Prince GeorgeandPrincess Charlotteare getting used to seeing their new last names.
The change came on Sept. 9, whenKing Charles IIIaddressed the United Kingdom for the first time sinceQueen Elizabeth IIdied at the age of 96.Charles, 73, shared thatPrince William, 40, andKate Middleton, 40, have inherited the titles of Prince and Princess of Wales.
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Prince George and Princess Charlotte.Karwai Tang/WireImage
The children will see the change outside of official royal functions as well. The children were previously known as George Cambridge, Charlotte Cambridge and Louis Cambridge at school. Now they will be known to their friends and teachers as George Wales, Charlotte Wales and Louis Wales.
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The change comes as all three siblings started at theirnew school,Lambrook, this week following their family move out of London over the summer. The family of five now lives in Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.
The Duchess of Sussex, the Queen Consort, Prince George, the Princess of Wales, Princess Charlotte and the Countess of Wessex leaving the Queen’s state funeral.Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty
Charlotte’s spot in the royal line is due to a 2013 succession law that allows the crown to pass on in order of birth, regardless of gender. (Up until then, succession rules stated that the crown would pass to the eldest male heir and only to a female heir when there were no other male heirs available.)
“That might seem like a minor thing, but it is a big victory for equality,” Williams previously said of the amendment. “It says to people, which [the Queen] proved more than anyone, that a monarch is a job and a woman can do it just as well as a man.”
Prince William and Kate Middleton take their seats with son Prince George and daughter Princess Charlotte at Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral.Getty
As William and Kate take on their new titles, a royal source told PEOPLE the couple is focused on “deepening the trust and respect of the people of Wales over time.”
“The Prince and Princess of Wales will approach their roles in the modest and humble way they’ve approached their work previously,” the source added.
AsKate Middletontakes on the title of Princess of Wales, which William’s mother, the latePrincess Diana, once held, a royal source told PEOPLE: “The new Princess of Wales appreciates the history associated with this role but will understandably want to look to the future as she creates her own path.”
source: people.com
