George, Charlotte, and Louis Drop Their Royal Titles at School — and It Actually Makes Perfect Sense
Prince William and Kate Middleton may come from royalty, but they are intent on ensuring that their children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, remain grounded. On September 3, the young royals returned to Lambrook School to begin a new academic year after spending their annual summer break at Balmoral Castle. Interestingly, the children do not use their formal titles of Prince and Princess at school. Instead, they go by the family surname 'Wales' to blend in with their classmates.
Before King Charles ascended the throne, William and Middleton were known as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, and their children used the surname 'Cambridge' at school. According to PEOPLE, although the children hold Prince/Princess and HRH (His/Her Royal Highness) titles, using 'Wales' provides a more informal address that helps them fit in with the student body. While having a last name is not compulsory, it's tradition within the royal family for kids to use their parents' titles as the basis for their surname.
Similarly, Princes Harry and William were addressed as 'William Wales' and 'Harry Wales' while at school and in the military, as their father, Charles, was then the Prince of Wales. When George started school at Thomas’s Battersea in September 2017, a close look at the name tag on his backpack showed that it said 'George Cambridge.'
Surnames within the royal family can be complicated to understand. In 1960, the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip chose that their direct descendants would carry the last name 'Mountbatten-Windsor.' The addition honored Philip’s family name, 'Mountbatten,' which was joined to 'Windsor,' the official royal surname first adopted by King George V in 1917.
It became a custom for the later generation of royal children to use their parents’ titles as their last names. Much like William and Harry, his cousins, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, used York as their last name, as Prince Andrew is the Duke of York. Meghan Markle, who now legally goes by Meghan Sussex, has also explained the logic behind the family surname. In an episode of The Circuit with Emily Chang, she explained, "It's a dukedom, and that's the truth of it. But at the end of the day, yes, my legal name is Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, but Sussex works for us as our family name, and it is the name we share with our children."
As part of William and Middleton’s humble approach to raising their children, a royal insider told HELLO!, "The couple actively participates in school activities, from doing the school run to cheering at sports events, creating a sense of normalcy for their children." George, Charlotte, and Louis first attended Thomas’s Battersea in London before transferring to Lambrook School in Berkshire in 2022, following the family’s move to Adelaide Cottage near Windsor.