The Princess of Wales shared a sweet interaction with James, Earl of Wessex, at Sunday’s Easter Matins service as the royal family put on a united display.
Kate, 44, was seen warmly chatting with the 18-year-old ahead of the church service in St George’s Chapel, Windsor, with royal fans gushing over the “lovely” and candid moment.
The service was attended by extended members of the royal family, offering the chance to see interactions the public doesn’t normally get to see.
James was seen walking down to the church with his father, Prince Edward, closely behind the senior royals, before chatting with Kate, his cousin-in-law, before the service began.
The young royal’s mother, Duchess Sophie, didn’t attend the service due to feeling under the weather, while his sister, Lady Louise Windsor, 22, was busy with her studies.
However, Kate soon put him at ease and welcomed him into the gathering of senior royals, with royal fans taking to social media to gush over the moment, calling them “natural buddies”. One person commented: “A lovely interaction between the Princess of Wales and James, Earl of Wessex.”
A second said: “The Princess of Wales will be a good guide for the young royals. She’s so down to earth, I think they will feel at ease in her presence.” Others said that it was “nice to see Catherine making him feel at ease”. “Love how close Wales and Edinburgh families are,” another social media user said.
Who is James, Earl of Wessex?
James, 18, is the youngest child of Duchess Sophie and Prince Edward, and the youngest grandchild of the late Queen Elizabeth II. This means he is also the cousin of Prince William and Prince Harry, as well as Andrew’s children, Beatrice and Eugenie, and Anne’s children, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall.
Though James is younger than his sister, Lady Louise, he sits before her in the line of succession because male-preference primogeniture applied at the time of their births.
James is now in the final year of his A-Level studies at Radley College and is expecting to sit his final school exams in the coming months. It’s unlikely that he will carry out royal duties in the future.
A private royal upbringing
The Earl tends to keep a lower profile and is seen less often at public events, but his Easter appearance may signify the start of taking on an increased role. Previously, he was last seen publicly at the Christmas Day service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham.
© UK Press via Getty ImagesJames usually only appears at major royal events, such as King Charles’s coronation and the funeral events for the late Queen.
Although he is 16th in line to the throne, James enjoyed a relatively private upbringing with his sister, Lady Louise. Edward and Sophie chose not to bring their children up with HRH titles and both opted not to start using them when they turned 18.
Speaking previously to the BBC, Sophie explained: “Certainly, when they were very young, we tried to keep them out of it. Only because for their sakes, to grow up as normally as possible we felt was quite important.”
“And they’re going to have to go out and get a job and earn a living later on in life and if they’ve had a normal a start in life they possibly can get, then hopefully that will stand them in good stead,” Sophie continued.
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