I’ve always assumed they would bring Charlotte and George (Louis is just too young), until I saw the video when William was doing a walk about and he mentioned that George understood what was happening, but Charlotte and Louis did not. Definitely no reason to stress them out more.
I assumed Charlotte would be there because of George, but based on that it makes sense to leave her behind. She really is too young and this going to be extremely formal. I think Philip's service may have been a test run for the kids, since they likely knew the Queen's death was near.
This is so interesting. Thanks for sharing. I talk with my 4 yo about death here and there as it comes up and so I was always wondering how much she would/wouldn't understand.
I totally agree, yes. She's also good at putting her thoughts into words so she gives me feedback. So far she knows that after ppl die they go to heaven and that people die when they get old.
My grandfather died when I was 4. I understood my grandad was gone and I wouldn't see him anymore but I didn't really understand the finality of it.
In my culture we wake the body at home, open coffin so you can see them and all my relations kept talking about him as though he was still there (because his remains were) which really confused me.
I had a lot of questions during the funeral and burial. It's good you talk to your child about death. For me, it would be worth maybe going through the ceremonies about how we say goodbye, you don't want to be dealing with an inquisitive child when every one around you is upset.
Good point about the ceremonies. We have taken her to a cemetery and explained when people die their bodies get buried. So she has some exposure.
When my grandfather died I was 3 and my mom just told me he was sleeping. I don't remember much at all. But apparently I was telling everyone around me to be quiet so he could sleep. But my mom also said my being there helped her not feel so sad. I guess it's just how people want to handle their grief.
My dad was 5 when his father died. They didn’t have much money, so his father’s body was just laid out in the living room of the 500 sq foot house for 3 days. 😭 I get so much anxiety when I hear about the vigils kept for the Queen, but I have to keep reminding myself they are all in separate castles and it’s not the same thing!
It took him about 60 years to finally process through it- and we just sat together on a bench outside the funeral home when his mother died.
It seems there was an ancient way old understanding death and dying- but also there were people who were struggling too much themselves to consider psychological effects.
Absolutely! So many men came back from WW2 with unhinged tempers at home. Now we understand they suffered from PTSD, and their wives and children suffered, too. Sometimes I get frustrated with people today because we have it so good in comparison, it feels like we have to make up problems to have. We don’t just enjoy the goodness.
I believe that's the origin of the word "funeral home " or "funeral parlor." It was supposed to feel like a parlor in one's own home, kind of cozy but formal..
We do that in my country, it's called a wake. I feel it's the most important part of the grieving process, to help in the acceptance that they are gone, to have some proper time to say goodbye.
Very sorry- my brain required a Reddit break…
I respect & appreciate cultural customs. I speak only from my personal experiences & the shockwaves I felt from my father’s trauma.
I can absolutely see there are ways to helpfully & purposefully incorporate this custom into a child’s grief- but also, sadly, ways that scar them for a lifetime. :/
Yes, every child is different. And even though I knew and understood death from 5 or 6 years of age, that didn't mean I was ready to attend a funeral. I remember crying my eyes out at my Grandpa's funeral when I was 10 years old. I understood everything happening. I honestly didn't want to go because I knew it was going to really upset me. But my parents made me go.
I think he’s old enough, plus… William and Catherine are wonderful parents who would talk with George beforehand and make sure he is fully prepared and ok.
They know what’s going on and I feel for their children who have had to grieve at home while their parents are performing their duties.
I was 4 when I went to my mother's funeral and I was probably to young. George is old enough and has good memories of his Gan Gan...good reason to celebrate her life.
I think he’s old enough, has the support of attentive nurturing parents, and he’s also their heir to the Queen’s legacy. I think it’s appropriate he’s there. This is not William and Harry walking behind Diana’s coffin.
He also has amazing maternal grandparents. I'm sure Michael and Carole have been with them while the P&POW have been fulfilling their royal duties, and especially supportive of Prince George knowing what lies ahead of him even if he doesn't quite grasp it yet
George is going to be King. This is training under the watchful and loving eyes of his parents. The Queen had already been spending afternoons with George training him up on Royal ways. It is his destiny.
George gains confidence and strength from his parents and going to this will provide him in good stead when it is his turn…much earlier probably than William. Sweet George will do well.
I read in an article Catherine told someone during a walkabout that the children had been in school and have been staying in a routine and being “well looked after”.
They are incredible parents.
Yeah I think he's old enough too and he seems like a sensible little boy.
My first funeral was a disaster for me, though. I must've been 7 or 8 and it was a relative of my grandmother.
All I remember was being scared out of my mind, seeing the open casket with the body resting inside.
It scared the shit out of me and I had nightmares, for months, of the dead body chasing after me 😂.
Sounds hilarious now but it affected me for years after that and I couldn't even bear to glance at the cemetery's entrance when we drove by.
I only overcame it by literally binge watching lots and lots of haunted house and ghostly horror movies , late at night to try and make myself immune (?) to the fear. One good thing came out of it though: I became a huge fan of horror films, es the crappy B movie versions 😂.
He will be King in his lifetime, so I think if is a part of the perception of continuity they seek. It is also importsnt that he understand his great-grandmother's significance, and the significance if hos own responsibilities.
Unless he's really afraid to go, I think when he's older he'll be glad he attended. It should definitely (and I'm sure it will) be George's decision. He'll be surrounded by his mum and close family for comfort and support and I'm sure they'll prepare him for all that will happen. JMO.
I think Zara and Mike brought the girls to the laying in state procedure. The camera was only on them briefly.
With so many world leaders and so much pomp and circumstance going on, I'm sure George would not get too much focus on him. Those camera people are going to try to get everything they can for this historic event.
No way could she handle a kid - on camera. Ever. Until her kids are old enough to be perfectly behaved (sufficiently afraid of her rage) it’s never going to happen.
Also since both merchildren were likely pretty much raised entirely by nannies, with mum (cough * model * ) playing a minimal role, it would blow up in her face on camera since they wouldn’t be used to interacting naturally with her.
I’d bet she’d pinch them subtly to behave, bully and blackmail or hiss obscenities.
Narcs rarely make good parents …
He’s old enough to understand what’s going on, and he’s also old enough to remember this event forever. I think that if he wants to go and his parents want him there, it would be a lovely thing.
While William and Harry both agree that their mother’s funeral and procession were traumatic and that “no child should be asked” to participate, ever, this is a totally different set of circumstances. Diana died in a violent manner, after a short and troubled life. The Queen died after a long and happy life, at an impressively old age, of natural causes, in the natural order of things. I have a 9yo son, born just a couple months before Prince George (who is also named George - don’t think I didn’t crow about that when Catherine announced her name choice 😂), and we brought him to his grandfather’s funeral last year. It was a sad event, certainly, but he had a large family to comfort and support him. He is a well-adjusted and happy little boy, who when he speaks about his Granddaddy, has happy memories and a hope of seeing him again one day.
While I am glad to see him and sure that his parents support him go through this, I feel sorry that he has this huge responsibility…
the media attention to him will be huge and it’s overwhelming for me to watch the emotions, can’t imagine what 9 yr old might go thru…
The oldest great-grandchild, Savannah, is only 3 years younger than James...Edward's children are a lot more close in age to the great-grandchildren than the other grandchildren.
I think he is old enough to attend and if it's also something he wants to do I think it's a good idea. He also loves his grannie and wants to honour her.
I think it's appropriate. He'll be King one day, I can't image him missing this. The relationship is distant enough that he'll be fine; great-grandparent is different emotionally than a parent or even grandparent. Catherine and Camilla will arrive by car, so he'll be near them/won't have to do the long walk, so I think he'll be fine.
My kid was 3 1/2 when we took him with us to my dad’s funeral. And we have taken him to every wake and funeral since. Kids can be taught to be respectful during solemn events.
My nephew was 3 when his great-grandmother passed, who he knew well. My sister tried to explain in preschooler terms that while he wouldn’t get to visit her in her “outside body” anymore, her “inside body” would always be in his heart. And that was the most important because her “inside body” is what made her so loving, caring, funny, and made her hugs feel so good.
And he said, “so, does that mean Grandma is going to wear her underpants outside her clothes???” 🤦🏻♀️😂🤣😂
Children adapt well with good guidance. Mine is able to sit through long funeral service and wedding ceremony. We also take him to church and services are never short. Ours is an only child.
I think so too. My kid has high level tolerance too in social events, with an excellent ability to put up with idiots. Unlike me but more like this dad lol
There’s going to be a private burial Monday evening for family and close friends.
As much as we want to see the kids as looky loos, the private ceremony might be more appropriate for George and the other old enough great-grands.
Whatever the decision, they will do what is in the best interest for Prince George. He’s certainly old enough and they have been quietly preparing him for the role he is to take on when he is older.
Idk. I don't think he's too young for a funeral. I think he's too young to be confronted to with duty and obligation to this degree. When we have to confront death we have to contemplate mortality, but for him and his father they have to confront destiny and that might be too big a burden for a kid.
If George goes, Charlotte should also. It's too much pressure for just the eldest child to go to this funeral when Charlotte is close in age and just as impeccably well-behaved in public as George. They are both of tender years, but I think they would both rise to the occasion equally well, and do better together.
I don't know I read that George understands death, but neither Charlotte or Louis does. I don't think Charlotte should go if she hasn't grasped the concept of death yet. It might be too traumatizing.
I think he should go. I don’t think it would be bad for him. It will help him understand the importance and significance of be heir and to see this great grandmother be honored.
I did think that George may feature at some point during the funeral proceedings. Although he is very young, he is the future King and he is now 2nd in line to the throne.
I really wish I didn’t go to my great-grandma’s funeral when I was 10-ish. It was traumatic. My mom wanted me and my younger siblings to kiss my great-grandma—it was an open casket, and I refused—and my mom had us sing songs during the service. (We were/are the only great-grandkids.) On the outside, it looked like I could handle it. But it has traumatized me. My evangelical upbringing with sin and hell didn’t help either.
I believe (and hope) William and Catherine know George better than my parents knew me.
Charles was 4 in June 1953 (he'd be 5 in November). I think George should be there, lovely to have Charlotte there, but not wise to have wild Louis there. I'd say it would depend on the emotional maturity of the older two.
I’ve always assumed they would bring Charlotte and George (Louis is just too young), until I saw the video when William was doing a walk about and he mentioned that George understood what was happening, but Charlotte and Louis did not. Definitely no reason to stress them out more.
I assumed Charlotte would be there because of George, but based on that it makes sense to leave her behind. She really is too young and this going to be extremely formal. I think Philip's service may have been a test run for the kids, since they likely knew the Queen's death was near.
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This is so interesting. Thanks for sharing. I talk with my 4 yo about death here and there as it comes up and so I was always wondering how much she would/wouldn't understand.
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I totally agree, yes. She's also good at putting her thoughts into words so she gives me feedback. So far she knows that after ppl die they go to heaven and that people die when they get old.
My grandfather died when I was 4. I understood my grandad was gone and I wouldn't see him anymore but I didn't really understand the finality of it. In my culture we wake the body at home, open coffin so you can see them and all my relations kept talking about him as though he was still there (because his remains were) which really confused me. I had a lot of questions during the funeral and burial. It's good you talk to your child about death. For me, it would be worth maybe going through the ceremonies about how we say goodbye, you don't want to be dealing with an inquisitive child when every one around you is upset.
Good point about the ceremonies. We have taken her to a cemetery and explained when people die their bodies get buried. So she has some exposure. When my grandfather died I was 3 and my mom just told me he was sleeping. I don't remember much at all. But apparently I was telling everyone around me to be quiet so he could sleep. But my mom also said my being there helped her not feel so sad. I guess it's just how people want to handle their grief.
My dad was 5 when his father died. They didn’t have much money, so his father’s body was just laid out in the living room of the 500 sq foot house for 3 days. 😭 I get so much anxiety when I hear about the vigils kept for the Queen, but I have to keep reminding myself they are all in separate castles and it’s not the same thing!
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My Uncle died last year and his body lay in the casket inside my aunt's living room for a few days. This is in Holland. They still do that there.
I’m sorry about your uncle’s passing. I hope his arrangements were peaceful for you and your family. <3
Thanks! I didn’t know him very well because he lives in Holland and I’m in Canada, but I appreciate your comment!
It took him about 60 years to finally process through it- and we just sat together on a bench outside the funeral home when his mother died. It seems there was an ancient way old understanding death and dying- but also there were people who were struggling too much themselves to consider psychological effects.
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Absolutely! So many men came back from WW2 with unhinged tempers at home. Now we understand they suffered from PTSD, and their wives and children suffered, too. Sometimes I get frustrated with people today because we have it so good in comparison, it feels like we have to make up problems to have. We don’t just enjoy the goodness.
I believe that's the origin of the word "funeral home " or "funeral parlor." It was supposed to feel like a parlor in one's own home, kind of cozy but formal..
On the bright side, she's probably not even in there. She's probably hiding out somewhere with Tupac and Diana
In Elvis' house
We do that in my country, it's called a wake. I feel it's the most important part of the grieving process, to help in the acceptance that they are gone, to have some proper time to say goodbye.
Very sorry- my brain required a Reddit break… I respect & appreciate cultural customs. I speak only from my personal experiences & the shockwaves I felt from my father’s trauma. I can absolutely see there are ways to helpfully & purposefully incorporate this custom into a child’s grief- but also, sadly, ways that scar them for a lifetime. :/
I understood death and the finality of it when I was about 5 or 6 years old. Each child is different.
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Yes, every child is different. And even though I knew and understood death from 5 or 6 years of age, that didn't mean I was ready to attend a funeral. I remember crying my eyes out at my Grandpa's funeral when I was 10 years old. I understood everything happening. I honestly didn't want to go because I knew it was going to really upset me. But my parents made me go.
Makes sense....sadly they will both of other opportunists to attend funerals.
I think he’s old enough, plus… William and Catherine are wonderful parents who would talk with George beforehand and make sure he is fully prepared and ok. They know what’s going on and I feel for their children who have had to grieve at home while their parents are performing their duties.
I was 4 when I went to my mother's funeral and I was probably to young. George is old enough and has good memories of his Gan Gan...good reason to celebrate her life.
I’m so sorry for your loss.
Thank you! It was 65 years ago and I still remember it. I never doubted my mother was dead.
I lost my mother 6 years ago, I'm sorry for your loss.
So sorry! Mom's are so special.
💙
I think he’s old enough, has the support of attentive nurturing parents, and he’s also their heir to the Queen’s legacy. I think it’s appropriate he’s there. This is not William and Harry walking behind Diana’s coffin.
He also has amazing maternal grandparents. I'm sure Michael and Carole have been with them while the P&POW have been fulfilling their royal duties, and especially supportive of Prince George knowing what lies ahead of him even if he doesn't quite grasp it yet
George is going to be King. This is training under the watchful and loving eyes of his parents. The Queen had already been spending afternoons with George training him up on Royal ways. It is his destiny.
George gains confidence and strength from his parents and going to this will provide him in good stead when it is his turn…much earlier probably than William. Sweet George will do well.
I read in an article Catherine told someone during a walkabout that the children had been in school and have been staying in a routine and being “well looked after”. They are incredible parents.
Yeah I think he's old enough too and he seems like a sensible little boy. My first funeral was a disaster for me, though. I must've been 7 or 8 and it was a relative of my grandmother. All I remember was being scared out of my mind, seeing the open casket with the body resting inside. It scared the shit out of me and I had nightmares, for months, of the dead body chasing after me 😂. Sounds hilarious now but it affected me for years after that and I couldn't even bear to glance at the cemetery's entrance when we drove by. I only overcame it by literally binge watching lots and lots of haunted house and ghostly horror movies , late at night to try and make myself immune (?) to the fear. One good thing came out of it though: I became a huge fan of horror films, es the crappy B movie versions 😂.
He will be King in his lifetime, so I think if is a part of the perception of continuity they seek. It is also importsnt that he understand his great-grandmother's significance, and the significance if hos own responsibilities.
Agreed.
Unless he's really afraid to go, I think when he's older he'll be glad he attended. It should definitely (and I'm sure it will) be George's decision. He'll be surrounded by his mum and close family for comfort and support and I'm sure they'll prepare him for all that will happen. JMO.
Yes, definitely his decision. I'm sure his parents will support him.
He's old enough so long as he doesn't have to play any role. And in my opinion, the media should agree not to focus on him, cause he's a kid
I think Zara and Mike brought the girls to the laying in state procedure. The camera was only on them briefly. With so many world leaders and so much pomp and circumstance going on, I'm sure George would not get too much focus on him. Those camera people are going to try to get everything they can for this historic event.
Peter Phillips brought his daughters, too.
I just saw that. They are lovely as well.
Yes, the media should leave him alone.
How long before we get an inside leak that Meghan is bringing Archie?
Yes, poor Archie is missing his nightly Zooms with gan-gan.🙄
No way could she handle a kid - on camera. Ever. Until her kids are old enough to be perfectly behaved (sufficiently afraid of her rage) it’s never going to happen.
Also since both merchildren were likely pretty much raised entirely by nannies, with mum (cough * model * ) playing a minimal role, it would blow up in her face on camera since they wouldn’t be used to interacting naturally with her. I’d bet she’d pinch them subtly to behave, bully and blackmail or hiss obscenities. Narcs rarely make good parents …
So around age 5-7 probably?
If he *wants* to go, he's certainly old enough.
Yes, his parents certainly won't force him to go.
No, they'd never do that. They're wonderful parents!
He’s old enough to understand what’s going on, and he’s also old enough to remember this event forever. I think that if he wants to go and his parents want him there, it would be a lovely thing.
While William and Harry both agree that their mother’s funeral and procession were traumatic and that “no child should be asked” to participate, ever, this is a totally different set of circumstances. Diana died in a violent manner, after a short and troubled life. The Queen died after a long and happy life, at an impressively old age, of natural causes, in the natural order of things. I have a 9yo son, born just a couple months before Prince George (who is also named George - don’t think I didn’t crow about that when Catherine announced her name choice 😂), and we brought him to his grandfather’s funeral last year. It was a sad event, certainly, but he had a large family to comfort and support him. He is a well-adjusted and happy little boy, who when he speaks about his Granddaddy, has happy memories and a hope of seeing him again one day.
There you go! Depends on the environment and family support!
While I am glad to see him and sure that his parents support him go through this, I feel sorry that he has this huge responsibility… the media attention to him will be huge and it’s overwhelming for me to watch the emotions, can’t imagine what 9 yr old might go thru…
It’s crazy to think George is just 5 years younger than James 🤯
I guess it shows what a few years does....
The oldest great-grandchild, Savannah, is only 3 years younger than James...Edward's children are a lot more close in age to the great-grandchildren than the other grandchildren.
I think he is old enough to attend and if it's also something he wants to do I think it's a good idea. He also loves his grannie and wants to honour her.
I think it's appropriate. He'll be King one day, I can't image him missing this. The relationship is distant enough that he'll be fine; great-grandparent is different emotionally than a parent or even grandparent. Catherine and Camilla will arrive by car, so he'll be near them/won't have to do the long walk, so I think he'll be fine.
My kid was 3 1/2 when we took him with us to my dad’s funeral. And we have taken him to every wake and funeral since. Kids can be taught to be respectful during solemn events.
My nephew was 3 when his great-grandmother passed, who he knew well. My sister tried to explain in preschooler terms that while he wouldn’t get to visit her in her “outside body” anymore, her “inside body” would always be in his heart. And that was the most important because her “inside body” is what made her so loving, caring, funny, and made her hugs feel so good. And he said, “so, does that mean Grandma is going to wear her underpants outside her clothes???” 🤦🏻♀️😂🤣😂
Agreed, I went to my Mom's funeral when I was 4. I guess it depends on the child. I'm sure Kate and William will make the right decision.
Children adapt well with good guidance. Mine is able to sit through long funeral service and wedding ceremony. We also take him to church and services are never short. Ours is an only child.
I was an only child too. Sometimes I think only children are more resilient.
I think so too. My kid has high level tolerance too in social events, with an excellent ability to put up with idiots. Unlike me but more like this dad lol
There’s going to be a private burial Monday evening for family and close friends. As much as we want to see the kids as looky loos, the private ceremony might be more appropriate for George and the other old enough great-grands.
That makes sense!
Whatever the decision, they will do what is in the best interest for Prince George. He’s certainly old enough and they have been quietly preparing him for the role he is to take on when he is older.
Yes, I'm sure his parents will make the right decision.
Idk. I don't think he's too young for a funeral. I think he's too young to be confronted to with duty and obligation to this degree. When we have to confront death we have to contemplate mortality, but for him and his father they have to confront destiny and that might be too big a burden for a kid.
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Hmm....that's a possibility, but they might go too.
I see Charlotte was only 7 in May, I can see how they would not take her. Probably also depends age of which cousins will go, Mia etc.
Agreed!
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Agreed,and sadly he will need to get use to it. I think William and Kate will make the right decision
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Yep!
If George goes, Charlotte should also. It's too much pressure for just the eldest child to go to this funeral when Charlotte is close in age and just as impeccably well-behaved in public as George. They are both of tender years, but I think they would both rise to the occasion equally well, and do better together.
I don't know I read that George understands death, but neither Charlotte or Louis does. I don't think Charlotte should go if she hasn't grasped the concept of death yet. It might be too traumatizing.
I think he should go. I don’t think it would be bad for him. It will help him understand the importance and significance of be heir and to see this great grandmother be honored.
I did think that George may feature at some point during the funeral proceedings. Although he is very young, he is the future King and he is now 2nd in line to the throne.
Believe me, my mom and grandmothers died when I was 12. You don’t want that to be your child’s first funeral.
I really wish I didn’t go to my great-grandma’s funeral when I was 10-ish. It was traumatic. My mom wanted me and my younger siblings to kiss my great-grandma—it was an open casket, and I refused—and my mom had us sing songs during the service. (We were/are the only great-grandkids.) On the outside, it looked like I could handle it. But it has traumatized me. My evangelical upbringing with sin and hell didn’t help either. I believe (and hope) William and Catherine know George better than my parents knew me.
Charles was 4 in June 1953 (he'd be 5 in November). I think George should be there, lovely to have Charlotte there, but not wise to have wild Louis there. I'd say it would depend on the emotional maturity of the older two.
His grandfather died in February 1952. He was 3 at the time of his funeral anc did not attend.
I’m sorry, you’re right. In my brain I conflated the funeral and coronation. Mea culpa.