Royal fans have speculated that a viral video captured the moment Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, allegedly scolded her eight-year-old niece Princess Charlotte during the Trooping the Colour ceremony.
On Saturday, the royal family reunited for the official birthday celebration of the British monarch, with the ceremony marking the first since King Charles III was crowned.
During the parade, Princess Charlotte joined her mother, Kate, Princess of Wales, and her siblings Prince George, nine, and Prince Louis, five, in a carriage, while her father, Prince William, joined his father, Princess Anne and Prince Edward, on horseback. The family then appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to watch the rest of the parade.
At one point during the celebratory occasion, the cameras captured an interaction between Princess Charlotte and her great-aunt Sophie as they watched the military parade from a building, after arriving at Horse Guards Parade.
However, viewers think the moment may have captured a tense moment between the pair, with some speculating that Sophie was seen telling the eight year old to “sit down”.
In the clip, shared on Twitter by the account @RoyalCentral, Princess Charlotte, who was dressed in a red and white sailor dress, could be seen leaning against a pillar before moving closer to tell her great-aunt something. “Princess Charlotte speaks to great-aunt Sophie as they watch the ceremony together from the balcony,” the caption on the video reads.
Although the Duchess of Edinburgh initially leaned toward Charlotte, she could then be seen mouthing what appeared to be “sit down” in response to the young royal’s comment.
Princess Charlotte did not appear to listen to her great-aunt’s direction, however, as she could be seen turning back toward the parade.
On Twitter, where the clip has been viewed more than 586,000 times, viewers have speculated about the interaction.
“‘Sit down.’ Poor Charlotte was bored,” one person tweeted, while another said: “Love how Charlotte is getting told off here and to ‘Sit down!’”
“Is Sophie telling her to sit down?” someone else asked.
However, others suggested that Sophie did not direct Princess Charlotte to sit, but was instead seen telling the eight year old that it was “loud,” or something was happening “now”.
“I think she says ‘it’s now’ but definitely says it in a very impatient way,” one person suggested, while someone else said: “Just in case you were wondering, I’m not quite sure exactly what Charlotte said, but Sophie definitely said ‘it is loud’”.
According to another viewer, they “couldn’t tell if she said ‘it’s now’ or ‘sit down’ or ‘it’s loud’”.
While some claimed Sophie “told off” Charlotte during the interaction, others said the video captured a “sweet” moment between the pair. “Absolutely love seeing Princess Charlotte and Great-Aunt Sophie bonding during such a special event!” one person wrote.
Princess Charlotte also shared a special moment with her grandfather, King Charles III, during the Trooping the Colour ceremony, when the monarch was seen tickling his eldest granddaughter, while the eight year old also enjoyed a heartwarming moment with her father.
The royal’s younger brother Prince Louis also captured attention of his own during the birthday parade, as the youngest son of the Prince and Princess of Wales pulled a number of amusing faces from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
