Princess of Wales must ‘make the first move’ if she wants to take on prestigious royal role from King Charles

The Princess of Wales must “make the first move” if she wants to take on a prestigious royal role from King Charles, it’s been claimed. 

• The Princess of Wales would apparently be seen as a “role model” if she were ever to take on a new patronage linked to her passion for sailing.
• It’s been claimed that if she wanted to succeed King Charles in this role the Royal Family would have to make the “first move”.
• This royal news comes as it was revealed James Middleton has decided on a major new chapter - and it's for a sweet reason. 

In the past few years the Princess of Wales has taken on a huge variety of prestigious new titles and patronages alongside her existing ones. From the title that passed from Queen Camilla to Kate, to her becoming Colonel of the Irish Guards last year, there are so many positions and responsibilities that the future Queen Consort is balancing. Many of her patronages are linked to her passions and hobbies. Now it’s been suggested she could take on another from King Charles that suits her sporty skillset - but the Princess of Wales must “make the first move”…

We might not have seen the Princess of Wales take to the water for quite a while, but sailing enthusiast Kate’s wetsuit look last year was the perfect practical choice as she joined Great Britain’s Sail GP team in a friendly race. According to the Daily Mail’s Diary Editor, Richard Eden, the Royal Thames Yacht Club could reportedly be eager for Kate to become their Patron, or Commodore, one day.

The club’s current Commodore is King Charles and Commodores are typically members of the Royal Family, with Lord Mountbatten holding the position for 20 years. Prince Philip was once Commodore too, as was Prince Andrew, who stepped back from this role in 2021 following the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

Since then His Majesty has held the position and the club recently held a “Women Who Rock the Boat” event in Cowes Week. This was apparently to help “encourage women in the sailing world” and one member supposedly claimed Kate would be a “role model” as Patron.

As reported by the publication, a “senior member of the club” alleged that, “Kate would be a great role model”. Though for her to succeed King Charles as Patron, the monarch and the Princess of Wales would have to follow royal protocol.

“[R]oyal protocol dictates that it's up to her and the Royal Family to make the first move,” the club member went on to claim. “As such, the decision needs to come from within the institution - rather than the yacht club approaching the Palace with the suggestion.”

Whether or not the Princess of Wales will “make the first move” with King Charles’ support remains to be seen, though she might be incredibly honoured to hold the title of Commodore of the club one day. Kate is known for her passion for sailing and she and Prince William both took part in the King’s Cup Regatta for charity in 2019. 

Perhaps hoping to encourage their older children to discover a love of sailing too, they brought Prince George and Princess Charlotte with them to the Isle of Wight, where Michael and Carole Middleton looked after them during the race. In 2021 it was reported that Kate taught Prince George and Princess Charlotte sailing during that summer. 

So it seems the passion for sailing might well continue to the next generation and fans will have to wait and see whether the Princess of Wales ever succeeds King Charles as the Royal Thames Yacht Club’s patron one day.