Princess Charlotte celebrated her 10th birthday on Friday, May 2, and the tween has a bright future ahead. The only daughter of Prince William and Princess Kate might not be destined to become Queen—older brother Prince George is the current heir to the throne behind dad Prince William—but she'll play a starring role in the Royal Family for years to come. Although the Prince and Princess of Wales have tried their best to give Charlotte and her siblings as many "normalizing experiences" as possible, her childhood is certainly different than the average 10-year-old.
Royal expert Jennie Bond told the Mirror that even though young Charlotte has already shown the public "how dignified and composed she is at big state occasions," the pre-teen can still relax like any other kid.
The former BBC royal correspondent added, it's "good to know that William and Catherine try their hardest to let all their kids have as normal a life as possible. For example, playing on the beaches in Norfolk, leaping over the sand dunes with their dad or going to a football match or a Taylor Swift concert." However, as a "spare" to future King George, Charlotte's adulthood will likely follow the same path as great-aunt Princess Anne, the Princess Royal—a title she may one day be granted.
"Given that the royals are now so thin on the ground, I think there’ll be a fair bit of pressure for Charlotte to become a full-time working member of the family and the chances are that she will accept that—just as her great aunt Anne did," Bond said.
"Charlotte is, technically, 'the spare', so I think the pressure for her to become a full-time royal will be pretty intense," she added. The royal expert continued that down-to-earth Princess Kate and Prince William will most likely "encourage her to have as much of a 'normal' life as possible beforehand."
This means a typical college experience like the one her parents got to enjoy and "perhaps some vocational work at home or abroad before knuckling down to full-time royal life."
Bond admitted that Princess Diana once told her that Prince William "found the prospect of becoming King a burden on his young shoulders."However, the Prince of Wales is now in the unique position to "help all his children with their choices and decisions" having grown up in the Royal Family himself.
As for Charlotte, she might not make many public appearances just yet, but as Bond said, "now is the time to let her remain a child—even at the grand old age of 10!"
