Kate and Prince William are refusing to be “painted as absentee parents” for Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, a royal commentator has claimed.
The Prince and Princess of Wales were criticised for their lack of public engagements in 2023, with Kate attending fewer events than the Duke of Gloucester, 79.
However, royal author Gareth Russell has defended Kate and William, claiming they are “prioritising their children”.
He exclusively told GB News: “We can defend the couple in that this is what it looks like when royals prioritise their children and their home life.
Kate and William refusing to be ‘absentee parents’ for George, Charlotte and Louis
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“The reason why it seems so low is that the previous generations of royals did not do this, with the result that they were often painted by their children and by many of their subjects as being absentee parents.
“They weren’t there enough for their children.”
The author, who wrote The Palace: From the Tudors to the Windsors, 500 Years of Royal History at Hampton Court, discussed how Kate and William’s approach is different from previous generations of royals.
Russell added: “There inevitably has to be a trade-off in this. You can either have royals who commit to as many engagements as the Queen Mother or the Queen or Prince Philip did.
Prince William and Kate performed fewer engagements than most senior royals this year
PA
“But the upshot of that, is that they won’t spend as much time day-to-day with their children.
“Or you have royals like Prince William and Catherine, who do less public engagements when they have very young children.
“So either you have royals who continue to work as publicly and as often as they did before, or you have royals who perhaps raise happier families.
“And bearing in mind the expectation is that one day William and Catherine will have the fullest schedule of all and hopefully that will be when their children are grown.
Kate and William have very young children
PA
Prince William and Kate taking their children to Trooping the Colour
PA
“It’s worth noting, that of all the royals ahead of them, none of them have young children.
“So this is what it looks like when the family part of the Royal Family takes precedence for the first time.”
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh and Prince Edward’s youngest child is 16, however, Russell claimed this was not comparable to the young Wales children.
He continued: “The young Earl of Wessex is a teenager. None of them have children who are Charlotte’s and Louis’ age.”
