Do you ever get the sense that the general public cares about the Cambridge/Wales children’s welfare more than the children’s parents care about their welfare? It’s no secret that Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis were brought out way too often during the Jubbly in June. Louis especially – he was too young and too antsy to be out in public for hour upon hour of boring-ass Jubbly events. It was clear then that Prince William and Kate will do anything to keep the focus on their children, at the expense of everyone else (especially Harry and Meghan, at least that’s what Will and Kate hope). So it was again for QEII’s funeral.
We found out late Sunday that the “courtiers” had gotten their way and convinced the Waleses to bring Prince George to his grandmother’s state funeral, all eleventy billion hours of it. We also learned that someone had pushed the idea that both George and Charlotte needed to come. Something about the line of succession and the public needing to see that everything was in safe hands. So two small children – one seven-year-old and one nine-year-old – had to be thoroughly exposed all the way through a state funeral at Westminster Abbey AND Windsor Castle for hours and hours.
Looking back on the entire day, it would have been so much smarter to not have George and Charlotte at the Abbey, but let them come out for the Windsor Castle service. I mean, the kids “live” in Windsor now – surely Nanny Maria could have discreetly brought them over to the castle for the second part of the funeral? But no, we had to watch as two little kids tried to process the death of their great-grandmother, the Queen, in public at her state funeral. At one point, Charlotte told George when to bow. At another point, Charlotte seemed to cry and get very emotional. And Kate still didn’t drop her mob-boss-widow veneer.
There are also a few photos of Charlotte – who was seated next to her Uncle Harry – looking over at both Harry and Meghan with a good deal of curiosity. I genuinely wonder what those kids have overheard from their parents. Last thing: Charlotte wore a small diamond horseshoe brooch, a gift from her great-grandmother.
Charlotte, who wore a touching horseshoe brooch, gifted to her by the queen, was seen visibly upset as she wiped her eyes outside of the church in London, England.https://t.co/HVPhZxjt75
— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) September 19, 2022
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
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- London, United Kingdom -18/09/2022. Prince George and his sister Charlotte are seen in a car with their Mother Kate the Princess of Wales and the Queen Consort as it follows the cortčge of the late Queen Elizabeth the II is pulled past the Houses of Parliament after her funeral at Westminster Abbey, Westminster.,Image: 724154458, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Joshua Bratt / Avalon
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- Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey, London. Meghan Duchess of Sussex, Camilla Queen Consort, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, Princess of Wales and Sophie Countess of Wessex.,Image: 724195093, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Adam Gerrard / Avalon
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- Sophie Countess of Wessex, Princess Charlotte, Catherine Princess of Wales, Prince George, Camilla Queen Consort The State Funeral of Her Majesty The Queen, Gun Carriage Procession, Wellington Roundabout, London, UK – 19 Sep 2022,Image: 724223586, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock / Avalon
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- Prince George and Princess Charlotte The State Funeral of Her Majesty The Queen, Gun Carriage Procession, Wellington Roundabout, London, UK – 19 Sep 2022,Image: 724224506, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock / Avalon
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- The Princess of Wales, Prince George and Princess Charlotte arrive at the Committal Service for Queen Elizabeth II held at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, Berkshire.,Image: 724252613, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Kirsty O’Connor / Avalon
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- (Top to bottom) The Prince of Wales, Prince George, the Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte, the Duke of Sussex and Duchess of Sussex at the Committal Service for Queen Elizabeth II held at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, Berkshire.,Image: 724268583, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Joe Giddens / Avalon
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- WINDSOR, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 19: Princess Charlotte of Wales arrives at Windsor Castle for The Committal Service For Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on September 19, 2022 in Windsor, England. The committal service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, took place following the state funeral at Westminster Abbey. A private burial in The King George VI Memorial Chapel followed. Queen Elizabeth II died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September 8, 2022, and is succeeded by her eldest son, King Charles III.,Image: 724270272, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Leon Neal / Avalon
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- (left to right) The Queen Consort, the Princess of Wales, Prince George and Princess Charlotte follow the State Hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard with the Imperial State Crown and the Sovereign’s Orb and Sceptre, as it arrives at the Committal Service held at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, Berkshire.,Image: 724277814, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: -, Model Release: no, Credit line: Kirsty O’Connor / Avalon
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- State Funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, held at Westminster Abbey, London. Featuring: Prince William, Prince George, Catherine Princess of Wales, and Princess Charlotte Where: London, England, United Kingdom When: 19 Sep 2022 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages.com/Cover Images **North America Rights Only**
I think they were fine to go and they did great. A lot of kids go to their 1st funeral around their ages.
Not with 6000 people in pews and broadcast on live TV.
I doubt they cared it was broadcast and that there were thousands there. That’s something adults worry about.
Plus, as odd as it might sound, they will have to get used to the media and thousands of people around them. They’re the future king (should the monarchy last that long) and princess royal. And they’re not toddlers anymore.
Taking 9 and 7 year olds to funerals is normal and fine if the event is not full of strangers and broadcast to the world. They had no one else their age there and they could have attended out of sight. Don’t put them on display any more than they have been.
Very true but most funerals are not 7 hour events in front of thousands of people.
I came here to say the same @jan @harla. I think even Louis is old enough to attend a great grandparent’s funeral but not this funeral. They should have never been out in public at this time. There should have been a private family funeral so the kids could be open with their emotions and questions without worrying about their public behavior.
All I’ve seen it Charlotte crying are the pics here. Did anyone offer her any support our comfort? The pics look so cold.
Why not just take them to the private one, I think is the question. Why trot them out for the public display?
They were there because they are symbols, not people. And THAT is sad. (The pics of Charlotte crying hurt my soul.) I am with those who think they could/should have gone to a more private funeral event.
@ MyCatLovesTV, that is the truth of the matter in their appearance. Simply a sign that the Monarchy still has heirs to carry the Monarchy forward. What an absolutely disgusting excuse without putting their own needs first.
I don’t think Charlotte was crying — she is clearly standing right next to the car. Why would she cry at THAT moment, of all moments? Beside, there are other pictures of her standing right next to the car, same location, and she’s perfectly fine. It was probably street dust in her eye that made her rub it. But, it’s better public relations if she’s crying for the queen, right? So that’s what we’ll report.
That photo of Charlotte in the car turning towards her mother with a dead expression is so telling. I wonder what she thinks of her own mom.
@galadriel – My 6yo and I have a very loving and close relationship, but she’s an expert at shooting daggers. I wouldn’t read much into that expression.
I agree they were fine.
They were old enough to appreciate the occasion and the services themselves were very short, with cameras filming from afar.
The private one was in a tiny chapel- they were literally blessing the coffin and placing it in a vault, the side chapel itself is the size of a large private mausoleum. Apparently there would have been room for the Queen’s children and a priest, so it’s unlikely any of the grandchildren/greatgrandchildren would have attended.
Tiny only by royal standards. Check out photos here, or google: https://www.insider.com/queens-coffin-lowered-into-royal-vault-st-georges-chapel-photos-2022-9
They certainly appeared fine and behaved wonderfully but how hard it was for them is yet to be known. They knew saw the eyes and cameras on them.
My child went to their godmother’s funeral when they were 9 years old. But it wasn’t a 7 hour long, publicly televised ordeal. It was a one hour service, followed by a short graveside service.
They could have even been at the big service at Windsor and kept off camera for the bulk of the day. None of the other great-grandchildren were at Westminster – including Peter’s kids, who are both older than George. And they didn’t put James behind the coffin again – he looked so miserable before. That was the right call.
It’s bonkers that Miss early years would be so indifferent to the needs of her very young children. That funeral was grueling for the adults.
In fairness, though, I highly doubt that Kate had any say in the matter.
Well they are older than 5 now so no longer in her area of expertise. /s
It was grueling for me and all I did was occasionally turn on TV to find out the funeral coverage was still on! On 3 major US networks, plus cable channels! “Aaaeeeaaaiiiaa My patience is waning. Is this entertaining?”
Sorry to hear the kids are being used by The Firm and possibly their parents. But I have no influence.
I was not quite 9 when my great-gran died, and I was sad that I wasn’t allowed at her funeral (she lived with us, then went into the hospital and was gone a few weeks later, so I never really got a chance to say goodbye.)
Now, would I have wanted to be there for 6-7 hours? Probably not. IMHO don’t think they were too young to attend a funeral, just that these were pretty intense circumstances and they might have been better off attending later on only.
Agree Leelee. . The coverage was 7hrs, the services themselves was NOT 7 hrs, services was about a half hour, if that. Oh can we not mind read a child and pass it off as facts?
the Westminster service was an hour, then they went to Hyde Park and were there for about 20 minutes, then to Windsor where the service was about another 30-45 minutes. And they were riding in the car in the procession, very visible, it wasn’t like they were able to chill out on their ipads or whatever in between.
so yes it was a really long day for them.
They go to school all day long and are accustomed to sitting and paying attention.
At school there would be activities and sports during the day and not just sitting. Even in classes they would be engaging in lessons and not just sitting and paying attention. They also wouldn’t be being photographed and watched by millions.
Yeah at school kids don’t sit for 7 hours straight, LOL. Heck at my kids school they don’t even sit for an hour straight, between specials and lunch and recess and different stations in the classroom etc.
And at school they don’t have cameras on them, aren’t dealing with loss/grief, and probably don’t have the same pressure to behave impeccably that they were under yesterday.
Funerals and wakes have been part of my life since I was, like, four and a grandparent died. I wasn’t always sure what was happening and had lots of questions, which my parents were able to answer because they weren’t trying to perform for the cameras or make sure I didn’t sully the family’s name by not being perfect. I was allowed to touch the body to understand my relative was gone–to look at her close up to understand the body was just a shell and my relative was no longer in there–and that the body didn’t look like or contain her any more. Funerals are an important part of life for children to process the gift of being alive. But doing so on the world’s stage managed stage is less of a necessity.
I agree. I didn’t see anything weird about it. What is weird is polilcing people’s behaviour while grieving… People handle it in different ways and judging people based on their visible emotions at a funeral is wild.
Great Comment.
Agreed!
No way. My 7 year old would have been crying around the time Charlotte had her moment too- from sheer lack of snacks! Food, water, bathroom breaks- that was a looong day for those kids and ridiculous to put them through it. If it had been just the Windsor service , it would have been fine and appropriate.
The lack of time for food and water or bathroom breaks was one of my major concerns as well. This wasn’t an ordinary funeral which would have been fine for them. It was more like an endurance contest. That photo of Harry and Meghan leaving Windsor said it all. They were clearly exhausted, and they are two physically fit adults.
I was wondering how all the older people did the long day without bathroom breaks.
I wonder how long the line for the bathroom was at Westminster with 1000+ people.
Agreed. I had a run of family deaths a couple of years ago (some surprising, some elderly and somewhat expected) and my kids were in this age range, if not younger. Granted, I didn’t have the resources the BRF has for babysitting, but I took my kids. They processed and and learned from it and I think are better people as a result of their understanding. Death is a part of life, and thus the grieving process and funeral process is an ingrained part of our culture. Not to mention, the BRF kids are going to be doing these sorts of big fancy hat events for the rest of their lives…might as well get used to it.
Did your family’s services last a whole day with endless speeches, media, pomp and ceremony and no other kids around? A regular family funeral? Yes, by all means allow them to learn about death, but this was not an ordinary funeral, this was a show with those poor kids on display.
The average child can’t even sit through a church service without getting antsy, let alone this pomp and ceremony. At the very least a nanny should have been there to take them on little breaks, if they were required to be there for the whole thing. SMDH
@nina, thanks for asking, it wasn’t the queen’s death, but sometimes the drawn out events felt like it LOL. But my children are not facing a lifetime of these kind of pomp and circumstance events, as I mentioned in my comment. I know you guys hate Kate and William but these kids are facing a lifetime of this stuff. Grandpa Charles isn’t going to live forever. They will be attending many state funerals and events. Not to mention the coronation in less than a year. There are many reasons to hate on Kate and William but I don’t think taking them to this funeral is the right reason.
On the contrary, hate is a strong emotion. I don’t hate them, I am indifferent to them. The only thing that bothers me about them is their utter callousness and cruelty. I find their utter cruelty towards family incomprehensible. Their behavior disgusts me.
Before Meghan married Harry , I did not pay attention to the BRF. But Meghan being a fellow American, that perked my interest and here we are.
Why this obsession with Harry remaining. He was never going to be King. He will share in none of the perks or riches that come with the position, so why is he expected to bear the burden or help Pegs carry that burden.
It often depends on the kind of funeral. Some funeral’s are treated as a celebration of life and are not concentrated on the morbidity.
This funeral was solemn but it was good for the kids to be part of the pageantry.
I was a little bit concerned at the St George’s funeral where the coffin suddenly descends into the ground in front of everybody. I saw that at Philips funeral and even I found it eerie, so I was worried at the kids seeing that, I hope that they were prepared for it.
I was also thinking that I hope Kate prepared them for that.
I don’t know how you prepare kids for great Grandma suddenly disappearing into the floor, especially since we tell them that’s where hell is. If you look at the photos of the scene, this happened basically right in front of George and Charlotte.
@Brassy Rebel kids aren’t stupid. I understood the difference between great-grandma being in heaven and her body being buried in a casket at the cemetery as a 5-year-old.
It’s ok to let kids be sad. It’s ok for kids to cry sometimes.
If ALL the great grand children over a certain age had attended the first service then there was an argument to be made, but George and Charlotte were simply there as symbols and not actual children grieving a great grand mother.
Peter and Zara had kids older than Charlotte who did not attend the first service and that was because of rank, not anything relating to emotions or caring about the children.
No, not all kids go to THE queen’s 8-hour long funeral at their age, c’mon. This was THE QUEEN’s funeral, not any other person’s funeral. And regardless of anything, George and Charlotte are still a 7 and a 9 year old kids, regardless of whether they are Waleses or Cambridges. They’re still kids that should have been spared the 8 hour state funeral of a 70-year reigning monarch. Other children go to their relatives’ funeral at their age, but those funerals are not 8 hour long Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral(s)
I’m just appalled that even at their age Charlotte is already walking behind her brother; jeez these people!!!🙄🙄
NO 7 year old (or 9 year old for that matter) should be expected to sit through a formal event for 7 hours, though. It doesn’t matter of it is in front of cameras or if the child in question is a future king or in front of media since they were born. It’s biology. Their brains are not developed enough to be able to tolerate that.
Frankly, adults aren’t equipped to tolerate a 7 hour formal event either, but that’s the monarchy for you.
Agreed.
First of all: they are not having a childhood like the rest of us had. They are used to the attention.
THEN it’s their great grandmother funeral, when they will be adult they will be glad to have attended.
I was 3 at my grandfather’s funeral, but it wasn’t a 10 day extravaganza with the entire world watching. I think the idea of letting them come to just the Windsor service made sense. They’re little and QEII was a big part of their lives, what they needed was their parents helping them process everything. Hopefully that will happen now that it’s over. They did do wonderfully.
Yes, they both are old enough and my bet is that they wanted to go. And if originally they were only going to let George go, speaking from my experience as a younger sister – Charlotte would have immediately started lobbying to go also. Besides, a girl at 7 is generally at a similar emotional development as a boy at 9. And both of them have behaved just fine at other events.
The 4 year old was way too young for it, so good decision to leave him home.
You can argue about how much of it they should have stayed for, but it really isn’t anything predictable in advance. They were surrounded by family and seemed to be doing pretty well. Showing emotions is not bad.
You could not pay me enough money in the world to put my kids on a stage like this. That photo of Charlotte crying is too much. Poor kids.
I agree. I am surprised that william allowed them to walk a little ways behind the coffin, Since he was rightly traumatized by walking behind his mother’s coffin. SMH
The picture of Charlotte in the car looking sadly at her granite faced mother is heartbreaking. This little girl knows that she will always be way down the list when it comes to expecting any deep care and attention from Miss Thin. She knows already at her tender age how things will always be for her in this family. Children can often be very astute to the dynamics, even though they can’t articulate why it is so. I don’t know why, but this little girl has “it” to my eyes, just like Uncle Harry. It will be interesting to see her grow, and I wish her every happiness in that nest of vipers.
@antipodean. Ever heard the expression small cups have big ears. My grandma used to say that when she didn’t want to discuss grown up stuff because little ones were within earshot. Seems more like Cam and Keen were discussing something and Charlotte were just listening.
@ nina, I quite remember that quote as well, from my grandmother. They are sponges and hear everything! There is a reason why you should always be cautious when you are speaking around children as it is also a tender age as well.
Ugh that pic of Char crying will follow her for the rest of her life. Poor thing. (Are we sure she’s crying? Could be a sneeze?)
Could be anything,I read moments before she got told off by Cams, but the narrative of her bawling her eyes out for the Queen seems better.
My tin foil hat time…
courtiers wanted George and Charlotte at the Abbey so that Harry and Meghan could be “snubbed” and put in the second row.
I have no support for this theory other than the same made up voices in my head that the RR seem to rely on but I’m going with it
Charlotte didn’t seem upset at all at any time during the telecast. Just antsy. But the minute she touches her eyes for any reason over the ten hour day it’s going to be credited to crying.
@holly. Well that worked out well, because Harry and Meghan ended up right behind Chuck and every time they showed him, the picture included Harry and Meghan
Camilla is not the grandmother she should have left Charlotte alone
The medias and people on some want her to be crying. But she actually had sun in her eyes – was rubbing her eyes – Then back to being fine. It’s a money shot – but she was not crying.
She wasn’t crying at all, there’s video and she just had something in her eye.
I saw additional photos that seemed to be right after the crying ones and she was completely fine. So I believe it was a sneeze (or something in her eye) and not crying.
That said, it was greedy and selfish of their parents to bring them out for this to bolster their own image (or try to pull attention form Meghan…which clearly didn’t work). They’re too young. And while it’s for their great-grandmother and not mother, hasn’t Peggington talked about how traumatic a public funeral was for him? How could he then do that to his own children? Harry was completely right to get his family out of that madhouse.
I feel like I saw pictures from before and after that one and she wasn’t crying. Maybe some dust got in her eyes or something?
I wish they could have just attended the committal service in Windsor and then the private family dinner / service afterwards. I watched that coverage for about six hours and *I* was exhausted at the end of it. And unlike them, I was sitting on my couch in my pajamas with snacks and nobody was photographing me or judging my manners. I don’t know how the kids got through it.
Not to mention that the some of the worst parts of a family death happen behind closed doors – the squabbles and hurt feelings. They must be exhausted.
It feels very much like they were trotted out for Wales PR (and so they wouldn’t have to interact) and not because it was going to be in any way good for them.
Meanwhile, on another gossip site, W&K fans are crowing that Harry will be seething with jealousy over how these kids get so much “love” and attention from the public whereas his kids, the children of “vapid celebrities” will languish in obscurity.
Harry…. the guy who has repeatedly spoken about how much he hates cameras and the press and how he has ptsd from him and his mom being mobbed as a kid (among other things obvs). Yeah I’m sure he’d love for his kids to put thru this.
Most “vapid celebrities” keep their kids hidden for a reason. They are not show ponies or objects for display to be judged. And the Wails should be careful, public “love” can change on a dime, especially as kids get older and with the toxic UK press.
No one has ever accused W&K “fans” of being smart!
I agree there was no reason for Charlotte and George to be taken to the State Funeral. The committal service would have been fine for them to attend. But William and Kate felt they needed to bring them to appease the press and to draw attention away from Harry and Meghan. I’m not sure the last part worked.
“Mob boss widow” for Kate. That’s perfect.
There was reporting yesterday that George and Charlotte were fooling around and she said “ow!” And Camilla told Kate “get her.” “frustrated Camilla’s words to Kate about cheeky Charlotte.” It’s likely that’s where the emotion pictures come from.
I find Charlotte telling George what to do very troubling as she is obviously being told by her parents she must help and remind him and pressure is being piled on both to perform.
Charlotte acts like the typical only girl, my cousin is the same smack in the middle of her brothers and she was always treated like the oldest and her brothers listened to her. George seems very reserved and quiet.
@Bluejfly That is literally the most ridiculous thing I’ve read. Charlotte telling George what to do is clearly a very sibling thing, why must you make even the littlest thing dramatic?
How does she know when George is suppose to bow if she hasn’t been told when George is suppose to bow? You act like they’re born with this knowledge. Her parents are allowing this dynamic. I don’t think it’s healthy.
You can see her eagerly glancing over at Uncle Harry with curiosity and I can almost see the future now of Princess Charlotte escaping to live by Uncle Harry and Auntie Meg in California for her college education when she gets fed up by this pressure. It’s as if her eyes here are asking hungrily already- “You live by the beach? And don’t have to do all this?!”
I’m estranged from my older brother and I spent time with his five kids recently. The older two clearly ogled me with squinty eyes trying to see where my horns and tail were.
I suspect Char was doing the same- trying to square all the narratives against her own experience of the evil Harry and his wife.
Ya that would have made total sense to bring them for the second half only. I imagine they thought having the two of them would mean they could be buddies for each other. Dont think she was crying – others watching the live stream said it was a sneeze or sun got in her eyes.
I completely agree. A long state funeral is no place for 2 young children. None of the other great grandchildren were present.
I think W&k were using them as a buffer between themselves as usual but also between themselves and Meghan and Harry. If the children hadn’t been present, then Harry and Meghan would probably been beside W&K in the Abbey and in the Chapel at Windsor.
If I’m being particularly unkind, I could also speculate that the children were being used as a PR tool to draw everyone’s attention to the Wales’ family and to upstage the late Queen at her own funeral. But maybe I’m just being cynical and nasty …….
Hehe, I love her peeping at Meghan in the header pic.
I can only hope they were ASKED if they wanted to go, I think 9 & 7 is probably old enough to have that conversation but I don’t have kids so who knows.
Being uncharitable, it definitely had the potential for shades of the Jubilee “tiny human shields” tactic following some bad press.
That photograph of Charlotte crying breaks my heart. She is way too young to have her privacy invaded in this way, regardless of whether or not she “seemed fine” with it. The point of parenting is to make mature, healthy choices when your children are too young to do so. I think this was a very bad choice on the Walses’ part.
At 9 years old, and considering the Waleses have already put him into many situations as “the heir” (photoshoots, etc), I think having George there was fine. I agree that the ceremony in Windsor alone would have been appropriate, but both ceremonies in the Abbey and Windsor were probably too much.
She’s literally just rubbing her eye, wasn’t crying at all.
Charlotte wasn’t crying, she had a thing in her eyes, we saw it live and at first they thought she was crying then they commented it was something in the air that might have gone in her eye. She then went to her mother without problem.
Now it’s all over the press saying she was crying.
I think the kids were mostly bored. At the reading in the church you could see her at the beginning just being bored and her brother just bearing the wait of the public watching his every move.
I hope their parents will give them the time to be actual children, they are still under 10.
Really? I didn’t watch it on tv. I just saw the photos. Well, their parents should be really proud, if that’s the case.. I mean they’ ve got the shot they wanted to feed the media beast…
Charlotte looked super adorable and the photo of her crying is heartbreaking, but yeah, she probably shouldn’t have been there. Someone yesterday said that maybe Kate brought the kids knowing it would bump H&M out of the front row. I wouldn’t put it past Ms. Gotti.
Ms. Gotti ☠️
Even as senior royals, M&H typically always sat in the second row next to one of the Yorks or Wessexes at public events and church ceremonies.
I’m not against them going at their ages BUT, I agree with Kaiser that they should have gone to one (Westminster) or the other (Windsor) — not both. That’s a long day for any adult, let alone children!!!
The main thing that bothers is me is the usual double standard: If H&M had brought A & L (if A & L were 7 and 9 yo) they would have been skewered, but because its the Waleses they’re being praised for their “courage” and sense of duty. Barf.
@ Naomi, exactly right!!
I thought the kids did really well especially under the circumstances they were in. I expected George there but not Charlotte but again, they both did really well.
I understand that kids go to funerals around this age and in other cultures, attend them much younger but a state funeral with a bunch of cameras and millions of people watching is very different to that.
I wouldn’t have taken Charlotte at the very least but they’re also not my kids so my opinion doesn’t mean a lot.
Yep for me it’s not about children shouldn’t go to funerals it’s the public nature of this one. There was a private ceremony that one should have been enough for them.
Exactly. My kids attending my grandma’s funeral at Local Church in Midwest Suburbia is completely different than what happened here.
The kids did well, but I continue to be puzzled why they’re either zero or a billion with events. It’s the jublee or a Christmas walk about or a global state funeral!
Being public is their lot in life, but dang, take them to a few smaller events. That helicopter/plane event George went to when he was little was the perfect kid event. It’s a shame they don’t do more of those things. It would keep the big (inevitable) things from being so overwhelming.
Harry said more than once that he didn’t like having to be in public and not really be able to grieve. And yes it was his mother and a tragic unexpected death, but he was saying this having experienced it at 12 and not 9 and 7.
And it’s not like these kids were able to act like regular kids for any of this.
I note Meghan and Charlotte interacted a bit before Kate cut that off.
But we have an early years expert on hand….sarcasm
Oh, I didn’t see Pippa there! (ha!)
The kids are adorable. That’s all I got.
I saw the Phillips kids at the service in Windsor as well, and, for me, that service was the one that I’m not sure children should have attended….that coffin descending into the vault such as it did had to be disturbing for the children to witness. I know I was disturbed. I hoped they all discussed it with the children beforehand and explained what was going to happen because I found that hard to watch.
I agree. My mom died when I was 5, and while I handled the funeral well overall, my dad has always said he regrets not letting my older brother and sister-in-law take me home before the burial (though this was in a cemetery, not a vault). In my case, it was a projection of my own fear of the dark and claustrophobia, and I had nightmares for a while.
Exactly the same sentiments as mine above.
I said yesterday that I thought it was fine to bring them to the Abbey (they behaved pretty well, etc) but I did not realize there was a second service in Windsor that they were going to attend as well. They just should have gone to that one, which is what I think Peter Phillips’ daughters did. there was no reason for them to attend both, and to be part of the procession in the car, standing around Hyde Park, etc.
they behaved well for the day from what I saw, but it was still a lot for them. I get that George is going to be king, I get that these aren’t “normal” kids and that part of their lives are always going to be for public consumption, etc. I also get that George and Charlotte being there, for the state funeral of an elderly great grandmother who passed away peacefully (from what we know), is very different from what William and Harry had to do for their mother’s funeral.
So all that said…I still think it was a bit much for them and they would have been fine just to go to Windsor.
George and Charlotte should have attended the services attended by the other great grand children. Separating them from the others at this young age is dumb. It’s not like being a good monarch depends on if you attended all the funerals for your great grandmother.
This was about pulling rank by the Wales and likely the kids as buffer helped too. From each other and the Sussexes.
Brits love the Queen so much, I’m sure they’re not going to be complaining when they can’t pay get heating bills, or about the raw sewage being pumped into the sea.
I agree that having the kids attend one of the ceremonies would have made more sense then having them sit through an almost 7 hour day of ceremonies. I mean I was getting antsy towards the end and I was sitting at home.
It surely was a mistake, a funeralat that age is very hard to process and surely you wouldn’t want to do it with the whole world watching.
I don’t see anything wrong with them going to their great grandmother’s funeral. They were well-behaved. They had a good relationship with her. Maybe they even asked to be there?
So Charlotte was crying and the early years expert didn’t think that comforting her daughter would be appropriate? The stiff-necked “protocol” is more important than a child’s feelings?
Nope. Kid wipes eyes, parent allows her to do so without freaking out. All continue their day.
Because not comforting a child and keeping a stiff upper lip has worked out so well for the royals over the centuries. No generational trauma at all from the fishbowl they live in. No siree!
there was literally no reason to ‘comfort’ this child at this time — I’m all for nitpicking and snark but making events up out of whole cloth to complain about negates real criticisms.
No one actually knows what happened with Charlotte and the entire fact that her actions have been scrutinized or brushed aside by a global audience is exactly why most believe it was unnecessary to have either of the Wales kids in attendance at that state funeral. That’s the entire point. Not whether Charlotte was crying or not.
We do know however how both Harry and William felt about having to be in public and grieve their mother. And we also know that the Windsors have multiple generations of emotionally stunted people. So maybe brushing off something based on a few photos and video isn’t being in a position of knowledge of the entire situation or of how the kids actually felt about all this.
So — that was exactly my point.
OP says “So Charlotte was crying and the early years expert didn’t think that comforting her daughter would be appropriate?”
Nic says “No one actually knows what happened with Charlotte”
This entire comment was about bashing Kate for not “comforting” her child when there is no evidence whatsoever that the kid needed comforting. Again, I’m all for laughing at the sister wife dresses and bad bronzer but concern trolling the kid is a reach.
Whether or not it was appropriate for them to attend is a question for their parents — I don’t have an opinion either way. They didn’t seem all that distressed and handled it better than I would have.
Sometimes I do wonder though how you prepare them to be in public life without bringing them to events every now and then. For this specific event I don’t think they should have gone but it went better than I expected. What I was worried about was seeing them sad and distressed like when Harry and William marched behind their mother coffin it’s that vision that in part created the unhealthy attachment/entitlement of the public feel towards Harry.
George and Charlotte behaved really welll. To be fair C wasn’t crying it seems like she had something in her eye.
Crown Princess Victoria over in Sweden did it perfectly with her two kids. Her heir Estelle was attending easy, child-friendly events from the time she was a young toddler, even shaking hands while her mom was holding her. Just an event here and there, nothing complicated, and not too many of them. But just enough to get her comfortable with her future role. And now she is a pre-teen who is great with the public, very cheery and self-assured. Meanwhile, the Wails kept their kids away from royal engagements/ “work” for years, and only really started bringing them out after Meghan arrived and the Sussexes started growing in popularity. So those kids were thrown in the deep end and you end up with things like the Jubbly weekend where you could tell they were burned out.
Soit on. I thought if this too. The Windsors could learn a lot from their Swedish cousins. Not just on introducing children to public life while also protecting them and giving them a healthy childhood but also on letting adult children who will never inherit the thrown have a life of their own and supporting their life choices while allowing them to attend royal events without issue or hate. Imagine that!
I think the day was far too long for them both. Personally I would have taken them to the State Funeral and then sent them home. When I heard they were attending my only concern was would the children have unsettling dreams? IMHO (even for an adult ) seeing a coffin go down is haunting and I was so glad we at home were spared that image, and got to see the piper instead.
My thoughts exactly.
The “succession” reasoning for
George and Charlotte both being there tells me they’re probably gonna do everything in their power to not have another spare breakaway. Good luck Charlotte.
The kids should not have been at the state funeral. They were used as props to promote the line of succession. When the queen was buried George and Charlotte became working royals. Their childhoods are gone.
The children shouldn’t have been there and it was clear to me, that it was a ploy to garner more support for the Waleses. Too long to wait without eating or any breaks of any kind. Not cool at all.
I believe that the children were used as seat fillers. If they weren’t in those two seats, then would Harry & Meghan be allowed to sit in the front row?
^^ No, based on the fact that M&H as senior royals typically always sat in the second row at these types of public family gatherings.
What was going on in William’s head that he said okay to bringing them to a ten hour day of funeraling? Considering how early they had to be up and dressed and loaded in the car to process to Westminster Hall, then travel to and from multiple locations, the constant cameras, the lack of breaks to eat or burn off their energy? It boggles the mind considering that the kids could have just stayed in Windsor and been part of that short ceremony. William and Kate absolutely did it for the tabloids and so they had some buffers between them.
Agree. I was exhausted, grumpy and badly behaved by the end and I’m middle aged and was just watching it on TV.
Also, WTF is with the stated “reason” for dragging them out? That the public *needed* the reassurance of seeing the second and third in line along with the new King and the first in line – not to mention the fifth through to the eleventy hundredth in line who were also present. There were Royals all over the place. Who the hell would watch this outing and go “Ooh I’m a bit worried about the security of the royal succession. They appear to be a bit thin on the ground”???
These courtiers are idiots if they really thought that was needed.
Spot on. Everyone sane understands that young kids don’t need to be at multiple funeral services.
I was also exhausted and grumpy by the end, and in desperate need of a nap! I did take a snack and pee break while the coffin took its leisurely drive out to Windsor, I’m assuming the family had time enough to do the same.
👆 This! Plus, they knew the Sussexes would monopolize the world interest and the photos of the funeral and they wanted to prevent it or minimize it… their children engage far more interest from media than the two of them, they know it and they were prepared to exploit it by exposing them for many hours for the Queen’s funeral…
I saw a snippet of a video with her crying and clearly saying NOW. Camilla turned around exasperated as if to say “someone handle this” and turned back around quickly. Video ended. Charlotte was giving the death stare to someone in the back of that car. Poor George just look scared. I am sure they were brow beaten days before the funeral on how to act! They should have stayed home and attended the private service later. They were needed as props so they were made to go.
Tamra – Charlotte said, “ow!” Because George had pinched her. Of course that merits a sibling death stare. I don’t like that Camilla basically wrote Charlotte off like it’s unreasonable to react to being pinched, and I’m sure Charlotte didn’t appreciate it either, so perhaps the eye daggers were directed at the new QC though.
@CuriousCole ITA. This reminded me so much of my own mom (about Camilla’s age) who always, and I mean ALWAYS sides with boys over girls, no matter how wrong the boys are. The internalized misogyny with certain women runs real deep – I always pictured Camilla to be one of those women.
There’s a palpable thirst and greed that overrides reason in the Wales family. They wanted their heir &spare to be part of history attending the Queen’s funeral and they wanted to be THE scene stealers, even if it’s bad parenting. They saw how the Sussexes got global acclaim and they want complete erasure. Gross.
Seven hours is an absurd amount of time to expect children to be still.
Seeing Princess Charlotte’s grief used as tabloid fodder makes me uncomfortable. Do we all need to see a child cry over their great grandmother on TV and the front page of the Mail? It’s yucky. It reminds me of watching Prince Harry and William behind their mom’s coffin. It’s exploitative.
Wait until George and Charlotte start dating. Whoever they see will be scrubbed, especially George because a girlfriend of his is a potential queen consort.
George seemed really anxious throughout the day. I don’t think it was a good idea to bring them. I know he’s the possible future king, but he’s very young for such a long and emotional event. Same for Charlotte, although she didn’t seem as bothered. But the media wanted them there and they get what they want from the family.
The media wanted them there? So the FQC is okay with sacrificing her children to the media?
Lol, Kate and William don’t give up their children for anyone’s sake but their own.
They have a transactional relationship with the media. Give them enough to keep the real stories, like affairs and separations, out of the headlines. It’s one reason why they brief against H and M too.
William and Kate brought those children out as human shields. The transaction goes both ways.
This is a genuine question, not snark: Are there really so many people across the UK deeply worried about the line of succession that sightings of the children are necessary to reassure them? It’s painted as something of such existential magnitude and…I’m not quite sure why. Charles probably has another couple of decades to go, William is in good health, and George is young. Is there really such prevalent fear for the line of succession?
It’s an entirely ginned up excuse to justify using young children as ready-made distractions/ shields.
Merricat is correct. It’s nonsense. At that funeral we had present and all in the line of succession:
William
(George and Charlotte)
Harry
Andrew
Beatrice
Eugenie
Edward
Anne
Mark Phillips
Zara
and all of those have children also in the line that were not present. We are NOT short of people to ascend the damn throne. Maybe what the courtiers *actually* meant was that the public need reassurance that there are some human buffers between William and Harry becoming King??
An article I read stated that they only keep track of the first five thousand in line for the throne.
It’s not like people are WORRIED worried. It’s more that seeing children does make people feel a little bit better about the adults in the room. The royal family has been trotting out their kids for photo-ops and to be a friendly sort of buffer between them and the public for generations, starting with Queen Victoria. The whole image of projected domesticity, of being just a happy “normal” family–that’s been a thing for them since forever. They do this because they know people like to see that sort of thing.
It’s not like people particularly care about the monarchy’s continued existence, that needing to see the heirs is necessary to feel better. But people just like to see generations of the same family. I dunno why, and I’m probably not explaining this very well.
I believe it depends on the children’s temperaments. I was 5 when my grandmother died. I was not allowed to go to the funeral. I still remember my sadness at watching my parents leave. I wanted to be there.
To this day I am comfortable at funerals. I think they are cathartic.
Those children have to get use to crowds for the rest of their lives. They must do this to get use to it.
Their great grandmother was an institution and they will remember this for the rest of their lives.
chill, I wonder what they will be remembering. Will it be that their great-grandmother died and they had one less loved one, or will it be about an excruciatingly long day of cameras and crowds?
I think its fine that they went to the funeral. So many people try to shield children from death, but it helps them process it if they are active participants in the mourning process. Plus, they are older, and they are members of the royal family. It helps introduce them to the public life. And I am sure they will be glad that they were there once they are older.
Are we sure Charlotte was crying? If you scroll down there is another pic from that same time and she’s smiling. Someone up top suggested she might have sneezed and unless there is video of her crying a sneeze seems more accurate.
Having said that, if she was crying then that is a money shot for the Wales. They will absolutely use that to establish how close they were to the queen.
The had to bring George, he’s the new ffk.
And they had to bring Charlotte, because if they didn’t one of the would have to sit beside Harry.
She was a buffer, & nothing less.
Because there is no other reason for that child not to be in the middle of her parents, like her brother.
The message is clear: Charlotte is expendable in the exact same ways as Harry was/is.
Look at that poor child, being used like that. Shame on her entire family.
There is so much wrong with the Wales’, it’s hard to separate it all.
Besides H+M,Princess Anne and Charlotte are the biggest badasses in RF. Anne didn’t give her kids titles, Helped stop her own kidnapping at 23, is hardest working member of family. Anne lays low and works hard, does good. Charlotte is supposedly a “mini” of QE2. Boss of the family. Glad there is one adult in the group. I realize the kid is 7 but as a mom of three girls, Charlotte gives off a boss vibe that will be good for her as she grows older.
I said yesterday that these two turds should not hsbe done this to their little children especially after what William went through as a child when his mom died. Also in the car kate is still not looking at Charlotte and Charlotte looks like she would like to slap the bee keeper hat off the grieving mob wife head,
I think that they did fine and that it was appropriate to bring them given their temperaments and ability to sit through the many events. As someone else said, both George and Charlotte are going to have many more public events in their future and it makes sense to acclimate them to these sort of events now.
Additionally, both the Jubilee and the funeral are momentous and unique events. As a parent, I recognize that W/K wanted their children to participate in them given the significance. I think that was why Louis participated in so many Jubilee events even though he clearly was not ready to do so.
I agree that the day was way too long for the kids to be at both public funerals. Should have skipped out on the state funeral and only gone to the one in Windsor. How last minute was this that they couldn’t put together a black suit for George? They had a week.
Charlotte was adorable, she wasn’t crying in that pic, but she shouldn’t have been put into a position where the media could take a frame of her rubbing her eyes and broadcast to the world that she broke down into tears.
Did you see the Twitter comical threads about Louis being Home Alone and what he might have done? It wasn’t mean at all. People appreciated how much he’s like our own children.in ways at that age. All those kids are adorable, Charlotte, the boss (meant in the very best way) helping George (who seems to be a naturally quiet child) and Louis just busting with personality. I worry about them growing up in that environment.
What are the chances George ends up abdicating to allow Charlotte her rightful role as Queen? It’s obvious she has an interest in leadership and protocol.
But mostly, can we talk about how hilarious it is that Chuck has been trying to slim down the royal family but… what’s the saying? He cut off his nose to spite his face.
So Beatrice accepted a deal with devil to be a Counsellor of State and a working royal, because no one else would?
What exactly does she get from this arrangement?
Beatrice is counsellor of state simply because she was the next in line and over 18. The legislation under the regency act does not make reference to working royal or other made up stuff. That’s why Andrew and Harry are still on it. Charles will have to change the regency act if he wants to remove them.
They dragged little George and Charlotte because Kate is a beast who cannot behave herself especially around Harry and Meghan, so they needed little child buffers for the pew seating and other awkward interactions.
This whole thing is an utter and absolute disgrace.
It’s just an impossible situation to manage. The kids did fine & no, they are not too young to have participated in a long-ish day of funeral events. But a huge, international event where they would be photographed & taped is not appropriate. And yet, I doubt the family was given a choice. The courtiers relay the demands of the rota & that’s that.
Clearly, you can prioritize your psychological/emotional health or your place in the Firm, not both.
Perhaps they are preparing them for future events like Chuckles having a very short reign?
Now they’ll know what to do when they are even more prominent at Granddads funeral.
I know it is our habit to parse every blink and look for motivations but at the end of the day — I just don’t see all of the angst? The kids did fine, Charlotte was not bawling her eyes out, I thought it was pretty normal for her to tell George when to bow (because we all have that bossy sibling…or WERE the bossy sibling). It’s a big stretch to assume none of them went to the bathroom for 7 hours.
TBH my biggest fear was the number of times they moved that casket, I was afraid someone would slip.
idk i think this one’s a little less cut-and-dry than most other occasions those poor kids are forced to sit through. yes, it’s a very public event and very long but at the same time it’s pretty normal for a child that age to attend a funeral when their grandparent/great-grandparent dies. it would almost be weird, at least to me, for them not to attend? key word almost, but still.
Instead of being at home (alone) it might have been more comforting for them to be around the family (at the funeral)
They were insulated from talking to strangers.
Photo of Charlotte in the car looking at her mother and Camilla. Wonder what she is overhearing. Camilla has got a perfect ally in Kate to trash one of Diana’s sons. Sorry, but those two women just look as though they are having a bitch fest.
Do you really think Camilla and Kate like each other? Camilla is just helping Charles. being nice to Kate to ensure that she keeps the side up and doesn’t mess things for William so that Charles can keep the succession going. They are all thinking of themselves.
I don’t think either one has any use for the other, TBH, except now Kate is going to have to go through Camilla for the big bling.
To me they are alike and will make nice with each other as long as it suits them. However, Camilla is better at this game than kHate and Carol(e) are.
kHate HAS to prove herself as Princess of Wales, it’s only a matter of time before the Diana comparisons start and it won’t be pretty for her. She and Ma spent years scheming to get that title – be careful what you wish for.
Camilla is wary of Kate and vice versa i think Charles took care of Camilla in an iron clad will so she would not have to depend on will if Charles predeceases her
The enemy of my enemy is my friend, and all that.
Everyone is searching for fault in Kate. They are kids at their grandma’s funeral. They can’t “suffer” for 7 hours?! Jeez, kids are so coddled these days.
We don’t have to search.
it is almost as bad as poor George almost dying of heat stroke because he wore a suit in public outside….won’t someone think of the children.
great-grandmother, and it has nothing to do with being coddled.
Not that I watch a lot of these events, but I have been getting the feeling that Charlotte comes along because she is George’s source of emotional support.
Imagine going to school the next day after all of your brand new classmates and teachers and coaches will have seen you at your gran’s funeral and watched you watch your gran’s coffin sink into the floor. Imagine knowing all those same people may have seen pictures of you at your gran’s funeral blanketing the internet, whether you had actually burst out crying or not. Parents need not have brought them to this public spectacle and made them the subject of tabloid articles and Twitter mockery. The private burial service in the evening would be just fine and would give them a healthier experience of a funeral and mourning.
Imagine teaching children to be confident individuals not worrying about their classmate seeing pictures of them….doing a perfectly normal thing like attending a funeral.
How do you imagine that conversation going? Hey Char, saw you on the tellie at Granny’s funeral….yea, my Grandmother died, we paid our respects….ok, want half my peanut butter sandwich?
“Haha charlotte, saw you wiping your nose!! Haha Charlotte, saw your mom pulling your coat bc you were being a brat! haha Charlotte! I heard my mom say that your dad can’t stand your mom and has a girlfriend in London!!”
I mean, those things are all really mean things for one kid to say to another. But, kids can be really mean.
“I heard my mom say that your dad can’t stand your mom and has a girlfriend in London!!”
Yes, we should worry about what the children are saying.
@same – do you have kids?
I ask because kids CAN be mean like I said, and kids WILL repeat everything they hear at home. I’m not worried about Charlotte reading my comments on an internet comment site. It’s far more likely that another classmate repeats the gossip they’ve heard from their parents, even if the parents did not intend for them to hear it. And you know those parents are gossiping.
So when you say “how do you imagine that conservation going” I can imagine a dozen different ways the conversation turns to making fun of Charlotte.
It shouldn’t, of course. Charlotte behaved well yesterday and lost a family member, so of course no one should make fun of her if there was a slightly unflattering picture taken or whatever. But, that’s not how kids operate.
I’m not saying that its guaranteed that Charlotte will walk into school tomorrow (or George) and kids will start laughing at them, or even that anything mean WILL be said in general. Just that kids can always find a way to be mean to another if they want to.
Sure do – a couple of them.
The concern trolling is a reach — OMG a kid might make fun of another kid at school — so what, they should never walk outside again? No one cares about this kid, this faux outrage is just stick to beat her Mom with.
To your point that children parrot the nastiness of their parents — agree, the fruit won’t fall far from the tree.
I think it’s important – even for kids – to go to a funeral of a loved person, it’s a final good bye and sometimes you just realise the loss just in this moment when the cuffin goes down.
I haven’t watched the whole funeral “show”, just a summary on TV, so I’m not sure if my observtions are right: Kate didn’t comfort the kids, by touching them or holding their hands. Jesus, Princess and future Queen, can’t you take your kids by the hand to give them security… Who tf cares about royal rules – no contact in the public… I believe every mother with a heart screamed at the screen: please comfort your kids!
a quick google search will answer that question.
Kate’s not touching them because she’s afraid they will react the way Louis did:)
IDK, I don’t think anyone can make a blanket statement as not all children are the same. I also don’t think we can compare yesterdays funeral for the queen, 6 hours and televised, to any funeral our children have gone to.
The children did well. Interestingly, the Charlotte crying pictures are due to George pinching her. Apparently, Camilla got testy. There’s video of it. I don’t want to put the link on here because posting urls helps nasty publications with Google search rankings. Just Google George pinches Charlotte and you’ll see the video.
I hope when Charlotte grows up she follow’s her uncle and aunt’s footsteps and moves to America leaving the Royal toxic family, Charlotte deserves her own life and not be George’s rock, the spare to the heir
I have this feeling that Charles will be the UK’s last king and when the older generations die off, the new generations will have UK be a republic in maybe 20 years from now, I don’t think William or George will ever become king, look at the anti monarchy protests and the not my king hashtags
What makes you think America is such a great choice? She could very well leave the Royal family, but that doesn’t mean she’ll choose America to live. It’s not that great a place.
Really, it doesn’t have to be America. Just about anywhere would be a better choice than the firm.
Hey Me, I should have worded my comment better, I didn’t mean Charlotte should live in America when she grows and if she ditches the monarchy, I was just giving a suggestion of where she could go, she could move anywhere that isn’t England if Charlotte chooses, any country what my comment was trying to come across
The funeral was soooo long. Those poor children must have been exhausted by the end of the day. I was exhausted just sat at home watching it. Anyway I think they did great, I think after a hour or so kids can start to get fidgety but they did well to last all day.
I feel bad for Charlotte with that crying pic, it feels very exploitative to lie about a child crying when they weren’t. What happens if another kid at her school sees it and starts calling her a ‘cry baby’ cos kids are mean like that?
Probably the same thing that happens anytime a child calls another one a “crybaby”?
Most 7 and 9 year olds go to grandparent and great grandparent funerals, it’s a part of life. Yes it was also a state occasion, and that is also part of their life. It’s also completely, completely different than asking two adolescents to walk behind their mothers coffin after an unexpected and traumatic death. Completely.
Not most of the seven and nine year olds I know. In our family, the children are usually left behind with an adult to look after them. Children don’t start attending funerals until the age of 12 or so, or unless they specifically ask to go.
Interesting, I went to my grandfather’s funeral at age 7 while my younger siblings stayed home. I wouldn’t hesitate to bring my own 9 and 7 year olds to a funeral if god forbid one of my parents passed. Sadly my 9 year old daughter had a classmate whose parent passed away this past year – my 9 year old attended the funeral as did many of her classmates along with their parents. At the end of the day, it is something up to each parent whether their child is ready to and should attend a funeral, but it is certainly not abnormal for 7 and 9 year olds to attend funerals (even if it doen’t work for particular families or kids which I completely understand of course).
For seven hours? Wow!
For everyone saying “it was totally fine for a 9 and 7 year old to go to a state funeral” they were the ONLY great-grandchildren there. Some of the other great-grandchildren were at the Commital Service at St. George’s which was more “intimiate” (how is 800 people more intimate??) but George and Charlotte, the direct heirs, were the only ones at the state funeral. They did NOT need to be there. It was absolutely ridiculous for them to have to go to that. Savannah Phillips is the oldest great-grandchild and she wasn’t at the state funeral. They seemed to do okay but George looked anxious and deer in the headlights several times and it wasn’t his parents I saw him comforting him but his sister Charlotte.
I get the same vibe from Charlotte and George that I get from William and Harry. Charlotte seems to be more at ease and confident in the spotlight and George is more reluctant and shy.
Charlotte seems to possess a tremendous poise for a child her age and she seems to be George’s strongest support as he seems to rely on her.
it has been said that Anne has been Chuck’s greatest ally and shoulder to lean on this last couple of weeks
My grandma died when my kids were 6 and 10, and they went. But the thing is, even though it was several days of events and a long mass, there was space for parents/kids to take a break if needed. There’s no room for that in what went on yesterday and thats why it was too much, imo.
Not once I thought it odd, that the children were there. Well, I was surprised Charlotte attended the funeral, too, because I thought they would just go with the people in line of succession.
I think they know the cameras, the people watching them. It may not be the best feeling, but they’ve known this world their whole life. And it may be sad, but it’s part of the deal IMO. Apart from the picture of Charlotte crying, the kids looked rather bored. I remember suddenly crying at my grandfathers funeral when I saw my other grandfather – because I realized I would never see the other one ever again. But I was fine then. It’s hard, but it’s part of life. William knows how hard all of this can be. I don’t think he would let his kids suffer through this (if you don’t count the very long event itself) if he knew they would be totally thrown off.
And: There were other children too. I saw two little blonde girls walking with a man after the act at Windsor. Some other kids walked in at Westminster…
I thought you didn’t see a lot of the royal family compared to the length of the funeral. Especially at Windsor. Maybe out of respect to not show some kind of emotional “outbursts”…?
I think it’s fine that they attended. I attended my first wake and funeral at 5. Two days of viewing and third day burial. Obviously this is 100% different bc this was televised for the world. I don’t see anything wrong with them attending though. I think even if Willie and Kate objected to them going (which let’s be real…they didn’t), they would be overruled anyway.
I see a lot of comment saying “this is all they’ve known their whole life” and that’s just not true. Their parents went out of there way to shield them on British soil and Charlotte wasn’t seen at an official event on British soil (excepting her own and Louis’ christening) until she was 5. The Cambridges were more than willing to use the children abroad for PR boosts but never on British soil.
Queen Meghan’s Hand, your words are the sterling truth. Buffers and shields. That’s what those children mean to them. Shameful.
There’s also a video online of when Charlotte is seated next to Harry and they both glance at each other at the same time. He gives her a small smile, almost like he’s saying “Good luck, kid”. She’s gonna need it.
Lauren, I saw that, too. Harry is just phenomenal.
Yes, it’s a sweet moment between the two. I’m positive he still loves his niece and nephews despite their parents abuse towards him and his family. I thought the smile was quite sweet. Also, kinda sad for Charlotte as I think that was the only small source of “comfort” she had all day.
So the deranged lunatics on Twitter that worship Khatie Keen are really something else over this little 7 year old girl and that is reason enough for me that they shouldn’t have gone. Its really disgusting how they talk about this child in a worshipful way. No child should be discussed this way. When focused just on her I have heard she is an icon, gorgeous, and will be the best queen ever (no joke), etc…. (Look for the clip where she flicks her hair like Khate). HOWEVER, she is now being used in their hate campaign against M&H. Too much awfulness to spill here but they were worried about her safety near them, she had to be separated from Meghan by Khate and Sophie – her “protector” because Meghan bullied her by smiling at her. And now, after both the Daily Mail and People report of an alleged sweet interaction between Harry and her where they caught each other’s eyes and he smiled – even that is being twisted. According to these loonies Harry was evil and Charlotte was either shrewd for having his number in which case it proves that she is an “icon” and she “slays” and is a “girl boss”, or she was so scared of him she moved as far away from him as possible to avoid sitting near him – because of course he is an evil bully like Meghan.
I can’t with these people. I do understand that they are loony and twist things and wouldn’t believe the sky is blue if Hand M said it was ….but this to me shows exactly why those kids shouldn’t have been there. Don’t tell me that the Wails’ don’t know how those kids would be inspected and commented on …khate lives for both the press and the love she and her family get on the back of demeaning H&M – especially M.
And Khate helps that narrative when there are clips of her turning Charlotte away from looking behind where Meghan is or gripping her coat because whether or not Charlotte was actually looking at Meghan doesn’t matter when there is a picture that could paint that picture that they want.
Poor little thing. Seeing her cry breaks my heart. Reminds me of how hard it was for my daughter when my own grandmother died, and we weren’t able to say goodbye in person. Thankfully we were able to attend her service. She was 10 at the time. I think it’s important to let the children come if it’s their wish to attend, but agree that the publicity is overwhelming for any child experiencing grief. They could have found a way to include them that would protect their privacy.
The fans of sussexes are now praising will and Kate as the best keenest parents ever and such inspirational children
Here’s what I will add as a therapist who has worked in early years and attachment. Children can do hard things. There are many children exposed to much worse than a state funeral. HOWEVER, it’s not the “event” that I have a problem with, it’s the LACK of support I have worries about. There’s the original trauma, and then there’s the trauma from lack of support. Of course Charlotte is going to cry. Crying is normal. The problem is, Charlotte is crying and the adults around her are ignoring her AND, the fact she is being ignored while crying caused her to become more disregulated. I’ve seen other interactions that would lead me to believe that, most of the time, Kate and yes William, likely DO respond to their children’s needs in private. When Charlotte tripped on the balcony for example and Kate picked her up and comforted her for example. Charlotte has already gone through a move, potential parental separation, and now, the grand grandmother she just celebrated at the Jubby, has died. She needed a great big hug, and she didn’t even receive eye contact. ALSO there’s a difference between knowing that this is their role, to be in the public eye, and exploiting a young child by thrusting them in front of cameras that will post and the photos will be scrutinized over social media, and 24 hour news cycles for the lifetime of those children for the purpose of sending a message that the monarchy is in tact and will “endure”. Using your kids will come back to bite you in the butt!! Whether you’re using them to live vicariously through their sports or activities, or whether or not your using them to endure a monarchy, resentment and broken attachments are likely in these cases. For the sake of these kids and all our kids, we need to do better. We need to set boundaries with what kind of scrutiny we allow towards a developing mind. Just because they are heirs to the throne, doesn’t mean exploiting them and not attuning to their emotional regulation needs is okay. If Kate held her tight, while bowing her head, Charlotte would have experienced her sadness and grief from a place of love and support. Instead she publicly experienced it alone!
From seeing the pictures above it doesn’t look at all like Charlotte is crying. They’re near the car in the “crying” picture and in the next one, also near the car, she is laughing. Also if she had cried, there would be more pictures, and the grown ups would have rallied round (or at least reacted even if just to tell her to stop). The brevity of the crying moment suggests a sneeze or dust in the eyes, as others have mentioned.
I welcome fellow readers’ thoughts.
Well…the question here is for what purpose were those children brought out the funeral in the first place. Yes, it was a family event, and yes, they were there to pay their respects to their great-grandmother.
But let’s not kid ourselves. If this were just a family event, it wouldn’t have been a state funeral. There would have been no public display of any kind over the last ten days. All of the spectacle, the infamous British pomp and circumstance…none of it would have happened. If this were just a family event, then the Queen would have just had a completely private funeral at Windsor, with no press, no public events, no photographs, nothing, with just the family in attendance.
That’s not what happened. What happened instead is the full shebang. This is the most photographed and videoed and livestreamed event of the year. And it’s been a really LONG ass week of nothing but wall-to-wall press coverage. And it’s this event that the kids attended, were photographed at, and seen at.
The bread and butter of the monarchy isn’t the hundreds of ribbon-cutting events they do, it’s the image that they project of themselves, to the people. The reason why so many people lined up the streets of London to see the funeral procession and why so many people queued up to view the closed casket isn’t because of anything that the Queen or the monarchy has done in particular. It’s what they see these things as having represented.
And that’s why George and Charlotte were brought out for the funeral. They were there to show off the image of the monarchy as it exists today. Having their children there humanized these people who otherwise can’t really be humanized in an adequate way. It smooths the corners of the picture. Children have always been the bread and the butter of the monarchy, in that they are a crucial part of making sure people feel invested in the monarchy as something they want and like.
Is that fair to put on the shoulders of these kids? Is it fair to ask them to bear the burden of carrying on an image that they might not even have wanted? In my honest opinion, it’s not. They are too young to even have any understanding of what that sort of thing means anyway. And by the time they are old enough to understand it, they are going to be entirely worn down by the demands they’ve had to acquiesce to with no say on whether they want to or not.
These kids were not just asked to come to a funeral to mourn their grandmother. They were asked to come to this funeral to do something very specific. Remember how, in The Crown, Elizabeth’s father tells Philip–“She IS the job.” Well, this IS the job. Being seen IS the job. Showing off a certain image for the people to relate to and want to keep around IS the job. Playing the part that’s expected of you to play in the larger pageant of what people think it means to be British IS the job. George and Charlotte were there to do a job. Whether it’s okay to ask them to do that is a whole other question entirely.
I vote with those who believe the children should attend the private service only. That funeral was camera clicks, lights, strange faces, and a chilled environment. It’s not the same as our grandparent’s homegoing service. Let’s be realistic.
I thought William said this event awakened his unpleasant memories from his mother’s funeral. It was 25 years and two days later. I’m positive Harry was triggered, so I ignored the Holding Hands Outrage.
I agree with the person who said George and Charlotte are working royals. They’re using the kids to justify why Kate can’t travel frequently or for extended periods because she has young children. And if they must, the cost of the children and nannies will be included.
Charlotte’s memory of Meghan may not be as vivid as that of Harry, she’s only six, and they left two years ago. I believe she’s heard sharp criticism and unkind words spoken in their home, especially about Meghan.
Charlotte was wiping her eyes but not crying. Seconds later, she was smiling.
I vote with those who believe the children should attend the private service only. That funeral was camera clicks, lights, strange faces, and a chilled environment. It’s not the same as our grandparent’s homegoing service. Let’s be realistic.
I thought William said this event awakened his unpleasant memories from his mother’s funeral. I was 25 years and two days later. I’m positive Harry was triggered, so I ignored the Holding Hands Outrage.
I agree with the person who said George and Charlotte are working royals. They’re using the kids to justify why Kate can’t travel frequently or for extended periods because she has young children. And if they must, the cost of the children will be included.
Charlotte’s memory of Meghan may not be as vivid as that of Harry, she’s only six, and they left two years ago. I believe she’s heard sharp criticism and unkind words spoken in their home, especially about Meghan.
Charlotte was wiping her eyes but not crying. Seconds later, she was smiling.