Kate Middleton Is Carefully Creating Prince George's Legacy

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 14: Prince Louis of Wales, Prince William, Prince of Wales, Prince George of Wales, Catherine, Princess of Wales and Princess Charlotte of Wales during Trooping The Colour 2025 on June 14, 2025 in London, England. Trooping The Colour is a ceremonial parade celebrating the official birthday of the British Monarch. The event features over 1,400 soldiers and officers, accompanied by 200 horses. More than 400 musicians from ten different bands and Corps of Drums march and while performing. (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)

(Image credit: Getty Images)

In 2025, Prince George showed a great deal of confidence by attending several important events without his siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. As the future King, 12-year-old George has a huge future ahead of him, which Princess Kate and Prince William have reportedly been preparing him for. And according to one royal expert, the Prince and Princess of Wales are playing the "slow game" when it comes to their eldest son.

Writing for People, royal expert Simon Perry shared, "Prince William and Kate Middleton have very gradually immersed him further in the duties that will inevitably come his way in the decades to come." Perry pointed to the Buckingham Palace tea party George attended with his parents in honor of the 80th anniversary of VE Day, where he met World War II veterans in a "landmark" move for the young prince. Per the expert, the occasion "presented a perfect opportunity for George to experience some of that legacy firsthand."

A royal insider told the outlet, "Even though he is so young, he seems to have grown in confidence over the last couple of years." Another source explained, "That is quite a responsibility to sit down and chat with veterans like that. It was incredible."

Prince George shaking hands with a veteran, sitting at a table with Prince William — "That is quite a responsibility to sit down and chat with veterans like that."

Accompanying his mom, Princess Kate, to the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall in November 2025 was also an important step for Prince George. And in December 2025, the 12-year-old royal made a joint visit to The Passage—a charity beloved by Princess Diana, which supports unhoused people—with dad Prince William to serve Christmas dinner to those in need.

Prince William and Prince George visit one of Princess Diana's favorite charities, The Passage, to serve Christmas dinner in December 2025.

However, the Prince and Princess of Wales are reportedly in no rush to introduce Prince George to all of his future responsibilities. Instead, Kate and William are playing "a slow game," according to a palace insider. "[I]t gets him used to it on the couple's terms rather than anybody else's," the source told People. But royal fans are sure to agree that George appears to making remarkable progress when stepping into a more public royal role at just 12 years old.

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Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.