Prince George & Prince Archie Could Be Schoolmates — Just Not Yet, And Here's Why

It's certainly been a year of big surprises for the royal family. After many rumors, it was finally confirmed that Prince George would indeed be attending his father's alma mater, Eton College, in the fall. And, just as pundits geared up to watch the young royal follow in Prince William's footsteps, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle decided to make their big return to the U.K. with their two kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, in tow. While Prince George will have to learn which rules to follow at Eton, Archie and Lilibet will be navigating the British education system after growing up in the U.S. 

Meanwhile, royal experts are speculating that, if Archie had been the same age as George, he would probably have been joining him at Eton. But since the young royal is only seven, he's still too young to attend the prestigious boarding school. During a conversation with royal expert and Eton alum Tom Sykes on "The Royalist" podcast, Vogue writer Plum Sykes argued that Meghan and Harry moving their kids back to the U.K. just as Archie is set to start prep school is no coincidence. "[Archie is] coming up to that critical prep school age, which is seven, eight. That's when you get in the pipeline for, drum roll, Eton," Plum pointed out. "You have got to go to the correct feeder school for Eton." 

She added that the Duke of Sussex, having attended Eton as well, would probably love for his son to follow in his footsteps. A source who spoke to Heatworld made similar claims. "Harry has always wanted his children to have a British education and it became one of the driving forces behind the decision to move," they dished.

Prince Louis is best known for his silly personality, and while he's never spoken a word to the public, the mini royal's facial subtitles have always been on. Louis' reliably hilarious expressions have made headlines on multiple occasions, and we have a nagging suspicion his teachers might have their hands full at times, because if he's that cheeky in public, we can only imagine what Louis is like when the cameras aren't rolling. Whether or not the teachers at Eton need to be actively preparing to deal with the mischievous prince in the future is still somewhat of a mystery, however.

There was plenty of talk ahead of Prince George embarking on his high school career about whether or not he might forfeit Eton and attend his mother, Princess Catherine's, alma mater, Marlborough College, instead. Now that George is indeed heading for Eton, there's a big chance Louis will too. But royal watchers will have to wait until he's much older before Louis' school of choice is made public. Either way, it will definitely make for interesting headlines. Notably, if Prince Harry is planning on sending Prince Archie to Eton, it would mean that he and Louis will be attending the all-boys boarding school at the same time. 

Louis is only a year older than Archie, so they will likely see plenty of each other. While Vogue writer Plum Sykes asserted on "The Royalist" podcast that the Duke of Sussex loved his time at Eton, Harry himself previously admitted that wasn't the case. As for why he would send Archie there, royal expert Tom Sykes reasoned that the school's extreme security measures might be the driving force, since it educates many elite children.