The Royal Family were out in force over the weekend as they headed to St Mary Magdalene in Sandringham, Norfolk, for their traditional Christmas walk to church.
King Charles led his relatives to the festive service for the first time since the death of his mother, the Queen, in September. The monarch was joined by the Prince and Princess of Wales, alongside their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, as well as various other members of the Firm.
Kate, who looked chic in green, was seen holding on tightly to four-year-old Louis' hand, as she walked, but her other children were given a bit more independence, according to body language expert Judi James.
Judi told The Mirror how the couple made several 'intentional gestures' to show how they are now becoming more 'hands-off' parents with their eldest children.
She said: "William and Kate showed off their children with the usual signals of pride and it was clear they are now becoming 'hands-off' parents as their children grow in confidence.
"Charlotte was pulling ahead as they walked towards the church and George has gone from being the rather shy-looking boy holding his father's hand to the older brother keeping an eye on and showing nurturing and directional signals towards the four-year-old Louis."
The expert continued to point out how Prince George appears to be "mirroring" his father and keeping an eye on his younger brother, like a 'protector' for him.
"One of the sweetest and most poignant body language signals was the sight of George using touch, chat and bending rituals to signal he is now in the role of protector and 'keeping-an-eye-on' monitor for his younger brother Louis," Judi explained.
"As the family reached the church William put a hand out to touch George's back and leaned towards his elder son but George was already using those same rituals towards his small and rather playful brother. The gesture looked spontaneous, as though this is a role he is taking on a lot and, after the footage of a young William and Harry growing up together that was shown in Harry’s Netflix show, it looked like a poignant mirror-image of how their sibling relationship shaped up before they grew up and fell apart.
"William was shown in caring mode for Harry back then, just as George is now with Louis. The links can't have been lost on William, who seems to have proved himself as a man who learns from mistakes from the past and battles to reshape his future accordingly."
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