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The Prince of Wales and Prince George have become the subjects of a new viral video, as fans have highlighted a royal gesture denoting their senior status in resurfaced footage from a Westminster Abbey, London, ceremony on TikTok.
George, 10, the eldest son of William and Kate, is in direct line of succession to the throne, following his father. He is second in line to inherit the crown, with younger siblings Princess Charlotte (8) and Prince Louis (5) in third and fourth place.
George has seen his attendance at royal events increase since the death of his great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, in September 2022. Among the most senior of these was the coronation of his grandfather, King Charles III, during which he performed the role of one of the monarch's Pages of Honour.
As well as George, his siblings, Charlotte and Louis, have also attended some regular events, including their mother's "Together at Christmas" carol concert, held at Westminster Abbey to celebrate communities around Britain.
Uploaded to TikTok by user @chrlttess on February 26, a new viral video shows footage of the Wales family arriving at the abbey for the ceremony in 2022; Kate and Charlotte hold back, while William and George take the lead to greet members of the clergy.
@chrlttess ❥ the heird must always walk in first ♡︎ || ??? ???? ? || -ib :: @~charlotte elizabeth!☆~ || { #royalfamily #royalfamilyedits #princesscharlotte #princegeorge #princewilliam #princesskate #princesscatherine #katemiddelton #princeofwales #princessofwales #walesfamily #walesfamily? #heir #royalprotocol #britishmonarchy } { #chrlttess #xybca #unflopme #fyp #fypシ #viral ♬ original sound - ?
Captioned "The heirs must always walk in first," the video has been viewed over 254,000 times in 24 hours. It references the British colloquialism of "heir and a spare," used when applied to royalty to describe a person destined to be king or queen (the heir); their younger sibling serves as a back-up (the spare) in case anything should happen to prevent the elder from inheriting.
This was pulled into public focus in 2023 when Prince Harry (William's younger brother) named his memoir Spare, as a form of ownership over the title he says was applied derogatively to him throughout his life.
The viral video references the belief that heirs take precedence over spares, which in terms of the event attended by William, Kate and their two eldest children would see the two princes walk ahead.
This is not the case for all royal events. For example, when the king or queen attend with their family members, they are the last to arrive, its purpose being to keep them from waiting around for other guests.
The TikTok clip has received in excess of 9,450 likes so far and numerous comments, many of which have praised the Wales family.
"Love this SM [so much]," wrote one user.
"Catherine know[s] just what to do," posted another, with a further comment reading: "Love."
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more