Prince William turns 42 a week from tomorrow, on June 21, and while the first half of his 41st year was nearly normal, the second half was anything but. It takes a different kind of strength and resilience, an almost superhuman strength and resilience, to survive a double cancer diagnosis as a wife and father while raising three children under the age of 10 and continuing to work while the world's eyes are on him. But that is what William is in 2024.

Pray tell, his 42nd year will be a much smoother sea than the monsoons of the last six months have brought to his life; for what life might have been like for the Prince of Wales in 2024, royal historian Gareth Russell wrote in Us Weekly, " Perhaps he was emotionally unprepared. (After all, to be fair, who could be emotionally prepared to hear that his father and wife, who were both hospitalized for seemingly routine procedures, had cancer?) William had lost his beloved mother, Princess Diana, at only 15 years old, and knowing the immense grief that comes with such a loss, he could not have made this tumultuous time any easier.

Of his father, the king, Russell spoke of the shock William must have felt at the diagnosis, saying that Charles was "certainly old, but his father was very healthy, lived well, ate well, and according to his wife, Queen Camilla, was famous for just never stopping walking. Any cancer diagnosis is shocking, but perhaps none more shocking than that of Kate, who is young (only 42), healthy, and active. Neither Charles nor Kate have disclosed the type and stage of their cancer and may never do so.

Despite this, Russell said that "so far" William has shown himself to be "competent and capable" in their absence. Although the King is now back on official duties, he was behind the scenes from the day he announced his diagnosis on February 5 until he returned to official duties on April 30. As for Kate, she has not been on royal duty since Christmas 2023 and the annual service at St. Mary Magdalene's church on the Sandringham Estate, traditionally attended by the entire royal family. The timing of her return remains ambiguous, with some speculating that it may be next year.

"It was stressful," one source told Us Weekly in April, referring to this period in William's life. William feels a deep sense of duty to maintain the stability of the monarchy and to inspire confidence in the people that everything will be all right. It is an immense responsibility."

Samir Hussein, a longtime royal photographer who, along with his father Anwar and brother Zak, has been capturing the royal family's biggest moments for decades, told Us Weekly that despite the "trying circumstances" of recent months, William is "still himself." : "I think Prince William is still stepping up to the plate in a really positive way with the King out of action for a few months. 'Prince William has been through a lot with Kate that we haven't known for a long time. I think he is doing amazingly well under really, really difficult circumstances."

He also added this about William's demeanor at a recent royal function: "He's been very calm and very patient. I think you can see his determination to get through this for his father and wife, even though it must be an incredibly difficult time for him"