King Charles counts on Prince William and Princess Kate—along with his siblings Princess Anne, Prince Edward and Edward's wife, Duchess Sophie—to support him in royal engagements. But with fewer family members to deploy for duties, many royal watchers have wondered if The King might look to other extended royals to help him out over the years.
According to Daily Mail columnist Ephraim Hardcastle, his nieces Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie are two members The King wants to stay "close"—but that doesn't mean the public should expect them to take on bigger roles in the family.
"While King Charles remains keen to keep Beatrice and Eugenie close, deploying them at garden parties and receptions, neither will receive the full-time royal roles that their father once coveted for them," Hardcastle wrote, referring to their dad, Prince Andrew.
It's been long discussed that the Duke of York always hoped his daughters would become working royals, but while Beatrice, 36, and Eugenie, 34, both have titles, they don't carry out official duties on behalf of the King. They do, however, take on limited duties such as the aforementioned garden parties, and the sisters made a joint appearance at a public coronation luncheon in London to celebrate their uncle.
Hardcastle continued that Prince Andrew was "so keen" to get his daughters "on the payroll" that he paid for them to "attend a series of trade events in Germany in 2013 to show their mettle." However, the sisters—who were "driving a Mini painted with the union flag" ran a red light and were given a traffic ticket during the trip, causing an official at the British embassy to accuse the royal duo of making the U.K. "a laughing stock."
Since then, Princess Eugenie has gone on to co-found the Anti-Slavery Collective and both sisters serve as patron of multiple organizations, including the Scoliosis Association UK, the Berkshire Community Foundation and the Teenage Cancer Trust.
However, these are private patronages that they carry out in their own time, with both sisters holding jobs outside the Royal Family.
Speaking to Marie Claire, royal biographer Robert Hardman recently said that having "fewer people to go 'round" would be a concern for The King, especially after Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Prince Andrew are no longer working royals. "Having a smaller working unit was always the aspiration, but yeah, I think you've got to recognize that's more of a challenge now that the next generation, once you get beyond the King and his siblings, you've just got William and Catherine, and that's it for quite a long time," he said.
Speaking of Prince William, royal sources have reported he could potentially rely on his cousin Zara Tindall, and her husband Mike Tindall, as well as Duchess Sophie and Prince Edward to step up to the plate when he becomes King.
