Beach Video Celebrates Royal Birthday
Prince George marked his 13th birthday with a cheerful video showing him scrambling over rocks, playing cricket and enjoying a family beach holiday in Cornwall alongside his younger brother Prince Louis.
The 18-second clip, released by the Prince and Princess of Wales on their social media accounts, captured moments from the family's Easter break and showed George stroking one of the family dogs, taking a boat ride and waving at the camera while wearing the £157 Raen sunglasses he sported at Wimbledon.
The footage was accompanied by a message reading: "Thank you for all the birthday wishes for George today!"
Earlier, William and Kate released an official portrait of their eldest son taken by trusted photographer Matt Porteous at Kensington Palace following Trooping the Colour last month. The image shows George, who is second in line to the throne after his father, wearing a suit as he enters his teenage years.
New Chapter at Eton
The birthday celebrations come as George prepares for a significant transition in September when he will become a boarder at Eton College, the prestigious all-boys boarding school in Berkshire that educates approximately 1,350 students aged 13 to 18. Annual fees at the school now stand at £65,673 for three terms.
George will follow in the footsteps of his father, who attended Eton from 1995 to 2000, becoming the first senior royal to enrol at the school. The proximity of Eton to Windsor Castle, where the Wales family now lives, means George will be just across the River Thames from home.
It marks the first time since 2019 that George will attend school without at least one of his siblings. He has just finished at Lambrook School, the co-educational prep school set on 52 acres of Berkshire countryside where he occasionally boarded alongside Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, eight.
Controlled Path to Public Life
Royal expert Robert Jobson noted that George's experience will differ significantly from his father's. "The difference is everything," Jobson told the Daily Mail. "William walked into Eton carrying his parents' marital war. George walks in from a settled home."
Jobson highlighted George's preparation for boarding life: "He asked them if he could board weekly at Lambrook. They agreed. It helped him grow, to be part of a collective."
The expert also praised George's academic abilities, noting that William has acknowledged his son excels in history. "Standing before Henry VIII's armour last October, his father said it plainly. 'George, my son, is way better in history than I am, and I have to check with him now on my dates,'" Jobson recalled.
William and Catherine continue to guide their eldest son along a carefully managed path to public life, with George undertaking a small but increasing number of official engagements each year. He was last seen publicly at Wimbledon with his family earlier this month.
Growing Up in the Spotlight
George was born at 4:24 PM on July 22, 2013, at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, weighing 8 pounds 6 ounces. Catherine, dressed in a powder blue frock, and William introduced their first child to the world from the steps of the Lindo Wing.
Royal fans have watched George grow rapidly, with many commenting on social media that he looked "so grown up" in his latest birthday portrait. At recent public appearances, observers noted he now stands just slightly below his mother, who is 5ft 9in tall, and is expected to surpass his 6ft 3in father's height.
During the Wimbledon finals, George was photographed using a handheld fan to stay cool in 29C temperatures, sporting sunglasses and a sun hat as he watched Jannik Sinner defeat Alexander Zverev alongside his parents and sister Charlotte.
George, Charlotte and Louis will now enjoy their summer holidays before the new school term begins in autumn, when the young prince will embark on the next stage of his education and his journey towards eventually becoming King George VII.
