Just In: King Charles ‘raises eyebrows’ as decision over Kate Middleton’s birthday forces major royal change…..See More Details

Prince William would have been expected to attend the funeral of Jimmy Carter as Prince of Wales, however the date of the service clashes with his wife’s 43rd birthday.

The Princess of Wales is set to celebrate her 43rd birthday this week after a difficult year that saw her undergo a procedure on her abdomen and receive treatment for cancer.

Kate’s birthday on January 9 has, however, forced King Charles, 76, to make a major change as the royals prepare to carry out an action for just the third time in history.

Charles has made the decision to send his brother Prince Edward, 60, to Washington this week for the funeral of former US President Jimmy Carter. The decision is said to have “raised eyebrows”, the Scottish Daily Express reports.

It will be only the third time a royal has attended the funeral of a US President, and both occasions it was Charles in attendance when he was Prince of Wales. He was there to see Ronald Reagan laid to rest in 2004 and also made the trip over the Atlantic again in 2018 to honour George Bush Snr.

It would have been expected the same ranking royal would have made the journey for Mr Carter, who passed away last month at the age of 100. But William has reportedly made it clear to aides that his dedication to Kate comes before duty and he will ensure her birthday – on the same day as Carter’s funeral – remains a family affair.

So instead, the 14th in line to the throne has stepped up. Edward, along with his wife Sophie, have impressed the King and William with their dedication to duty during the last year. As well as Kate, the King was also absent due to his own cancer battle with the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh standing in on several occasions.