The British royal family is days away from a major milestone. We’re in for a real treat when it happens
The British royal family is just days away from a massive milestone: Prince George’s 13th birthday.
It may sound like a simple occasion – just another birthday for one of the Prince and Princess of Wales’ children – but George’s 13th is much more than that; it’s the start of the future king’s transition from boy to man.
And we’re all in for a treat when the big day arrives.
George will turn 13 on Wednesday, July 22, a special milestone he’s likely to celebrate privately at home with his parents, Prince William and Princess Catherine, and siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
The Waleses have always been fiercely protective of their children’s’ privacy, so we’re unlikely to get any details from them about George’s birthday celebrations.
Instead, it’s expected William and Catherine will stick to their years-long tradition of releasing a new portrait of their firstborn to mark his big day.
These photos are usually more relaxed than official royal portraits and most are snapped by Catherine herself, who is a keen photographer.
That’s probably all we’ll get from the royal family regarding George’s milestone birthday.
But there will be plenty going on behind the scenes as the monarchy prepares for the young prince to take his next steps.
Kensington Palace has already confirmed George will start at Eton College in September, just a few weeks after his birthday.
There he will follow in the footsteps of his father and uncle, Prince Harry, and receive a first-grade education among a cohort of children from other wealthy and influential families.
William thrived at Eton, where he became captain of the swimming and water polo teams and was even elected into an exclusive society in his senior years.
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“You have to remember that at Eton, [William] never stood out that much – there were boys from even richer families than his,” a former student, who attended alongside the prince from 1995 to 2000, told The Telegraph UK.
Educational consultant and the founder of Keystone Tutors, Will Orr-Ewing, told the outlet that George being a prince will be “fairly unimportant” at Eton.
“On the whole at Eton, your status tends to derive from your sports or drama ability, or if you are a scholar or a brilliant debater,” he said.
Such an environment will hopefully allow George to grow from a boy into a young man without a constant focus on his royal role – much like his father.
William and Catherine are careful about how much they allow him to do within the monarchy, keeping his official royal outings to a minimum while he’s young.
But that will likely start to change in the years ahead, as George will be expected to step up and move into a more public role within the royal family.
He’s already looking more comfortable in public.
George made a joint appearance with his mother to mark Armed Forces Day last month, where he looked more confident than ever in front of the cameras.
He also looked more grown up than ever, standing at almost the same height as his mother in heels.
It’s becoming clear George is about to grow from boy to man and his birthday this week will make that very real as the young prince enters his teens.
