Princess Charlotte takes after this iconic royal as youngster reaches key milestone

As the granddaughter of and daughter of the next, likely has a lifetime of duty ahead of her, but for now, at least, she will be just like every other little girl as she enjoys her childhood, cherishes time with her family and friends... and gets excited for everything that lies ahead in her future.

One big milestone falls tomorrow as and only daughter enters double digits and celebrates her 10th birthday. With time flying by, the moment that a swaddled Charlotte, who was only hours old, was presented in her parents' arms seems as if it were only yesterday.

And, after an emotional and challenging year for the Wales family, it is clear that this will be an extra special celebration. "I'm sure Charlotte will be very excited to turn ten and be growing up fast," royal author Phil Dampier tells the Daily Express. "She will have seen George celebrate his tenth birthday and so she will know what to expect. The whole family is now much happier, of course, as the Princess of Wales is over the worst of her cancer treatment and clearly a lot better. So everyone will be able to relax and enjoy the occasion."

With her birthday falling on a school day, Managing Editor of Majesty Magazine, Joe Little, adds: "For many children it's a big deal when you reach double digits, and Princess Charlotte is unlikely to be the exception. Her birthday falls on a Friday this year, so she'll be at school and no doubt her friends will want to make a fuss of her. Perhaps there will be a family party at home that evening or on the Saturday of the bank holiday weekend."

While no details of a party are expected to emerge, it is likely that the Princess of Wales will repeat one of her favourite traditions for her daughter's special day. Looking back to when she met Dame Mary Berry in 2019, Kate revealed that she stays up late the night before making a birthday cake but ultimately ends up "with ridiculous amounts of cake mix and icing."

The end of April and the beginning of May mark a busy time for the Wales family, with not only Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte's birthdays falling in quick succession, but also Prince William and Kate's wedding anniversary on 29 April, so there's a lot to celebrate.

While the milestone will be marked by love and overwhelming pride, Mr Dampier suggests there will also be moments tainted by sadness. "Like all parents, William and Catherine will delight in Charlotte growing into a teenager and fine young woman, but that is always tinged with a feeling that time flies by and she won't be a child for much longer. They are bound to feel emotional after the roller coaster they have been on because of Kate's health, and that of the King, but the feeling will be one of joy and celebration."

Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana was born at 08.34am at the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in Paddington - although there was almost a major incident following her birth when royal aide Jason Knauf admitted he lost a slip of paper which had the important details of the new royal baby's gender, her time of birth and weight on outside the hospital.

Thankfully, the announcement went off without a hitch, and Charlotte spent her earliest years living at the family's Anmer Hall home in Norfolk while Prince William was serving as an RAF search and rescue pilot.

In the years which have followed, the Princess has joined her parents and big brother on tours to Canada, Germany and Poland, as well as witnessed events on the scale of Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, her state funeral and King Charles' Coronation.

Charlotte has delighted royal fans with her 'boss' like behaviour when it comes to reminding her two brothers how to behave at royal events and it's clear that this playfulness will have given not only the Princess of Wales an added boost during her recovery, but the King too.

It is well known that King Charles was keen to have a daughter of his own, and he has absolutely found one in his "darling daughter-in-law" Kate, but now has the advantage of building an extra-special relationship with his little granddaughter. And, as he had such a magical bond with his own grandmother, The Queen Mother, it is undoubtedly a wish of his to build similar loving ties with his grandchildren and pass on everything he can from all he has learned and experienced.

This well-rounded upbringing, which is also surely bolstered by the strong female examples she has around her in her mother, her grandmother Carole and her aunt Pippa, is clearly working to Charlotte's credit.

"Between their focus on mental health and early years development alongside a happy marriage and a mutual desire to protect their children's privacy, William and Catherine are arguably raising the most well adjusted children the British monarchy has ever known," royal commentator Victoria Arbiter praises.

"Together, they've managed to exercise a solid balance between introducing them to public life while also shielding them from banks of cameras, intrusive coverage and the more overwhelming elements that come with global interest in their every move. All three children are clearly happy, confident, capable and secure and that's undoubtedly due to their parents' personal, hands-on approach."

While everything the Princess has absorbed from her studies of early years development and children's mental health will have played a crucial role, a determination to see his children have an entirely different upbringing from his own will have been at the forefront of Prince William's mind.

"William's upbringing could hardly have been much more different when he turned 10," royal author Duncan Larcombe tells us. "He'd been away at boarding school for a couple of years, his mum and dad's relationship was in total tatters and although Diana was incredibly protective and very loving towards William, the family dynamic was just so different from what Charlotte is experiencing now.

"She's got a mum and dad who are in love with each other and support each other in everything they do. William and Kate clearly made a decision very early on when they had children that they weren't going to pack them off to boarding school, certainly until they're older and they might have to. So it's a tight-knit family unit that contrasts quite tragically with the way that William would have been feeling when he was 10 years old."

And while she has had a gentle and sheltered introduction to the scale of interest that lies ahead for her, it is clear that she already has a firm grasp and respect for the role she plays in the historic institution. "Royal observers are of the opinion that Charlotte is the boss as far as her brothers are concerned, though it's hard to be sure from the brief glimpses we get of them together," Mr Little adds. "The dynamic will change in 2026, however, when George moves on to a new school, but he'll surely remain close to his sister, rather like the King and the Princess Royal as we see them today."

This is not the first time the little Princess has been compared to her great aunt. "She is growing up fast and reminds me of Princess Anne as she's a strong character and able to tell her brothers what to do! She seems to be a kind-hearted Hermione Granger type figure, supporting everyone in her family but full of her own personality and ideas," Mr Dampier says warmly.

"Winston Churchill once said of the late Queen Elizabeth when she was a child that he had never seen such maturity in someone so young, and Charlotte seems to have inherited that trait from her great-grandmother, to whom she bears an uncanny resemblance."

Even though she's only a decade old, Princess Charlotte has already made history. The rules of primogeniture, which historically saw any female heir unseated if a younger brother was born, were altered by Queen Elizabeth II in the Succession to the Crown Act 2013, meaning that any younger brother born after this date can no longer leapfrog an elder sister. This became the case when Prince Louis was born in 2018, but Princess Charlotte maintained her place in the line of succession ahead of him.

While all the Wales children still have many years to go before they become fully fledged senior royals, a life in service is something firmly planted in their futures. When both Charlotte and Louis turn 21, they will become eligible to be Counsellors of State, which means they can step in for the monarch if they are abroad, ill or otherwise incapacitated. The current Counsellors of State for the King are Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, Princess Beatrice, Prince Edward and Princess Anne.

Thankfully for the youngest members of the family, though, the details of the roles they will play still rest many years in the future, but that doesn't stop many from wondering what will happen.

"Charlotte seems to have an inner strength which may one day become invaluable as she is third in line to the throne," Mr Dampier says. "The world is changing fast and it may be that Charlotte finds a career outside the Royal Family - but somehow I doubt it. I think she is needed and the family will need a strong character who could become a global superstar."