James Wessex set to break age-old royal tradition

James Wessex is set on carving his own path rather than going down the royal route like his cousins Prince William and Prince Harry.

The 16-year-old son of Prince Edward and Sophie, who will be appearing for his first GCSE exams, is likely to break tradition with his career, per former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond.

Bond told OK! Magazine that Edward and Sophie have “tried very hard to allow James as normal an upbringing as possible – given his heritage,” adding “by and large, they have succeeded.”

On the matter of choosing a career path, Bond explained that James is likely “to follow his ambitions and not necessarily take the traditional royal route of military service.”

“He will probably try for University and then work out a career path. He can draw on the experience of his royal cousins, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall, who have made their own way,” Bond continued.

“It’s highly unlikely that James will ever use his HRH and he will not inherit the Dukedom of Edinburgh. That all guarantees him a sense of freedom that royalty ‘with all the bells on’ makes very difficult.”