Prince George had a 'baptism of fire' and has learned 'an awful lot about his destiny' since Queen's death - but Kate and William wanted the opposite

Prince George has learned 'an awful lot about his destiny' since the Queen's death in what a royal expert has called a 'baptism of fire.'

• A royal expert has said that 'the past year' has taught Prince George 'an awful lot about his destiny' with his many public appearances following the death of The Queen throwing him into a 'baptism of fire.'
• Prince William and Kate Middleton wanted his experience to be the opposite of this reality and had previously hoped to introduce 'him to the idea of what was going to happen a little more gradually'.
• In other royal news, the unusual detail on Prince George's birth certificate that caused confusion.

In the privacy of their Windsor home Adelaide Cottage, Prince George may be treated the same as his two siblings Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, but out in public, as Charlotte and Louis reportedly already know, he is 'different.'

While changes to royal tradition have been made to give the young Prince, who sits second in the royal line of succession, as 'normal' of a childhood as possible, such as the latest promise that he won't have to follow in Prince William's military footsteps, his recent 'baptism by fire' has taught him 'an awful lot about his destiny.'

According to Jennie Bond, the BBC's former royal correspondent, the events following the Queen's death last year have given George, who celebrates his tenth birthday this weekend, a small taste of what his future is set to look like. 

Speaking to OK!, Jennie Bond revealed, "I think the past year has probably taught George an awful lot about his destiny.

"To see the Platinum Jubilee, followed by the death, followed by all that happened after the Queen's death and then the coronation. That is a lot for a 10 year old to absorb, so he is able to see his future in theory."

The introduction to royal life didn't go exactly as his parents Prince William and Kate Middleton would have hoped, with the expert saying they likely wanted to ease him into his role 'a little more gradually'.

She said, "Perhaps William and Catherine would like to have introduced him to the idea of what was going to happen a little more gradually because it's been almost a baptism of fire. I hope that they have taken him to one side and calmed him, explained to him and listened to him more than anything."

But for all the pressure the expert feels George has been put under, she is sure that William and Kate have managed to handle the transition for their son and support him through it.

She added, "The past 12 months have seen enormous change in the royal family, with Queen Elizabeth II’s passing, King Charles’ coronation and many moments of royal pageantry.

"It’s a difficult thing to tell your young child they have this onerous, restrictive destiny, and that their life is prescribed already. I mean, it’s a tough one to handle, but I think they’re doing it very effectively, from what we see."