Prince Louis and his older sister, Princess Charlotte, will most likely never become king or queen. It’s Prince George who is second in the line of succession after their father, Prince William, and one day expected to head up the British monarchy.
However, though they might never sit a throne, Louis and his Charlotte will have a vital role within the Firm as they grow up.
Their estranged uncle, Prince Harry, has previously expressed his concern over Charlotte and Louis’s futures, publicizing his worry that they’ll be the “spare” to Prince George, as he was for Prince William. Yet William and Kate Middleton have reportedly chosen a different path for the youngsters regarding their childhood.
The Royal Family and its institutions are changing as the world progresses. Their children aren’t being brought up in the same way that, for instance, Prince Harry and Prince William were, and since the monarchy has quite a different role in society today, that might affect Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte.
In fact, according to a new report, Prince William & Kate Middleton seem to have a plan in store for their youngest son, one that has a lot to do with Harry’s upbringing.
Prince Louis is growing up fast. Hard as it is to believe, the prince celebrated his sixth birthday in April, and has become somewhat of a fan favorite among royal fans.
When his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, passed away in 2022, Louis became fourth in line regarding succession to the British throne. While he most likely won’t ever be king, the young prince is, like those before him, tipped to play a crucial role as a senior Royal Family member in the future, much in the same way Princess Anne, King Charles’ sister, does today.
Prince Louis
However, not everyone’s convinced by that prospect, and one apparent doubter is a family member who used to be very close to Louis and his siblings. Louis was just two years old when Harry and his wife left the Royal Family and the country, but even so, the estranged prince has since expressed some strong opinions about his nephew’s future.
The phrase “spare to the heir” has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent years, not least because of Harry. Three years after leaving royal life, in January 2023, he released his book Spare, in which he outlined for the whole world his belief that he would never be considered as important as his big brother, Prince William, who is set to ascend the throne after King Charles.
The phrase “Spare” has become synonymous with Harry, who even claimed that King Charles had uttered the word the day the estranged prince was born.
However, it didn’t stop there. Harry also wrote about Prince Louis and his older sister, Princess Charlotte, revealing that he actively worried about their futures. The Duke wrote plainly that he fears they could end up like him, a “spare.”
In an interview with The Telegraph to promote his book, Harry chose to discuss William and Kate’s three children.
“Though William and I have talked about it once or twice, and he has made it very clear to me that his kids are not my responsibility, I still feel a responsibility knowing that out of those three children, at least one will end up like me, the spare,” Harry said. “And that hurts, that worries me.”
Prince Harry concerned over Prince Louis’ future
Harry continued: “I was brought into the world in case something happened to Willy, I was summoned to provide backup, distraction, diversion and, if necessary, a spare part. Kidney, perhaps. Blood transfusion. Speck of bone marrow. This was all made explicitly clear to me from the start of life’s journey and regularly reinforced thereafter.”
As per the line of succession, Prince William will ascend the throne after King Charles, with Kate Middleton then becoming queen. After William, the crown will pass to Prince George, with his siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, next in line so long as he doesn’t have children of his own.
Spare marked the first time Harry spoke so openly about William and Kate’s children, and it wasn’t long before certain royal experts warned him about doing it more often.
“Harry should lay off Prince William’s children. In fact, he should lay off everybody and button it now,” royal author and Majesty Magazine editor Ingrid Seward told The Sun. “It is a very dangerous road to go down, to start talking about other people’s children.”
She added: “And what he says Prince William said to him is absolutely right – they are William’s responsibility and not his, so he should keep out of it. It is none of Harry’s business. But Harry has become dangerous to his family, and to himself, because he can lob in his little asides whenever he wants.”
Prince William & Kate Middleton’s plan to avoid ‘Spare curese’ for Prince Louis
While Prince Harry enraged his brother and Kate Middleton with many of the allegations and comments made in his book and earlier interviews, royal expert Jennie Bond says that the Prince and Princess of Wales “must be acutely aware” of the problems that could come with Prince Louis—and Princess Charlotte—being a “spare.”
“They have already shown that they have a different and modern attitude to bringing up royal children and I’m sure they will do everything to make Charlotte and Louis feel every bit as special, loved and valued as George,” Bond told the Mirror.
“I imagine they will encourage Louis to explore life outside the royal fold… it could be the military, but it could also be working in the charity world or whatever he finds appealing after his education is finished. I’m sure they will encourage him to go to University, which they both enjoyed and where, of course, they found love.”
The royal expert continued: “And from there they will want him to find a life that is meaningful to him as well as appropriate for the son of a future King. They will try to ensure that he feels he is living a life of value, irrespective of his place in the line of succession and that will probably involve service of some kind as they have emphasised from the start that they want their children to understand that having empathy with others is not only a kindness, but is rewarding as well.”
As Bond suggested, William and Kate might encourage Louis to try new things and find his passion outside of royal life.
“William & Kate don’t want history to repeat itself”
Should he opt to remain in the royal fold, he will likely be handed an important senior role within the monarchy, and with that, significant titles.
But Bond isn’t the only one predicting that Prince Louis could do more than just royal engagements. Speaking to OK!, per Yahoo, Camilla Tominey, royal expert and associate editor at The Telegraph, claimed Prince William and Kate Middleton will want Charlotte and Louis to “have their own careers” if they want to.
“[William & Kate] don’t want history to repeat itself and Prince Louis seem like a royal hanger-on and go down the Duke of York path,” she told the Telegraph.
“A lot of the more minor royals have got careers of their own so they aren’t really being tax payer funded,” she continued. “The extent to which the Cambridges have tried to normalise the lives of their children very much points in the direction of – yes, Prince George has his destiny mapped out but Princess Charlotte and Louis’ having their own careers?’”
Tominey concluded: “They’ve got to get the balance right of what their own children want to do with their lives and their royal commitments.”
“We might be seeing fewer royals in the future than we’re used to. But the question is, are there going to be enough royals to go around?”
Why Prince Louis is absent from sporting events
As mentioned, Prince Louis has become a favorite among royal fans in recent years. He hasn’t joined his parents on many royal engagements, but those appearances he has made have been on special, traditional events such as Trooping the Color or the Christmas Day Service at Sandringham.
Being exposed to public life at such a young age could have a negative effect, and both William and Kate are reportedly aware of this. Speaking on True Royalty TV’s The Royal, royal expert Lizzie Robinson said that Louis is absent from many events because the Prince and Princess of Wales are “careful” when it comes to introducing him to life in the public eye.
“They’ve [Prince and Princess of Wales] been really careful to manage how they’ve done it and what they’ve taken them to,” Robinson explained. “They’ve considered each event on a case-by-case basis. And the fact that Louis wasn’t taken suggests that they are considering what they think is right for each child at what time. So, you know, his time will come.”
Sporting events and being active have always been big interests for Prince William and Kate Middleton. But at significant events such as Euro 2024–to which William brought Prince George –or the Wimbledon final– to which Kate brought Princess Charlotte— Louis hasn’t been present.
GB News royal reporter Svar Nanan-Sen explained that Louis is, simply put, too young.
“One royal child who was not at England’s Euro 2024 defeat or Wimbledon was Prince Louis,” Nanan-Sen said on The Royal Record Podcast, adding that it had “causes quite a stir online,” as many wanted Louis to be in attendance.
“He’s got to wait a couple more years”
“He’s still only six, we have to remember. Charlotte made her first appearance at Wimbledon when she was eight, so he’s got to wait a couple more years. But Kate did say last year when George and Charlotte went to Wimbledon without Louis, that he was very upset about it.”
Louis still has plenty of time to find his passion in life, and as of today, he should be focusing on one thing: being a happy 6-year-old and enjoying whatever adventures suit him best.
Moreover, one thing is for sure: royal fans will have plenty of opportunities to see him in public as he grows older, and Prince William and Kate Middleton will undoubtedly know when the right time is for him to transition into the spotlight.
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