Prince Edward's Son Gets Dirty In The Country At New Job: 'Learning A Good Work Ethic'

Like any royal, Prince Edward, the youngest son of the late Queen Elizabeth II and the youngest sibling of King Charles III, is hardly known for his blue-collar appeal. Though the Duke of Edinburgh has since rehabilitated his image to great success, it was just a few decades ago that Edward's spoiled behavior earned him the nickname "Prince Brat" from the British media. Evidently, Edward's own son, James, Earl of Wessex, is hoping to avoid a similar branding — at least if his supposedly down-and-dirty summer job is anything to go on.

According to The Sun, James — who turned 18 last December — has been driving tractors at the royal family's Sandringham estate to make some extra scratch as he awaits the results of his A-level exams. Although this would obviously still make Edward's boy a bit of a nepotism hire, onlookers have nonetheless been impressed by the young royal's willingness to put in the elbow grease that the job demands. "Everyone is so used to only seeing James smartly turned out with his family at functions at Christmas and Easter so I had to do a double take. He might be the King's nephew but he is more than happy to get his hands dirty and muck in," one estate worker told The Sun. "Driving tractors around Sandringham is not an easy task and it can mean long hours."

The insider further remarked that, while James doesn't necessarily need to be taking part in such difficult work, doing so can only help him build character, especially now that he's entering adulthood. "But it doesn't matter how rich you are, learning a good work ethic at a young age can always help," they said. That's especially true when it comes to members of the upper class, including royals, who rarely get the opportunity to actually work with their hands.

While some will certainly be surprised to see James, Earl of Wessex, doing groundskeeping work, the fact of the matter is that Prince Edward's only son is going to have to start building his resume following the completion of his secondary education. After all, while their status as King Charles' niblings obviously affords them certain privileges, neither James nor his older sister, Lady Louise Windsor, is expected to become a member of the working royal family. Rather, Edward and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, have made it clear that his two children will be working royals in a more literal sense.

"We try to bring them up with the understanding they are very likely to have to work for a living," Sophie said of James and Louise during an interview with The Times in 2020. This, the duchess added, is precisely why she and Edward never used their children's HRH titles. "They have them and can decide to use them from 18, but I think it's highly unlikely," she said at the time. Indeed, as of 2026, neither the 18-year-old James nor the 22-year-old Louise has invoked that right, so their mother may have been correct. Notably, Sophie grew up in a solidly middle-class family, which no doubt helped balance out the lavish lifestyle her husband was born into when it came to raising their own kids.