Prince George gained invaluable experience for his role as Britain’s future king during the Royal Family’s VE Day celebrations.
The 11-year-old son and Prince William and Princess Kate made a surprise appearance at a Buckingham Palace tea party on May 6, marking his first formal royal function.
George joined his parents at the event hosted by King Charles and Queen Camilla for veterans and members of the World War II generation.
At the tea party, Prince George mirrored his father's role, greeting and leaning in attentively, clearly listening to veterans' stories.
Prince George attended his first first formal royal function at King Charles' VE Day tea party.
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The event came just hours after his first official public outing of 2025, when he joined his siblings at a military procession near the Palace.
Robert Jobson, author of Catherine: The Princess of Wales, celebrated the first for the young royal.
She observed: "This is probably the last big event where there will be veterans who served in the Second World War.
"It will stick in his memory that he met people who fought and give him a connection to them," the author added.
The young prince met veterans at the event.
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Speaking to Hello! Magazine, Jobson acknowledged George had a prominent role at royal events in the past but added: "The fact that he was meeting and conversing with these veterans, I thought that was a really good move by William and Kate."
"They are preparing him for public life. Kids can find it difficult to meet people, shake their hands and look them in the eye, but he does it very well.
"I think what they're trying to achieve is that he's relaxed in that sort of situation, and I thought it was very successful," she glowed.
Analysing the parenting style of the Prince and Princess of Wales, Jobson observed: "I think they're trying to be careful not to overwhelm him, because he's at a delicate age."
Jobson said meeting veterans will 'stick in the memory' of George.
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The royal guest list for the VE Day tea party included the King, the Queen, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, the Princess Royal, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence and the Duke of Kent.
Also present were the Prime Minister, the leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch, and Second World War veterans accompanied by the Royal British Legion.
During the engagement, George was seen offering a respectful handshake to one man, whilst Princess Kate smiled as they shared a conversation.
After Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis watched the military procession, it was expected the children would retire for the day.
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George attended alongside other senior members of the Royal Family.
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However, Prince William revealed that George was "very keen" to hear more.
The Princess of Wales introduced her eldest son to 99-year-old Charles Auborn, a gunner in the 90th City of London Regiment.
"This is my son George, I was telling you about," Kate said during the introduction.
"It's a massive balancing act," a palace insider previously told PEOPLE about the Prince and Princess of Wales' approach to raising George as future king.
"William and Kate are doing the right thing, protecting him so he can have as normal a childhood as possible, but he's also dipping into duties as a future monarch," the insider added.
