Thus far, I’ve been surprised by how often the Princess of Wales has gotten “her way” on her children’s education. Traditionally, royal children and aristocrats’ children get packed off to boarding school as soon as possible. That’s doubly true for royal boys, with the expectation for the boys to matriculate into Eton, the prep school which educates most prime ministers, lords, MPs, etc. Prince George has escaped that thus far – he’s turning ten years old in a month, and he’s never been to boarding school. But it looks like William and Kate took their eldest son on a tour of Eton this week:
Prince George has been spotted visiting Eton alongside parents William and Kate. The nine-year-old has been schooled at Lambrook School in Berkshire since September last year, but a visit to the prestigious public school on Wednesday – which costs £46,000 a year in fees – has sparked talks on whether he will follow in his father’s footsteps.
Prince William also attended the historic boys’ school near Windsor as a child from 1995, after King Charles attended Scottish boarding school Gordonstoun – which he reportedly hated.
George, who will next month celebrate his 10th birthday, was seen accompanied by his doting parents at the college on Wednesday as the Prince and Princess of Wales chatted with staff. Kate was seen talking to two employees of the famous and historic school while wearing an elegant aquamarine dress and ballet pumps, Hello! Reports.
The family were standing near an archway, by a sign that reads: ‘Porters’ Lodge’ and previous reports about the school explain that through the doors you’ll find the school yard where a statue of the college’s founder, King Henry VI, is displayed.
Fees for Eton are a staggering £15,432 per term – according to the school’s website – with a £400 fee just for registering, although scholarships are offered to pupils who pass an exam.
Eton is the equivalent of a high school, the youngest pupils are 13 years old. So, no, George isn’t entering Eton in the fall, but maybe his parents are trying to get him used to the idea that he’ll eventually go to Eton. William and Harry both started at a boarding school before Eton – they boarded at Ludgrove, starting when they were like eight or nine years old. I wonder if this is the beginning of George being shifted into a “future king” education, like they’ll put him into a boarding school for a few years before Eton? Hm.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535447, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535476, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535476, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535494, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535494, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, are greeted by Headmaster Jonathan Perry as they arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535507, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, accompanied by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, are greeted by Headmaster Jonathan Perry as they arrive for a settling in afternoon at Lambrook School, near Ascot in Berkshire. The settling in afternoon is an annual event held to welcome new starters and their families to Lambrook and takes place the day before the start of the new school term. Picture date: Wednesday September 7, 2022. PA Photo. The family have set up home in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor’s Home Park as their base after the Queen gave them permission to lease the four-bedroom Grade II listed home.,Image: 720535517, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: NO UK USE FOR 48 HOURS- Fee Payable Upon reproduction – For queries contact Avalon sales@Avalon.red London +44 20 7421 6000 Los Angeles +1 310 822 0419 Berlin +49 30 76 212 251 Madrid +34 91 533 42 89, Model Release: no, Credit line: Avalon.red / Avalon
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- Wimbledon, UNITED KINGDOM – The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince George attend the Men’s finals day of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Wimbledon, London. Pictured: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Prince George BACKGRID USA 10 JULY 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- Wimbledon, UNITED KINGDOM – The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince George attend the Men’s finals day of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Wimbledon, London. Pictured: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Prince George BACKGRID USA 10 JULY 2022 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- 10 July 2022, Great Britain, London: Tennis: Grand Slam/ATP Tour – Wimbledon, Singles, Men, Final. Djokovic (Serbia) – Kyrgios (Australia). Kate (l-r), Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince George sit in the royal box at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Photo: Frank Molter/dpa Where: London, Great Britain When: 10 Jul 2022 Credit: Frank Molter/DPA/Cover Images **ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATION IN THE UK AND USA**
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- 10 July 2022, Great Britain, London: Tennis: Grand Slam/ATP Tour – Wimbledon, Singles, Men, Final. Kate (l-r), Duchess of Cambridge, Prince George and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, sitting in the royal box at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Photo: Frank Molter/dpa Where: London, Great Britain When: 10 Jul 2022 Credit: Frank Molter/DPA/Cover Images **ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATION IN THE UK AND USA**
Easier to have kids off in boarding school and not seeing what’s going on at home, when the parents are prepping to split.
But, yeah, George needs to “king up” and get a king’s education in kinging. And that can only be done at…check’s notes…Eton.
Having your parents split up while at boarding school would be doubly traumatic.
We got sucked into Jurassic World last night (its so bad but I can’t turn it off, lol, we kept saying “well its better than the rest of this stupid trilogy” lol) and I said the same thing to my husband…..they sent the kids off on a vacation so they could get divorced and then just tell the kids when they got home? Was the plan for the dad to have moved out while they were gone? That sounds traumatic for the kids.
@Becks1 there was a memorable post on reddit earlier this year by a young teenaged girl whose parents literally did that: packed her off to her grandparents for spring break, and she came home to one parent literally moved out. And they wouldn’t tell her the slightest/vaguest reason why, so there was a huge battle of wills where she said, “okay, I’m just going to believe you’re both cheaters,” in an attempt to get them to tell her any little bit of what happened. She ended up moving in with her grandparents (who at least apologized for lying to her face during the vacation when she asked them point blank if something was going on,) she was so disgusted with both parents.
Ahhh, early years have finished then Kate????? Time to get the settlement sorted
Where he will meet all the future Prime Ministers of the UK.
So yep Eton it is….
Eton is where the rich kids are sent to be indoctrinated, educated, and effectively brainwashed. They enter as kids and leave as class conscious racists.
Maybe this is one of the things “settled” about Willyboy’s home life, per the article posted yesterday? George’s future has been set… away from the Midds and within the aristo set. I see boarding school happening soon…an Eton feeder school like Ludgrove sounds right.
Its interesting bc the speculation for so long was that he might go to Marlborough, so that he and charlotte could go together.
wonder if kate agreed to eton as long as she got a house in windsor? Like, if the original plan had been for her to just stay at 1A after a separation (diana stayed at KP after all) and she insisted on Windsor if George was going to Eton?
But but but – if the kids board then bang goes Katie’s SAHM excuse for not working. Or are we to believe she will ‘step up’ when Louis finally reaches 13?
By then, the divorce will be finalized and she won’t need to do anything ever again.
They’re living in such cramped quarters. Makes sense to send the kids away as soon as poss. Hopefully this down turn in their circumstances doesn’t suggest as Dickensian future for Charlotte and Louis.
I’m sure kate knows how to prevent that. Without the children she is totally alone and has no one else.
Cramped by their privileged standards. They have three other homes and counting…they don’t have to worry about rent prices going up and mortgages.
I probably should have marked that as sarcasm (if the Dickens pauper reference didn’t make it clear 🤣)
The down turn of their circumstances had me crying! Well done 😂🤣😂
Given the mess the past two Tory PMs have made of the country. I don’t think George going to Eaton has the flex the royals think it has. All it’s doing is highlighting the sense of entitlement and privilege championed by the likes of Jacob Rees Mogg.
ETA: Come to think of it both William and Kate give out an air of entitlement so, maybe George attending Eton will enable him to fine tune this “skill” 😉
It doesn’t actually matter if George is an academic or dumb as a stump. He’s going to be the king if he outlives his father. That’s the only thing he has do to. Charles is probably more intellectually curious than recent kings and queens, but the government doesn’t really want that. They prefer a William type who thinks he’s smart but is really gullible and will do what you want if he gets what he wants.
Previous generations were at least honest about the value of a university education for a monarch, I.e. it’s not necessary.
It’s like pretending that kate did something by getting a basic undergrad degree. She at 41 still sounds dumb and shallow because she got the rich girl version of finishing school in the 21st century. William had to change programs because he couldn’t bother to do the work for the art history program.
This is all for show.
Why do I feel they are trying to remind the public about the future of the monarchy and take away the attention from the old king.
Something like, “we are fresh and new and the future is in our hands while the old king only has Camilla to show”.
As if this is just another play
Nailed it.
No, I think this is real. The midds and keeny are too nouveau for the aristos. Lambrook is a new money wannabe aristo school. Peggs is probably not ok with his kids and the “future future” being surrounded by the recently poor. George also can’t make the types of connections that royals require. Lambrook was keens idea and since her parents are broke and socially toxic, the 🥚 is pulling rank and class and wants his children to get aristo friends and partners. No middleclass or nouveau riche friends or partners. Charlotte will go board as well. This is part 2 of single dad will. Remember, the boys didn’t go to boarding school until Chuck and Diana were separating.
Damn. That is another solid theory. I certainly see no evidence that Wills isn’t a massive class snob, even if he fell in love with Carol’s motherly embrace as a traumatized teenager. Not even a tiny secret that he pals around with aristo ladies on the regular.
Nothing says ‘we’re modernizing the monarchy’ like sending your eldest son to Eton.
And nothing say “I’m an involved mother ” better than sending as fast as possible my kids to boarding schools. At least, Diana was pressured by Charles. What’s duchess dolittle (Kate’s nickname by the Queen) excuse? She’s working? 🤣
I read elsewhere that they have to apply at age 10 by June 30. Attendance starts at age 13.
There is a poster on Twitter named @canellelabelle who someone here (I think @Cairidh) suspects is CarolE’s account. Anyway, this poster explained yesterday that boys have to apply to Eton before their tenth birthday. She said June 30th is the deadline for year 2025 before the two phase testing (?) which George will of course pass. An awful lot of insider knowledge on the Eton admissions process for a rando on Twitter. @Cairidh you may be on to something.
Also, they probably arranged the trip on Burger King’s birthday because that was the one day in the schedule he planned to be with the family.
That poster is definitely nasty about Meghan but yes the insider info suggests family or staff who takes things too personally.
That poster is megxit deranger who is blackfishing. Whatever information she spews is not worthwhile.
It’s not insider knowledge. You can easily know this information with a little reading of the schools website and also knowledge of how private schools work here.
My nephew has already been touring high schools and he isn’t even ten till next month.
It’s not “insider info”, it’s standard information about the UK public school system, that any upper class or affluent Brit with children knows.
Ah okay, thanks to both of you. That makes a lot more sense now for why they are visiting this year. So he has to apply this month if he wants to go at age 13.
Poor George always looks anxious for a young boy .
Must be hard to have no choice for your future .
There are rules for the regular folks and rules for the future king. George is going to Eton no matter what just like Charles got into Cambridge and William got into St Andrews.
Yep.
I just find this so sad. Poor George. Let W&K live their anachronistic life but what on earth are the benefits FOR THE CHILD of attending a boarding school from such a young age.
I can think of quite a few benefits: from the opportunities offered to participate in a supported peer culture — which might be particularly beneficial for kids with special interests, to the chance to grow and develop away from the daily needs and expectations of parents and other family members. Take the same arguments one might use for leaving home for a university education, and scale them down a bit in a developmentally appropriate way. It’s not for every kid, but it might be an ideal environment for some. That’s in addition to the educational, social, and recreational opportunities that one might hope for from any school.
Many people have bemoaned the expectations that his parents seem to put on George, and the way he seems to be treated differently from his siblings. Ideally, a boarding school experience might offer George a bit of freedom in an otherwise protected environment.
But it won’t be different for him there. Everyone at Eton–his classmates, teachers, cleaners, porters, everyone–know he’s going to be the king & the expectations are set. He’ll be Head Boy (is that the term? William was), no doubt.
Yeah but he’ll be with the sons of billionaires and royalty, he’ll be with other kids like him: born to rule. He likely won’t even be the only prince there.
Boarding schools are a big part of the reason England is so f***ked up.
They break a child’s attachment to family and home, can expose them to bullying or even abuse (many posh boarding schools have cases of sexual abuse). The trauma is lifelong, and forms the character of the adult. Also makes those who attend boarding schools often ill-equipped to parent, reverting to what the know, and how they themselves were parented. Look at Charles and his distant relationship with his own parents, and then how he himself has parented. This is repeated across the upper classes.
Did you read SPARE? Harry’s trauma is multi-layered, but a big layer was boarding. Frankly, how he described being bathed as a boy by matrons was disturbing. In reality, upon the death of his mother, he had no real home to go to, despite all his family’s castles and palaces.
Eton may be where all the powerful men send their sons, who in turn, grow up to take power, but it’s a disturbing way to raise children.
https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/55951/1/poor-rich-kids-the-psychological-impact-of-boarding-school-syndrome
If he’s going to be king, he needs to go to Eton. In all probability, that is where the kids who will grow up to be Prime Ministers during his lifetime will be attending, as well as all of the other major power players he will be dealing with throughout his adult life. This is his chance to form relationships with them which will keep him and his family safe and rich.
I know we’ve had a couple of horrid Old Etonian PMs recently (Cameron, Johnson) but Eton is not actually a requirement. Oxford, on the other hand…
That’s what these schools do for aristos children or children of rich people who want connections. George doesn’t need to network because they will always seek him out. Charles didn’t go to Eton and it’s not like he hasn’t been surrounded by people seeking access all his adult life.
He could easily do the private tutor route like his great grandmother and it wouldn’t matter. Because he’s the future king and the hangers on will go to him.
It would have better for him as the future King to see how the other side lives by not going to Eton. He learns nothing about the people he’s going to rule by remaining among aristos.
I really, really don’t get sending your kid to boarding school. They are kids, your kids, your beloved kids, and they grow up so very fast. Why limit the time you can spend with them so severely? I’d hate to have my kids away from me before they are fully grown.
Well said. Especially at 9 or 10, like some families do. Would break my heart.
I can sorta understand 13 for some kids, but my kids would not / could not have done it at 13. And George seems to have a similar temperament.
I personally think PW is holding on until Louis is 13 and in boarding school.
Jeez, I cried my first night in my freshman college dorm. I don’t think I could have handled boarding school at 13.
LM, where I live in regional Australia it is more normal to send your kids away to boarding school than for them to attend the local High School.
Today hubby and I and our daughter attended an interview for a day/boarding school over an hour away from us. Our daughter will be a weekly boarder there next year. She is a bright girl and the opportunities she will have at this school are a lot better than she would be offered at the local High School. She attends a very small Catholic School now with only 12 students in her class. Out of her class at least 7 will go away to boarding school. Some will go to the same school as my daughter but most will be even further away and not come home weekly. We were told that we could come over when we wanted to and take our daughter out for dinner or just to visit as they realise how hard it is for both parents and students.
It is the way of life out here and trust me we do not want to send our kids away but we do want the best opportunities for them. If we lived in a city it would be different and our daughter would attend a local school, we own the local Post Office and the amount of care packages that get sent away to kids is amazing.
Mind you though it will not stop me from crying when I drop her off in January. 😞
@TBonesMum: funnily enough, I was thinking about Australia as a possible exception while making my comment (for a few years, I shared an office with a colleague who specialised in Australian Studies), but didn’t put it in because I wanted to make a succinct point. Wanting the best for your kid and seeing that there are opportunities avaible that necessitate boarding school when you’re living somewhere that is as huge as Australia is something I get and I admire that you are making a tough choice and am sure your daughter will be very happy. Being able to “pop in” and to see her on the weekends sounds like a good compromise. I wish you all the best and hope your daughter will get to enjoy the best of both worlds. Also, running the post office sounds so cool. I still send letters and postcards regularily and it brightens my day to find something non-commercial in the mail.
Without the geographic necessity though and especially in the very privileged positions the royals are in: why, why, why send the kids away? There are plenty of excellent schools near their many homes. Having read Spare, I came away feeling that the boarding school system for the rich directly contributes to a lack of understanding how people live and also to a lack of emotional support. Harry is a doll, but living with his mother would surely beat Ludgrove. (Whether Eton wasn’t better than living with Charles post Diana’s death is another question though.)
“I came away feeling that the boarding school system for the rich directly contributes to a lack of understanding how people live and also to a lack of emotional support.”
And it’s one of the main reasons Great Britain is still so class/status-stratified. Putting kids on a golden conveyor belt ASAP insures they live the life they’ve been slotted into. A shame.
I went to boarding school at 13, I loved it – and as my mother says now, it was the first thing we had agreed on in a couple years. It’s not the horrible thing everyone expects it is – it’s as good and bad as every other option. Whether it’s good for kids & families depends on everyone’s situation. I’m thrilled I had the opportunity. (in the US, not England)
Thanks for sharing, H!
Glad you had a good experience 🙂
I would have loved going to boarding school it would have been better for me. I was ready to leave home at 10. And a protective, supportive environment would have been heaven. I get that a good boarding school is a roll of the dice but so is the family you are dealt.
Everyone is different and it’s just a shame that everyone is not afforded the best option.
I had two extended family members go to boarding school mostly because of behavioural issues. One had lost his father and was very aggressive towards his mother so she decided boarding school to give him male role models. The other was also aggressive but with an alcoholic father. They both thrived fortunately. I hope George thrives no matter where he’s educated, but I would mind betting boarding school could be good for him.
@LM I totally agree about Harry, he would have benefited from stay at home. I think that all the artists are very traditional and that includes sending their kids off to school. Eton was where Diana’s Brother Charles went to so she wanted the boys to go there and after King Charles’s miserable time at his school he was not going to repeat the process of sending his boys there.
Owning a Post Office is challenging going and very entertaining. When I retire I am going to write a book about it lol.
Right? Like that cannot be good for a child’s mental health?
I totally agree. One aspect which I think possibly influences things is that the UK has a long history of “boarding school literature” – beloved books like St Clares and Mallory Towers which romanticise boarding schools as places of endless larks, pranks, midnight feasts, and long hot blissful summers spent swimming and playing lacrosse. These books are quintessentially British and every British person knows and either loves or loathes them (mainly loves them). They’re just so deeply embedded in our culture in a way non-Brits maybe aren’t aware of. There was a big BBC adaptation of Mallory Towers not long ago, so “boarding school literature” still has a hold on culture and people’s imaginations. I grew up reading them, and it’s only as an adult that I realise they’re a subtle form of class brainwashing (they are extremely snobbish). My pet theory is that we’re so kind of brainwashed by how much boarding schools are portrayed in media as idyllic that it’s created a kind of cognitive disconnect from the often lonely and brutal disconnect.
Admittedly these are all about girls’ boarding schools; most books about boys’ boarding schools don’t portray them as idyllic at all. But I do think Britain romanticises boarding school as part of some rose tinted faded English history, Brideshead Revisited, Hope and Glory kind of nostalgia.
Calling Will and Kate doting parents was kind of odd. Idk, doting kind of has negative connotations but maybe that’s just me.
???? I must’ve missed something. Surely, in the context of parent-child relationships ‘to dote’ virtually always means, like, ‘to treasure’ or ‘cherish’. Love unreservedly.
I think there’s also a touch of “excessively” in there, which is what pushes it into somewhat negative connotations.
Wasn’t Eton Diana’s idea, and atypical for the royals at that point? Charles clearly didnt go there and neither did Philip. Not sure if QEII’s father went there or not though.
Anyway, it is interesting that this visit seemed so public and obvious. Like I am sure they could have had a private tour on a Sunday morning or something or during the summer break where no one would have seen them. (or less likely to have been seen.) George still has three years before he starts there; wonder if there is some kind of program in the summers for potential students? I dunno.
No, it was Gordonstoun that was seen as atypical. I’ve always read that even at the time, it was realized that Erin would have been a far better choice for Charles, but Phillip insisted.
I know Gordontstoun itself was atypical, but my question is did all the other royal men before Philip attend Eton? Is there a history of royal men attending Eton, or was William the first?
Aristos prized Eton, then Oxford or Cambridge. The royal line was never that highly educated.
Even Charles getting into Cambridge was suspicious because he probably wouldn’t have gotten in on his own. (That said legacies in Ivy League schools are no better).
Philip’s situation was very different. As the offspring of a penniless ousted king, with a mother who was institutionalized for mental health issues, P’s physical strength & rigor & his stoicism were assets. Charles was very different.
Remember too that G’toun is in Scotland, where English royalty weren’t traditionally liked or admired. At an English school, it’s highly unlikely that Chas would have been bullied by his schoolmates. By the time kids get to uni (St Andrew’s) there’s more maturity + internationals & bullying is rare.
William was the first to attend Eton for sure. I’m pretty sure that none of the Royal children before Charles ever went out to school; they were tutored. Charles is the first with a university degree.
Charles was not the best student but his admission to university.was guaranteed
@Tessa: No doubt!
Right. I remember the talk at the time was that Diana’s brother went to Eton & she’s the one who wanted Eton. From Wikipedia: Edward VII appears to have been tutored at home but somehow managed to spend time at Edinburgh & Cambridge; George V was tutored at home & then attended the Royal Naval College, Osborne then Dartmouth; Edward VIII attended the Royal Naval College, Osborne then Dartmouth & somehow managed to get into Oxford (or Cambridge, sources vary); George VI attended the Royal Naval College, Osborne then Dartmouth. Charles is the first to earn a university degree (with a great deal of help, per several folks at Cambridge department of Archaeology & Anthropology) while William & Harry were the first to attend Eton.
IIRC, attendance at Eton is a Spencer family tradition.
Charles wanted to go to Eton, I think, but his father insisted on Gordonston because he had gone there and he felt it had made him a man, yada yada. Charles hated it. Eton would have been a better fit for him. I imagine he wanted his sons to go there.
I think he also favored Gordonston because, as a military school, it was less classist than Eton, and he felt that Charles should learn to empathize with people of all walks of life to avoid any risk of revolution, like the one that destroyed his family.
I remember reading that Charles and Diana were in full agreement on Eton for William and Harry. Phillip loved Gordonstoun because, by then, his mother was institutionalized and his father had essentially abandoned the family for a mistress, so Phillip and his siblings were bounced between relatives a lot. It seems that Phillip was an athletic kid who found a sense of belonging at Gordonstoun. It’s believed he wanted that sense of belonging for Charles, but also saw that Charles was rather sensitive and thought Gordonstoun would “toughen him up” – sadly, Charles just got bullied and traumatized by the experience.
I think Prince Charles was the first future monarch to go to school.
The Queen and her sister were educated at home.
You have to register for Eton three years prior at age 10 hence the visit yesterday. No they are not shipping George off to boarding school now. And since Eton is just minutes to Windsor Castle, George doesn’t have to board or perhaps just be a week boarder and go home for weekends.
Yep! Glad to see this comment here was just about to write it too. It’s so selective so registering to get on the list takes years. Same was for William and Harry with wetherby. The process starts at birth
There is no way that Eton would refuse entry to George the future king if they submitted the application the day before school starts in 2025. Let’s not pretend rules apply for them, especially not these types of institutions.
They made sure to be seen because it’s not like George doesn’t live down the road and could visit incognito.
I’m actually surprised Kate & William were on this so soon. They’re very much last-minute types. Maybe Carole told them about the early register.
Why are they called public and not private schools!?
Someone may know better than me, but I’d understood “private education” was tutors at home for the upper class, while “public schooling” meant that they were among other pupils at an institution.
It isn’t intuitive from a North American standpoint, but Wikipedia says this usage has existed since the 18th century in England and Wales, where “a public school is a type of fee-charging private school originally for older boys. They are ‘public’ in the sense of being open to pupils irrespective of locality, denomination or paternal trade or profession.” And quotes Sydney Smith: “By a public school, we mean an endowed place of education of old standing, to which the sons of gentlemen resort in considerable numbers, and where they continue to reside, from eight or nine, to eighteen years of age.”
Tl:dr, the usage “public school” has been around for a long time and means boarding schools for male toffs! I’m trying to work in a joke about toff fees and toffees but I’m not quite there yet.
Okay so “private school” (also known as “independent school”) in Britain means any kind of school that charges a fee to attend.
All fee-charging schools are private schools. The majority of private schools in the UK are modern, and they are not public schools. Just modern, not historic, fee-charging schools. Some more expensive than others, some posher than others, but just regular private schools.
A tiny, tiny percentage of fee-charging schools are public schools, which are basically very ancient schools that date back to the time when schools didn’t exist except for church schools, and only wealthy people who could afford private tutors educated their children. They are called public schools because they were open to the general public (basically were open to anyone who could afford them).
Public school is informal term, there’s not like a formal, widely accepted definition of the term, and there’s no absolute list of all the public schools in the UK. People use different criteria to decide whether a particular school can be considered a public school or not. Eton very definitely is, there’s no debate about it. But there are other schools that are not as ancient where people argue if it’s a public school or not. There’s also a term “minor public school” which is quite snobbish and demeaning, to refer to old fee-charging schools that are not as historic or posh.
To put it into context, there are 2600 private schools in the UK, but only a couple of hundred or so of them are public schools.
So all public schools are private schools, but only a minority of private schools are public schools. Most privately educated Brits do not go to public schools, they just go to standard private schools.
George looks so stressed and miserable a lot of the time. (Maybe it’s just his face – I would like to be wrong about this…)
I see it, too. I have always felt sorry for this little boy.
Too funny – the only things they know for sure are the color of Kate’s dress and the style of her shoes. They have to go to “prior reports” to describe what’s past the Porters’ Lodge.
They’re doing their usual practice of describing what they–and the reader–see in the photograph. It’s really weird.
British CBes, y’all charge for public school? What makes it public then?
North American “public school” is called “state school.”
Thank you. So what’s considered private there?
‘Private schools’ are also called ‘private schools’ and also ‘independent schools’ but the ancient venerable ones are called ‘public schools’ and apparently used to be free.
US public school = UK state school. Free, paid for by the government/taxes. More than 90% of British children go to a state school.
US private school = UK private school. Any school you have to pay a fee to attend. Private school means exactly the same in the UK and in the US. There are about 2600 private schools in Britain.
UK public school = no US equivalent. “Public school” is an informal term used to describe a very, very tiny subset of private schools that are very ancient and date from the time when there were no schools that the public could attend, only private tutors and church schools. The vast majority of private schools are not public schools.
My English Linguistics professor at my university in France (who was quite a character herself, actually) used to say that most Englishmen are traumatised alcoholics with mommy issues because they got sent away to boarding school when they were too young.
Sounds about right! 😉
Of course it was a gross generalization, but that remark is forever etched into my brain. Perhaps because at the time I was in fact dating an Englishman that had been sent to boarding school as a child…
Heh–in the British detective show Endeavor, the title character acidly notes that many of his boarding/prep-school peers were so used to female school staff (nurses, kindly cooks, etc) as substitute moms that they found it impossible to see women any other way. He had just interviewed a ghastly sexist professor who was furious a mere woman prof. had gotten “his” slot on a new science TV show. Makes sense to me…:)
My sister’s husband was sent to boarding school when he was only 5! He’s from a well-off Indian family and was pretty much educated like a Posh English boy. It was in Rajasthan, not overseas, but still far from home.
And yes, I would say he drinks too much and has intimacy issues. He’s a good father and he tries to be a good husband, but it’s a struggle for him. I honestly think my sister would have divorced him if not for the fact that she was already divorced once and didn’t want any more instability in her life or that of her three children.
Honestly I don’t think foreigners realise how how rare public (as in Eton, not as in free) education is in the UK. But also how much the miniscule, miniscule minority of publicly educated men dominate UK politics, media, and other elite industries.
93% of Brits are educated at state schools (free schools, what the US calls public schools).
Of the 7% who do receive a paid-for education, the vast majority attend regular modern private schools, which are not public schools and mainly aren’t boarding schools.
There are only 7-9 schools in the UK that are very definitely considered historic, ancient, Major Public Schools. I say 7-9 because there are 7 ancient boarding schools that are the classic public schools – Eton is one of those 7 – and then Merchant Taylors’ and St Paul’s are the only ancient schools that aren’t and were never boarding schools. Both are suitably historic and aristocratic (Merchant Taylor was founded in the 1560s and St Paul’s was founded around 1500), but they both successfully argued that they should be excluded from the Public School Act of 1868 due to the fact they were day schools and not boarding schools. Most people do consider Merchant and St Paul’s to be public schools but their status is slightly weird and they’re slightly held apart from the classic 7.
In addition to those 7 (or 9 if you’re counting Merchant and St Paul’s), there are maybe 200 other historic, aristocratic fee-charging schools that could be considered public schools depending on what criteria you use. (I don’t think people realise that public school is an informal term and there’s no fixed definition. The original 7 are the only one that absolutely without a shadow of a doubt everyone universally agrees are public schools.)
There’s not even any consensus in the UK as to what makes something a public school or how many public schools there are. Ask 50 Brits how many public schools exist and you’ll get 50 different answers (and honestly, the vast, vast majority of Brits neither know nor care).
The terrifying thing about the UK is how much the >1% of Brits who attended public schools totally dominate and basically run our country. I’ve just depressed myself writing that.
That’s a very interesting and informative point, thank you.
Will never understand boarding school. Why have kids?
Also laughing at the posters suggesting George has to apply or pass an exam, or do anything, to get to Eton. He’s guaranteed a place wherever they choose.
I’d be surprised if they have to even pay fees, tbh.
Boarding school can be a good option for some kids. I went when I was 15 (I’m American). My parents had sent my brother because he was (and is) incredibly smart but wasn’t trying in school at all and doing badly. They hoped it would light a fire under him, which it sort of did. Enough to help him get into a good college, anyway. He would not have otherwise.
I followed him to boarding school because my three older siblings had left the house and I didn’t like being the only kid at home. I was used to having people around. I’d say it was good for me from an academic standpoint, and from a social one too. But I did feel homesick from time to time.
I do think there’s a big difference between going away to school at 15 and going at 10 or even 13, though. And these days, with cell phones, it’s easy for parents and kids to keep in touch. When I went there was a pay phone at the end of the hall and I talked to my parents maybe once a week. I can’t imagine sending my own kids, but I do understand why my parents sent my brother and why they let me go.
Maaaaan, I would have *loved* boarding school. In high school I’d attend “summer programs” for college credit — one was at Cambridge, in fact — and I LOVED having a phone card and talking to my mom on the payphone (once every few days, haha). Kids from all over the U.S. attended. They were all pretty privileged, I guess, but they were all really different from the people in my tiny hometown. I really felt back then like I had a strong sense of who I was, what I valued, and what I wanted to grow up to do. (An important stage of development for teens is creating an identity independent from their parents’)
George is going to Eton because he is the future king. It is expected of him as well as joining the military because the sovereign is commander in chief of the armed forces. I think it’s going to be tough on George because the aristos have no respect for his Middleton kin. Charles was bullied in school and I wouldn’t be surprised the toff kids remind George where Kate’s family came from.
George’s classmates have internet access and there is a lot they can use even about his own parents.
Of course the trip to Eton includes info about kates oufit.
Apparently, those interested in attending Eton have register with the school at age 10. With George turning 10 next month it seems that William and Kate took him to register with the school. I’ve seen some royalists upset about this. They mistakenly thought that William and Kate were modern parents and would not sent George to Eton.
Poor kid doesn’t stand a chance of having a normal life. I wouldn’t want to live in their gilded cage for all the (stolen) money in the world.
I couldn’t have sent my kids to boarding school — I would have missed them too much — but at least at Eton George will be out of the path of thrown cushions.
I have no problem with George attending Eton for high school at 13 or so.
Did anyone think he’d be going to welding school?
Interesting that Eton has scholarships, that would be a fantastic break for a child to attend.
Be great if the classes were 50/50 scholarship and wealthy kids, be good for them all to get a well rounded group and mingle.
I’m certain all 3 kids will learn to ride horses too, horses are big in their social set and of course, parades in the future.
It’s so odd to me that some people think that the BRF will/should change dramatically in how they have lived for generations. They will not.
Wealthy interact with wealthy.
Kate literally pulled a magic trick by marrying William. (Commoner) still wealthy
Fergie did also. (Commoner) still wealthy + family known to QE
Meghan did also. (Commoner) still wealthy
Mike Tindall a wealthy famous rugby star landed Zara, she did not take up with a waiter.
I hope the 3 kids all get good educations based on their interests and they are going to need diplomacy skills. They should all be educated in public speaking and press relations too. Time was Royals were educated in several languages too, but w/W&K I doubt that is happening.
How does West Point enroll? Doesn’t WP take years of prep to attend and most are from military families, I think?
I have no true understanding of how these schools work because I am poor. 😄 I come from “worker bees” no one in the BRF would spit on me if I burst into flames, not even the corgis.
I was curious about West Point & the other military academies, because I thought I’d heard somewhere you need a letter from your state’s member of Congress (turns out to be true). Here’s West Point’s website on the process: https://www.westpoint.edu/admissions/steps-to-admission
Here’s the short version:
Confirm Eligibility. Applicants must meet the following basic eligibility requirements: …
Gather Personal Information. …
Apply Online. …
Connect with our Field Force. …
Apply for a Nomination. …
Get a Medical Examination. …
Take the Candidate Fitness Assessment. …
Take College Entrance Exams.
Looks like people with disabilities need not apply. Wonder how they get around the ADA.
People with disabilities, I would think, simply do not serve in any military bc of military physical exams.
i.e. color blindness rejects from pilot training, wasn’t 4F what it was called?
Flat feet, asthma, mental conditions, etc.
Military is exempt from ADA. I imagine for law enforcement and fire fighters there are exemptions also (at least to some extent since there would be desk jobs available).
@HeyKay & equality: Now that is interesting, particularly as training & war causes so much disability, physical/mental/emotional. It might behoove the military to start thinking outside their little box, as it may make them more compassionate & more able to assist the veterans who come out of service with issues. Start learning from the disabled before they create any more, is my thinking.
You do need a letter of nomination for any military academy but its part of the job of the representative to provide it. You don’t have to have interned for them or anything to get it, although I’m sure that doesn’t hurt.
Military connections dont hurt either but I knew a few girls who went to the Naval Academy with no connections and they were from a small private all girls school.
My 11 year old wants to go to the Naval Academy so we talk about it a lot, LOL.
I – female- wanted to go to West Point. I had a lot of anxiety and my family structure was a complete mess. I thought the structure and the physical aspects wouod be good for me.
I went and saw a recruiter about it at 14 or 15 I think. Don’t quote me. But what I was told was I was already too old to start the application process.
Thank god for that.
Only about 60 Eton pupils attend for free, out of something like 1300. Then a couple of hundred receive partial scholarships. It’s a great thing but they’re a small minority.
Sad to say but it now seems the British tabloids are pivoting to shift the public’s attention to the Wales children to make money. Those children should be afforded privacy but unfortunately they are going to be denied it. 😞
Can’t the tabloids just focus on the work the royals perform or how they spend the public funds? I think those agendas would be of more value to the public than the lives of the royal children.
Kate and George are looking past each other. She’s so keen on photos suggesting she’s a great mother, and he’s beside himself boiling in his hot suit. Of course, she has no insight into her child’s distress and cares only for her own papped image. Ouch for poor George.
Of course George will go to Eton. This is his future. These classmates/boys are the men he will associate with, socialize with, do business with and marry into their families. He will find his best friends here and future life partner, who will be aristocratic and from a wealthy and well connected family. Charles will use George to right all the perceived wrongs of previous heirs, IMO. Poor George.
I realize that this is news. The same happened when Obama was in office and they saw their daughters off to school (the first day?) Anyway, it wasn’t something I was interested with because it is their father that was elected, not them. I’ve always felt that way about the children. I don’t see a reason to make them be in the spotlight when they have no say in their Father’s (Mother’s) career choices. I just think that’s wrong. Now there’s George in the news because of a school he’ll go to in THREE years. What a life those kids will have.
Ugh , Eton. I’d ban all old Etonians from political life if I could. They delivered unto us austerity and brexit.
I read somewhere that George being quite badly bullied was the reason they all left the last school. This new school is said to have a very strict anti-bullying policy. Both Charlotte and Louis would appear to have a lot more confidence than George.