as quite a confident young lady, but with two brothers, she will no doubt be looking to her mother and other women in the family as role models. She is reaching the age when she can really appreciate her mother’s sense of style and they can share ‘girlie’ moments together. Kate also provides the perfect role model for how to behave as a senior member of the Royal Family.”
Charlotte in particular benefits from the close-knit relationship she has with her mother, her grandmother Carole Middleton, and her aunt Pippa Matthews.
“Princess Charlotte always looks very demure and ladylike in public, but actually I think she’s those things at first, but she’s kind of eyeing up what’s around her. And then some of her real personality comes out, which I think is a confident, bubbly girl who has a great sense of fun. She’s not a tomboy by any means, but really enjoys outdoor adventurous activities and sport just as much as her brothers.
“She’s very sporty, judging by previous stories her parents have told, and is surrounded by really positive female role models in her mother, her grandmother Carole and aunt Pippa. They are strong working women who have combined their careers with being great mums as well. I think she’s a pretty well rounded little girl.”
Even though she’s still less than a decade old, Princess Charlotte is already a part of history. The rules of primogeniture – which historically saw any female heir unseated if a younger brother was born – were altered in the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, meaning that any younger brother born after this date can no longer leapfrog an older sister.
“I think we will be in a very modern era when the time comes. I question whether Charlotte will want to be burdened with more titles. She might be a working woman by then. Things could change so much in the next generation,” says Jennie. “The natural option it would seem to me is that she might become Princess Royal. That’s the much more traditional route for the eldest daughter.”
The Princess Royal is typically the eldest daughter of the monarch and it works in much the same way as the Prince of Wales title for both senior and high-ranking members of the Royal Family.
Jennie adds: “I also think she might just feel she wants to remain simply as Princess Charlotte. We’ve got William and Catherine who quite often tell the public to call them by their first names, so maybe their daughter will follow suit. Perhaps Charlotte will not even use the Princess title by the time she’s grown up and definitely won’t want to be burdened with more titles.”
While all the Wales children still have many years to go before they become fully fledged senior royals, a life in service is something firmly planted in their futures.
When George, now 10, Charlotte and Louis turn 21, they will become eligible to be Counsellors of State, which means they can step in for the monarch if they are abroad, ill or otherwise incapacitated. The current Counsellors of State for the King are Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, Princess Beatrice, Prince Edward and Princess Anne.
