The Cambridges Hire More Staff: A Move to Full-time Royals?

Prince William with a mug saying, "Big Willy" which supposedly was the pet name Kate would call him.

There are a lot of big questions surrounding our favorite royal pair. Will the baby be a boy or a girl? Just one or twins? What is the due date?  The list may continue, but one questions that hangs in the air is, what are William's career plans? Is he sticking with the RAF or transitioning to full-time royal?  The announcement was supposed to be made by now, but we are still waiting for word, possibly because of the hoopla from the baby announcement, or perhaps in true William fashion he is waiting to announce. So what do we know?

The news that Amner Hall, the house on the Queen's Sandringham Estate, has been slated for refurbishments in preparation for the Cambridges was leaked in the past week.  I was skeptical. I mean, we have heard this before, right? But a recent development seems to add hitherto unseen element: the royal couple have recently advertised internally for more help. The Sunday Express reported some of William and Kate's requirements,

“Main duties included: ensuring all areas of the residence are cleaned and maintained to a high standard at all times. Caring for and maintaining TRH ­personal clothing, cleaning silver- ware and glassware and in-house laundry.”

Apparently, this position is quite a multi-tasking one, the couple requested someone with strong written and verbal communication as well as a mention of walking dogs. I guess Lupo won't be feeling as much love from the duchess?

As I say, the position was only advertised internally, so only current royal staff may apply.  This does seem to be a shift for William and Kate, as they have previously tried to live as normal a life as possible, resisting les domestiques. It seems to me more likely that we will see these two moving to full-time royals.

It makes sense, a baby changes your life.  Now there are three. When they were newlyweds they could rough it in Anglesey and enjoy the isolation of their remote home while William worked like any other person. With a baby they will probably want to be closer to bigger towns, closer to family, and probably in a home with more amenities and perhaps more security.

Amner Hall won't be vacant until 2017, though, so either the Queen has struck a deal with the current tenet to move him along faster, or we are looking at some long-term planning.