The Wales' family will spend time together over Easter. Photo / WireImage
The Wales' family will spend time together over Easter. Photo / WireImage
The Wales family are to retreat for more than three weeks to spend time out of the public eye, as their three young children are given space to continue their childhood in privacy.
The welfare of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis has been at the heart of plans to disclose the Princess of Wales’ treatment for cancer, timed to fit in with their Easter holiday when they could “circle the wagons”.
The couple took the decision for the princess to go public with the news after their children broke up from school, reducing the risk of them hearing other people talking about her condition even in the most well-meaning of ways.
Their father, Prince William, will be with them until the end of the holiday on April 17, with the family retreating to their home in Norfolk as usual at this time of year.
They will not be photographed walking to church on Easter Sunday, with the princess intending to make only the occasional public appearance – decided at the last minute based on her health – until advised by her medical team that she can return to work.
For the Prince and Princess of Wales, their children are the priority. Photo / Pool via AP, File
The King and the princess enjoyed a private heart-to-heart over lunch at Windsor Castle on Thursday - the day after she recorded her video message revealing she was undergoing cancer treatment.
The pair are said to have discussed their respective diagnoses and offered each other warm support, leaving the King feeling “emotional”. Buckingham Palace declined to comment.
George, 10, Charlotte, 8, and 5-year-old Louis will continue their day-to-day lives out of the public eye, with as much routine as possible. The children, a source said, are their parents’ top “priority”.
The princess, described by friends as the “lynchpin” of the Wales family, has already ensured the children have understood and processed her illness as far as possible before it was made public.
She said in a video message, released on Friday: “Most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be okay.”
Earlier this month, prince William spoke out about the scourge of too much screen time, urging children and adults alike to put their phones down during a visit to a youth club.
“They are fantastic parents,” said a source. “It can’t be overstated. Everything they do is about their children.”
Another source has previously called the prince and pPrincess the “best parents in royal history”, as a result of their conscious and deliberate efforts to make decisions to suit their children rather than sticking rigidly to duty and tradition.
“The Prince and Princess of Wales have made a clear decision about how they’re going to parent their children,” said one. “They are committed to giving the children the happiest and healthiest upbringing possible, setting the foundation for the rest of their lives.
Commitment to duty
“It’s not something that’s instead of their commitment to duty, it IS their commitment to duty: bringing up the next generation and future King.”
One friend said the couple aims to give their children the stable home life the young William, whose parents separated in 1992, “didn’t have”.
The princess has regularly spoken of the importance of the foundation years of 0 to 5 as the most important in a person’s life.
Speaking in 2017, she said: “We hope to encourage [our children] to speak about their feelings.”
She added: “I’ve got such fond memories of being in the garden and being outside from my own childhood, and I’m sharing that with my own children at the moment.”
Last year, she revealed that Louis’ class used a “feelings wheel” made up of colours to help them express their emotions, praising it as “really good”.
Stoic
The prince and princess both do the school run every day between them, and have in recent years restricted their overseas tours to short trips in part so they are not away from the children for too long.
“The kids are everything to them, and she is the lynchpin of the family,” a source said about the Waleses, adding that the princess would be being “stoic” about her illness.
The princess is understood to be keen to continue her usual routines as far as possible during her treatment and recovery.
The family do a range of sports, with Catherine enjoying cold water swimming and the children doing everything from triathlons to ballet lessons.
“What I think is really interesting is that they are all obviously very different temperaments,” she said during an appearance on Mike Tindall’s podcast The Good, The Bad & The Rugby in 2023, adding that “they are growing and trying out different sports”.
“They’re obviously still really young. It’s going to be interesting to see how that grows and develops.”
In her video message to the public, disclosing she is undergoing preventative chemotherapy, the princess said: “We hope that you will understand that, as a family, we now need some time, space and privacy while I complete my treatment.”
