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The lives of royal children aren’t always the stuff of fairytales. King Charles III, 76, had a famously formal relationship with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. The monarch’s parents “only saw their children after breakfast and teatime,” Sally Bedell Smith wrote in 2017’s Prince Charles: The Passions and Paradoxes of an Improbable Life, Express reported. Princess Diana took a very different approach to raising sons Prince William, 43, and Prince Harry, 41, before her death 28 years ago. “I remember [her] telling me that she wanted her two boys to be brought up in a way no other royal princes had been,” former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond wrote in The i Paper. “And she did her best to give them an idea of what life beyond the palace walls is like.” William and wife Princess Kate, 43,she added, “have gone further” with their own kids. While they can’t change “that their children have been born into an extraordinary destiny,” Bond explained, “they’ve also given them a taste of a more ordinary existence.”

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And that’s making all the difference — especially for their only daughter, Princess Charlotte. A change in British law makes her the first British princess in history to rank above a brother in the line of succession. The 10-year-old is also the first young senior royal to wear colorful nail polish, like other girls her age, in a public setting, with her mani delighting fans at July’s Wimbledon tennis championships. That pop of pink is just one sign William and Kate are raising Charlotte and her brothers, Prince George, 12, and Prince Louis, 7, to be modern royals while striving to make their lives as normal as possible. “They take pride in being hands-on parents,” a source tells Star. “They’ve always made a point to do school drop-offs and pickups and attend as many school events, games and practices as possible. Family is everything.” Especially in the wake of Kate’s 2024 cancer battle. “They know these are the most precious years of all.”

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Shared Pursuits

While Charlotte is destined to be a major player in The Firm, right now, William and Kate just want the girl he lovingly calls “Mignonette” — a French term of endearment that means little cutie — to enjoy being a kid. Like any ordinary British tween, she roots for sports teams like the Lionesses — England women’s national soccer squad. She’s an athlete herself, playing tennis, rugby and soccer (her dad called her a “budding star” during a 2022 visit with the England Women’s team, Hello! reported). Her fave might be gymnastics. Kate shared at the Commonwealth Games, Daily Mail reported, that Charlotte “spends most of her time upside-down, doing handstands and cartwheels.” She’s a dancer like grandmother Diana. “She loves ballet and tap,” Kate revealed in 2023, per InStyle. And, like her late great-grandmother Elizabeth, she loves horses. “Charlotte has this passion about horses, and although [Kate] doesn’t echo it,” paralympic equestrian Natasha Baker revealed after speaking with Kate at a Buckingham Palace reception, E! News reported, the mom made it clear “she’ll do her best to champion and encourage it.”

Pop music is another joy for the soon-to-be fifth grader. Last summer, William and Charlotte were caught on camera singing and dancing their hearts out at one of Taylor Swift’s Eras tour stops in London. A few months later in South Africa, William proudly showed off a “Papa” friendship bracelet Charlotte made him. (She’s also reportedly made colorful string bracelets for grandpa Charles.)

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What She’s Like

During a “mummy chat” with the wife of a Royal Marine several years ago, People reported, Kate revealed that Charlotte was already “the one in charge” at home, even as a toddler. That’s clearly extended to royal events, where in recent years she’s been seen gently reminding George what to do or keeping little Louis in line. Royal biographer Robert Hardman sees some of QEII in Charlotte. “The practical common sense,” he told People in May. “Not camera-grabbing but solid and responsible.”

Comparisons to Kate, of course, are also inevitable. Childrenswear designer Amaia Arrieta, who’s met Charlotte multiple times, recently described her to People as “a caring and determined little girl” whose personality resembles her mother’s. (“Charlotte is very much in her mold,” Nigel Gillingham, president of the Rugby Football Union, confirmed to People in 2023, adding, “She’s very competitive as well.”) Charlotte, the designer explained, “is sweet but also has her own opinions.” Befitting a future working royal, she added, “She looks very confident and at ease with herself and the environment she’s in.”

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Preparing For The Future

William and Kate are aware of the challenges Charlotte could face as she, like her uncle Harry before her, becomes more cognizant of her role as third in line to the throne — especially when it’s her big brother’s turn to wear the crown. The Duke of Sussex wrote candidly in his 2023 memoir, aptly titled Spare, about the difficulty of being the backup heir. “I was the shadow, the support, the Plan B. I was brought into the world in case something happened to Willy,” he wrote. “My family had declared me a nullity. The Spare. I didn’t complain about it, but I didn’t need to dwell on it either… The Spare could always be spared.”

The late QEII was also very aware “of that extraordinary and challenging role of the No. 2,” The Making of a King author Hardman recently told People in May. “That’s why she had a particular soft spot for [her sister Princess] Margaret, for [her son Prince] Andrew and Harry. She understood being second place in a strictly hierarchical family and institution has its challenges.” (It should be noted that Margaret and Andrew were troublemakers within the royal family.)

According to the source, the Prince and Princess of Wales see guiding Charlotte as “a delicate balancing act” since “it’s vital their children are aware of what’s expected of them in the years ahead.” They’ve started “educating the kids about their heritage and the very real responsibilities that come with being a member of the monarchy,” the source confirms. William has also tried to find ways to mitigate the potentially overwhelming or negative aspects of royal responsibility as he and Kate continue to raise Charlotte and her brothers with a mix of commitment to service and normality. William, Hardman has said, is working “to make the whole royal existence approachable and not scary for all his children.”

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Proud Parents

So far, so good. “William is proud of Charlotte. He loves seeing her express herself and enjoy herself in a less stuffy environment than he was brought up in,” says the source. “He loves hearing her blasting Taylor Swift and seeing her painting her nails and playing dress-up.” Kate is equally supportive of Charlotte making her own choices, the source adds, though “there are certain guidelines she expects her to adhere to.” For instance, “She wants her to dress age-appropriate,” the source explains, adding that “Kate and William are also huge sticklers for manners.”

Charlotte understands “more will be expected of her as she gets older, but for now she can be herself without any pressure,” explains the source. When summer break ends in September, Charlotte will return to “working hard” at Lambrook School, near the family’s home in Windsor, adds the source (though as William noted last year, she doesn’t “[look] forward” to exams). “She’s enjoying herself and has no shortage of friends. She’s thriving.”