The sign Prince William still has to obey his father’s orders as King Charles appears to ‘pull rank’ over this royal formality

The Prince of Wales was given this unexpected role during recent royal outing

Prince William and King Charles in split layout
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Prince William has to obey his father's orders after King Charles appears to 'pull rank' over him driving members of the Royal Family to church, reports claim.

While it's typically children under the age of 18 who are often made by their parents to obey their orders, each family is different in their parenting styles. Some parents use Tiger Parenting techniques while other children-turned-adults continue to listen to their elders' instructions even when they've left home - and it appears the Royal Family is no different.

At the age of 41, Prince William is still seen following his father's instructions - and the biggest sign of this appeared to be seen at the weekend.

The Prince of Wales, who is next in line to the throne in royal succession, was pictured driving his uncle Prince Andrew to church at Balmoral last Sunday, as he attended a family service alongside other royals.

Prince William was behind the wheel of the vehicle, with Prince Andrew in the front and his wife Kate sat in the back of the car positioned behind the front passenger seat.

And sources have claimed the King suggested his son William would be the one to drive him to church after he made it clear to senior royals that Prince Andrew would not be shut out any longer, despite being stripped of honours.

His honours were stripped in the wake of his out-of-court settlement with Virginia Giuffre in the US. In February 2022, the prince agreed to pay an undisclosed sum to Ms Giuffre, who had accused him of sexual assault. Ms Giuffre had been suing the Duke of York in a civil case, claiming he sexually assaulted her on three occasions when she was 17, allegations which he has repeatedly denied.

According to reports in The Mirror, The Prince of Wales is said to have been 'overruled' by King Charles and instructed to welcome disgraced royal Prince Andrew 'back into the family'.

Prince Andrew Windsor Castle Concert

(Image credit: Alamy)

Earlier this year Prince Andrew attended the Windsor Castle Concert as part of the King Charles III Coronation celebrations.

It's understood that his appearance beside the future king and queen at the weekend has been seen as a major boost towards his rehabilitation. 

According to the insider, there had been some confusion as to how Prince Andrew would attend church until he received a call moments before. And it's thought that the public support for the Prince and Princess of Wales riding in a car with them to and from the service in Balmoral "is more than he (Andrew) could have wished for".

The royals are currently on holiday there, with Prince George, Charlotte, and Louis preparing for a bittersweet end to the summer with the breaking of this royal tradition ahead of the one-year anniversary of the Queen's death.

For more royal news there's King Charles reportedly brought Prince George an ‘£18000’ gift to celebrate his first birthday and Princess Diana began a sweet tradition that Prince William continues to do with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

Selina Maycock
Senior Family Writer

Selina is a Senior Family Writer for GoodtoKnow and has more than 16 years years of experience. She specialises in royal family news, including the latest activities of Prince George, Charlotte, Louis, Archie and Lilibet. She also covers the latest government, health and charity advice for families. Selina graduated from the University of Sheffield in 2006 with a degree in Journalism, and gained her NCTJ and NCE qualifications. During her career, she’s also written for Woman, Woman's Own, Woman&Home, and Woman's Weekly as well as Heat magazine, Bang Showbiz - and the Scunthorpe Telegraph. When she's not covering family news, you can find her exploring new countryside walking routes, catching up with friends over good food, or making memories (including award-winning scarecrows!)