A royally good grandpa! King Charles III — who ascended the throne in September 2022 following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II — has been a doting grandfather ever since Prince William and Princess Kate started expanding their family.
The Princess of Wales gave birth to the pair’s first child, son Prince George, in July 2013.
“The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Harry & families have been told and are delighted,” a statement from Buckingham Place said at the time, referring to the late queen, Prince Philip, Charles and Queen Consort Camilla. “Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well and will remain in hospital overnight.”
Kate and William have gone on to welcome two more children together. Daughter Princess Charlotte was born in May 2015 and son Prince Louis followed in April 2018.
“It’s a very nice thought to become a grandfather in my old age, if I can say so,” His Majesty previously told reporters in December 2012 of learning Kate was pregnant with baby No. 1. “I’m thrilled, marvelous.”
Charles and Camilla — who wed in 2005 — have since had special places of honor at their grandchildren’s official christening ceremonies and portraits. However, the king has found one thing troubling about raising the next generation — getting older.
“Of course it [makes me feel older],” Charles told BBC Radio 1’s “Countryfile” program in March 2013. “Because you can’t believe, to a certain extent, that it’s going to happen in your life. … It’s a lovely thought [though], and I look forward enormously to that relationship with a grandchild.”
The Duke of Cambridge has also been candid about watching his father with his young children.
“When he’s there, he’s brilliant,” William gushed in BBC’s Prince, Son and Heir: Charles at 70 documentary in November 2018. “But we need him there as much as possible. … [This age is] a perfect time to consolidate a little bit. As most families would do, you are worried about having them around and make sure their health’s OK. He’s the fittest man I know, but equally I want him to be fit until he’s 95. Having more time with him at home would be lovely and being able to you know, play around with the grandchildren.”
Charles’ gaggle of grandchildren further expanded when his youngest son, Prince Harry, welcomed his first child in May 2019. The Duke of Sussex’s wife, Meghan Markle, gave birth to son Archie at the time. The California residents later welcomed daughter Lilibet in June 2021.
While Charles and Camilla haven’t spent as much time with Archie or Lili due to their American homebase, he sent well wishes for the family of four during his first speech as monarch. “I want also to express my love for Harry and Meghan, as they continue to build their lives overseas,” the king noted in a September 2022 speech.
Camilla, for her part, has been candid about her favorite hobbies whenever the grandkids come to visit their former Clarence House abode.
“I read to my children and now I read to my grandchildren,” the Duchess Camilla’s Reading Room founder shared via Instagram in March 2021. “I love it. I read to them when they were absolutely tiny. And they’ve got older and older and older, and now they actually read to me!”
In addition to loving on William and Harry’s five collective little ones, Camilla is also grandmother to five grandchildren from her children Tom and Laura — whom she shares with ex-husband Andrew Parker-Bowles.
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Scroll below to see Charles’ sweetest moments with his beloved grandchildren:
