Michael Middleton's protective gesture for newborn Prince George and daughter Princess Catherine

Michael Middleton made sure to keep newborn Prince George and daughter Kate Middleton safe and protected with a touching gesture in the early days of his eldest grandson's life. 

• Michael Middleton became a grandfather for the first time when eldest daughter Princess Catherine and Prince William welcomed their first son, Prince George, 10 years ago.
•  Protective father and grandfather Michael made sure to keep Kate and her newborn baby sheltered from the stress of royal life with a sweet gesture at the Middleton family home. 
• In other royal news, the reason Prince George’s birthday could solidify surprising departure from tradition for Kate Middleton has been revealed. 

Prince George will celebrate his 10th birthday on Saturday July 22nd, marking a decade since Prince William and Kate Middleton welcomed their first child into the world. 

The future King, who is second in the line of succession after King Charles and his dad, was born at London's St Mary's Hospital in the famous Lindo Wing, making Princess Catherine a mother just two years after she and William married in April 2011. 

With the world's attention on the newborn prince, the new family of three spent the first weeks of George's life in the comfort of Bucklebury Manor, Carole and Michael Middleton's Berkshire home. 

But with royal fans across the globe keen to know how Kate and William were getting on with their new son, Michael Middleton, who celebrated a special milestone on Prince William's birthday, is said to have devised a plan that could keep his daughter and grandson in the shelter of Bucklebury, while providing supporters with an insight into their new life as a family. 

"Michael had the perfect solution. He proposed that he would take the photo himself: organise a stress-free photoshoot in the garden and save them the bother of getting in a photographer who would take ages," a family friend told the Daily Mail. 

"t meant the nervous new parents could stop any time they wanted," the insider added. 

The Prince and Princess of Wales, who were then the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, posed with Prince George wrapped in a blanket on the grass at Bucklebury Manor, with their beloved Cocker Spaniel Lupo by their side, giving fans a sweet visual update on their little one without having to exit their family bubble away from the spotlight. 

Fast forward to today and Prince George is a confident big brother to Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis and, with his 10th birthday around the corner, preparing for life after Lambrook School. 

The young prince was spotted with his parents on a tour of Eton College, the prestigious boarding school that both Prince William and Prince Harry attended. 

With enrolment at the school having to be completed before a future pupil turns 10, it's possible that we will see Prince George become an Eton student when he is 13-years-old.