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Kate Middleton Makes Under-the-Radar Return to Work as Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis Head Back to School
Kate Middleton resumed royal duties on June 4 following Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis' break from school
The Princess of Wales, 43, reportedly held a meeting at Windsor Castle for her early years work
Princess Kate and Prince William returned work on the same day, where William seemingly hinted at his rift with his brother, Prince HarryKate Middleton made a quiet return to work after spending some extra time with her children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, during their school break.
On June 4, Princess Kate officially headed back to work after several days off by holding an Early Years Meeting at Windsor Castle. The news was spotted in The Court Circular, the British royal family's official record of previous royal engagements, according to Hello!
The Princess of Wales, 43, has made the early childhood years a core priority of her royal platform and founded The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood in June 2021 to raise awareness around the importance of a child's first five years.
Princess Kate took this mission to the next level by launching the Shaping Us campaign in January 2023 as a long-term initiative to "transform the issue from one of scientific interest to one of the most strategically important topics of our time," a statement said.
That March, she unveiled the Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood to galvanize business action to champion early childhood, with Ikea, LEGO, Unilever and more participating as partners.
Kate headed to the meeting after spending some downtime with her own children. Princess Kate and Prince William cleared their calendars last week while Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7, were off from school, as they are known to do when their kids are out of the classroom.
The Prince and Princess of Wales are raising their kids differently than previous generations of royal parents by sending their children to day school instead of boarding school, and Kate's Early Years Meeting didn't take her far from home. The Wales family lives at Adelaide Cottage within Windsor Great Park, just a few minutes away from the ancestral castle.
Prince William and Princess Kate both returned to work on Wednesday, and William traveled to Suffolk to visit the Army Air Corps for the first time in his official royal role as Colonel-in-Chief of the regiments. King Charles announced William to the prestigious role in August 2023 in an appointment that made waves, as it made him the leader of Prince Harry's former regiment.
It was widely believed that the colonelcy was once earmarked for Harry, but the Duke of Sussex was forced to relinquish his military appointments when he and Meghan Markle stepped back from their royal roles in 2020.
Prince William, 42, might have hinted at his rift with his estranged brother Harry in a shock comment while visiting the Army Air Corps.
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While chatting with soldiers during a water break from combat training, the heir to the throne brought up family in a manner that some royal watchers interpreted as pointed.
"Is the pace of life good at the moment [?]" William asked soldiers, the Daily Mail reported.
After one man said that it was "a mixed bag," William replied, "Families okay? See you enough? Some of them might not want to see you that much. It's a mixed bag sometimes."
Great strain remains between King Charles's sons amid a rift that first became public when the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped back from their royal roles five years ago.
"The underlying issue is trust," royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith tells PEOPLE in this week's exclusive cover story. "The King and William don't trust Harry and Meghan with any kind of confidential conversation."
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