By Molly Claire Goddard
9:36am PST, Jan 9, 2026
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During a 2025 interview with
The Telegraph, Prince Harry recalled voicing concern to Prince William about Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis' roles as extra heirs to the throne. "Though William and I have talked about it once or twice and he has made it very clear to me that his kids are not my responsibility, I still feel a responsibility knowing that out of those three children, at least one will end up like me, the spare," he said.
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Fortunately, Prince William and Kate Middleton are helping Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis "strike a balance between private life and duty," a source told
People. "Getting the family right is absolutely critical, particularly in terms of what the nation expects of them," a second insider told the publication.
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Ailsa Anderson, former press secretary to
Queen Elizabeth II, thinks Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis being raised as equals will curb resentment. "It's the key to unpacking and shifting expectations of our heirs and spares," she said in an interview for U.K.'s Channel 5 via
Daily Express. "There's more freedom and choice than their father [Prince William] had."
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In Prince Harry's 2023 memoir, Spare, he lamented about constantly playing second fiddle to Prince William. "I was the shadow, the support, the plan B. I was brought into the world in case something happened to Willy," he wrote. "My family had declared me a nullity. The spare. I didn't complain about it, but I didn't need to dwell on it either. Far better, in my mind, not to think about certain facts. But no one gave a damn whom I traveled with; the spare could always be spared."
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Princess Charlotte's birth changed history as she became the first female royal not to lose her place in the line of succession to her younger brother, Prince Louis. While their eldest brother, Prince George, is second in line to the throne after Prince William, the 10-year-old ranks third and the 7-year-old comes in fourth before Prince Harry.
