Lady Louise Windsor, the niece of King Charles III, has graduated from university and will soon begin a new chapter, but it will be vastly different from her royal cousins.
Until recently, the 22-year-old daughter of Prince Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, was a prominent figure at royal family-related events, including the monarch’s official birthday celebrations in London known as Trooping the Colour.
Lady Louise Windsor, the daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, has graduated from university and will pursue a career away from the royal fold. Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images
Lady Louise was also by her parents’ side at the king’s coronation in 2023 and still regularly attends the traditional morning mass on Christmas Day at Sandringham with the wider royals.
Now that she has finished university, Lady Louise is expected to pursue a career away from the royal family after taking a gap year.
A photo of her graduation from St Andrew’s University, in Scotland, was shared by the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh on Friday. She had been studying English at the prestigious university, in Fife.
If St Andrew’s sounds familiar, that’s because it is where the Prince and Princess of Wales met and fell in love when they studied there between 2001 and 2005.
Where Lady Louise will spend her spare time over the next 12 months remains unknown and, as a non-working royal she is entitled to a level of privacy not usually afforded to other high-profile members of the House of Windsor.
Plans for Australia and avoiding the spotlight
There are rumours she may visit Australia for part of her gap year, following in the footsteps of her cousins Prince Harry and Zara Tindall.
Lady Louise is believed to be dating Felix Robert da Silva-Clamp, who has an Australian mother. The pair is said to have met during a student play on campus. Felix was born in London but attended school at Melbourne Grammar.
Lady Louise Windsor and her parents Prince Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, pictured following her graduation from St Andrew’s University in Scotland. St Andrew’s University/The Royal Family
Despite being born into the British royal family, as one of Queen Elizabeth II’s grandchildren and now the niece of the current monarch, Lady Louise has largely avoided the spotlight.
Her place as 17th in the British line of succession has also afforded her a degree of anonymity, as she is very unlikely to ever accede the throne.
Lady Louise’s decision to earn her own living, and not take on official duties, should not come as a surprise to many royal watchers.
Under the reign of King Charles there are fewer working members of the family than ever before.
Lady Louise was a regular at royal events, including here at Trooping the Colour in 2024, but has largely retreated from public view as she moves towards a more private life. Chris Jackson/Getty Images
In April, the 11 current working royals were pictured together at Buckingham Palace, showing just how slimmed-down the monarchy has become in recent years, following the death of Queen Elizabeth and the departures of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
This year’s Trooping the Colour, in June, reaffirmed the new-look royal family. Lady Louise’s last appearance on the balcony of Buckingham Palace was with her parents in 2024.
While the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh have increased their official duties significantly since 2020 their children, including their 18-year-old son James, Earl of Wessex, will follow a very different path by having careers outside of the monarchy.
Lady Louise with the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh at the coronation of King Charles inside Westminster Abbey on May 6, 2023. Andrew Milligan – WPA Pool/Getty Images
In 2020, Sophie told The Sunday Times her and Prince Edward had made the deliberate decision to avoid some parts of royal life. “We try to bring them up with the understanding they are very likely to have to work for a living,” Sophie said.
Raised away from royal life and working regular jobs
“Hence we made the decision not to use HRH titles. They have them and can decide to use them from 18, but I think it’s highly unlikely.”
Sophie, who ran her own public relations firm before marrying into the royal family, added: “[The children] go to friends for sleepovers and parties. At weekends we do lots of dog walking and stay with friends. I guess not everyone’s grandparents live in a castle, but where you are going is not the important part, or who they are.”
Currently, Louise James use only their noble titles.
Since beginning university four years ago, Lady Louise has developed a reputation as being one of the most down-to-earth royals.
In December, she was photographed sitting crossed-legged on the floor of a crowded train from London to Bristol, working on her laptop.
Lady Louise was photographed alongside her parents and brother James on Christmas Day at Sandringham in December, an event traditionally attended by the King and Queen and wider royal family. Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images
In 2022, she took $13.16-an-hour job in a local garden centre at Windsor before starting university.
According to The Sun the royal helped out on the tills, greeted customers and pruned and potted plants. One shopper told the newspaper: “I couldn’t believe it was Lady Louise − I had to look twice”.
Another said: “You’d never imagine the Queen’s granddaughter would take on a role working behind a till.”
She has also worked at the university canteen during semester breaks while her boyfriend, Felix, manned the on-campus ice-cream parlour.
A LinkedIn profile, believed to Lady Louise’s, said in 2024: “I am interested in pursuing a career in the military, diplomacy, or law”.
Last year, Lady Louise was photographed as part of the Tayforth University Officers’ Training Corps where she has had basic weapons training, leadership lessons and a course in navigating tough terrain under pressure. The corps was made up of students from various Scottish universities.
If Lady Louise decides to pursue a career in the military, it will make her the first female royal to do so since her late grandmother.
Lady Louise had a paid job at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in May, as well as being a competitor in carriage driving. Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images
A source told The Sun: “Louise has loved every minute of being a member of the officer cadets at university. She talks about being very keen on a career in the military, serving the King and country”.
This year, Lady Louise worked as one of the organisers of the Royal Windsor Horse Show, an event held every year since 1943 on the grounds of Windsor Castle.
The four-day event was one of the late queen’s favourites and hosts international competitors for dressage, show jumping, driving, and endurance riding.
She was also involved as a competitive carriage rider, a sport she was taught by the late Prince Philip who left his granddaughter his beloved green carriage, driving equipment and Fell ponies Balmoral Nevis and Notlaw Storm, when he died in 2019.
Lady Louise is expected to take a gap year before pursuing a life in private after graduating from university. St Andrew’s University/The Royal Family
“She’s a great worker and a real asset to the team with no airs or graces,” Nick Brooks-Ward, Director of the Royal Windsor Horse Show, told Vanity Fair.
“It’s a proper paid job and there’s no special treatment because of who she is.”
While newcomers to the royal family are often hailed as a “breath of fresh air” − Meghan, Diana and Fergie were all once described as such − it is Lady Louise who truly can claim such a title.
Born with the type of privilege and wealth many can only dream out, Lady Louise is proving herself to be the leader of a refreshing new breed of royals relying less on the public purse and more on their own endeavours.