Kate & Crown Princess Mary 'stricter' than most royal parents – 'huge amount of pressure'

Jo Mitchelhill, a parenting coach, spoke exclusively to Express.co.uk to compare the two royal women’s parenting styles, especially how they are raising two future heirs to the throne: Prince George of Wales and Prince Christian of Denmark.

She said: “There is no denying there is a huge amount of pressure being the parent of an heir to the throne, as well as being the partner of the heir. There will be many expectations of the behaviour of both Prince George and Prince Christian of Denmark that are in line with that of the positions that they will hold in the future.

“This may mean their parents may have to take a stricter or harder line on behaviours that for other children could be deemed as ‘normal’ childhood behaviours. The other children who are the ‘spares’ may be allowed more freedom of expression and the opportunities to follow their own interests and develop as a person and not an heir.

“There is always the risk of resentment that the children may feel their parents are spending more time with the oldest child and that they are more important than them. So, it is crucial that Kate and Mary are aware of how they split their time with their other children to ensure that they feel loved and valued as members of a family and not just part of a system.”

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Ms Mitchelhill is a native Australian, just like the Crown Princess. The Australian parenting coach argues this gives Mary a “strong value of freedom” as a parent.

She explained: “As an Australian, Mary has a strong value of freedom, which you can see in the way she is allowing her children to find who they are as a person. She is used to living in a society that is renowned for giving everyone a fair go and having a sense of optimism in situations.

“Mary was quite a sporty child and therefore this will come through in her parenting as an important value to instil in her children. Being outdoors and in the fresh air from a health perspective but also the resilience and tenacity that being involved in sport involves.

“Teaching important lessons around hard work, dedication and also disappointment when things don’t go to plan. Sport is a massive culture within Australia and it will absolutely be something that will be important for Princess Mary of Denmark to instil those values in her children.

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“Being Australian and the values that come from that will be important for Mary to instil in her children so that they sit alongside the values of them being Danish and members of the Danish Royal Family.”

According to the parenting coach, both Kate and Mary believe in “strong family values” which helps them improve in their role as parents.

She claimed: “Both Princesses have very strong family values, which can be seen in the way that they interact with their children.

“Remember how cool Kate was with Louis at the Jubilee parade? They are both kind and compassionate humans who will be passing those values onto their children.

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“Kate, like Mary has a strong sense of national pride and will absolutely be instilling what it means to be British into her children, alongside how those values fit with being members of the British Royal Family.

“Both Kate and Mary are renowned for wanting to instil a sense of normality in their children’s lives. This is really important for children to be able to empathise with the public.

“Kate and William have moved into the four-bed house in Windsor and have said that they won’t have staff – so that means the children will have to have chores to help with the running of the house.

“Also this move allows the children to be children. Run around outside, ride bikes, swing in trees, and have sibling squabbles without having to worry about being on show.

“Both ladies know that for their children to connect with the British and Danish public, they have to understand that although they have been born into a place of privilege, it doesn’t make them better than anyone else.”

The Princess of Wales and the Crown Princess of Denmark both encourage “fun” and “freedom” with their children when they “aren’t on royal duty”.

Ms Mitchelhill added: “We have seen Kate cooking with the children and her sense of freedom with them when they aren’t on royal duty. And the same with Mary. There were some great pictures of her and the family skiing which showed the fun and freedom – and competition that they were all enjoying.

“Both of these women bring a sense of freedom from growing up outside of the traditions of royal life. They have both done incredibly well to fit into the roles that they have but because of their family life and the values that they were brought up with they bring a fresh and less stuffy approach to bringing up the children. And this can only be a good thing.”

source: express.co.uk