(VIDEO) Prince George Begins First Day At Eton, Following Father And 20 UK Prime Ministers In Berkshire

WINDSOR, England — Prince George began the next stage of his education Tuesday, arriving for his first day at Eton College, the prestigious boarding school where his father, Prince William, and his uncle, Prince Harry, were both educated before him.

The 13-year-old, who is second in line to the British throne, appeared in good spirits despite gloomy autumn weather as he made his way to the school accompanied by his parents, William and Catherine, Princess of Wales. George had last been seen publicly with the rest of the Wales family at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, last month.

George arrived at the school dressed in a jacket, shirt and tie along with dark trousers, before changing into Eton's traditional uniform: a black tailcoat, waistcoat and pinstriped trousers, worn with a stiff white collar.

The family crossed School Yard, the historic institution's central cobblestoned quad, which features a statue of King Henry VI, the school's founder, at its center, before being greeted by Eton's principal, Simon Henderson, and its provost, Nicholas Coleridge. The group spoke briefly, with Henderson heard welcoming his newest student directly.

"Welcome, good luck, enjoy it," Henderson told George.

Eton College, located in Berkshire just a short distance from Windsor Castle and the Wales family's home at Forest Lodge in Windsor Great Park, educates boys ages 13 to 18 and admits approximately 270 new students each academic year. Students live on campus across the school's 25 boarding houses, each accommodating roughly 55 students under the supervision of a house master.

George's arrival follows in a well-established family tradition. William attended Eton beginning in 1995, while Harry started at the school in 1998. Prior to beginning at Eton, George attended Lambrook School, a private preparatory school near Windsor, alongside his younger siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

The choice of Eton had remained a subject of public speculation for months leading up to George's enrollment, given that his mother, Kate Middleton, attended a different prestigious institution, Marlborough College, during her own school years. Royal commentators had previously suggested the Wales family might delay announcing George's secondary school choice until close to the start of the academic year, a pattern that has held true given how much attention the decision ultimately drew once formally confirmed.

Eton ranks among Britain's most famous and prestigious fee-paying schools, boasting a notable list of alumni that extends well beyond the royal family to include 20 of the country's 59 prime ministers throughout British history. Former Conservative prime ministers Boris Johnson, who led the country from 2019 to 2022, and David Cameron, who served from 2010 to 2016, both attended the school. Other prominent alumni span the worlds of entertainment and the arts, including actors Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston and Eddie Redmayne.

Attending Eton comes with a significant financial commitment. School fees for the current 2025-26 academic year stand at £63,298.80, or approximately $84,900, reflecting the institution's position among the most expensive independent schools in the United Kingdom.

George's enrollment at Eton also carries broader symbolic weight given his position within the line of succession to the British throne. As second in line behind his father, William, George's education has drawn sustained public interest throughout his childhood, with each successive school transition treated as a notable milestone by British media and royal commentators. His father's own enrollment at Eton in 1995 was similarly treated as a significant news event at the time, reflecting the sustained public fascination with the educational path of a future monarch.

Unlike Marlborough College, which admits both boys and girls, Eton remains a boys-only institution, meaning George's younger sister, Princess Charlotte, would not have had the option to eventually join him there even had circumstances been different regarding the family's school choice. Charlotte and Louis remain enrolled at Lambrook School alongside their other classmates, continuing their own education separately from their older brother following George's transition to Eton.

The Wales family's arrival at Eton on Tuesday adds to a broader pattern of family milestones playing out amid a particularly active period for the royal family, coming as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, have recently returned to live in the United Kingdom following several years based primarily in California. Royal commentators have noted that George's start at Eton arrived at a moment when the Wales family had hoped to keep public attention focused on their son's milestone rather than competing developments elsewhere within the broader royal family.

George's educational journey now shifts to a considerably more structured and independent phase of his life compared with his time at Lambrook, given Eton's residential boarding house system, which requires students to live on campus throughout the school term under the guidance of a dedicated house master, rather than returning home each day as had been the case during his years at the smaller preparatory school near Windsor.

With George now formally enrolled and settling into his new school routine, the coming years at Eton are expected to shape a significant portion of his adolescence, following a well-worn path through one of Britain's most storied and closely watched educational institutions, one that has already produced a substantial share of the country's most prominent political, cultural and royal figures across multiple generations.