10 Facts about Prince George of Cambridge
Prince George, the firstborn of Prince William and Duchess Catherine, is one month old already! To celebrate this occasion, we have gathered interesting facts about the new heir to the British throne.
1. Cancer or Leo? A lot of media and fans of the Windsors (as well as astrologists) around the world asked this question, after Catherine’s delivery had been “slightly delayed.” The son of the Dukes of Cambridge was born on July 22 at 16:24 London time, when the sun was still in the constellation of Cancer. By the way, his father Prince William and grandmother Princess Diana were born under this zodiac sign too. It is believed that Cancers are vulnerable, sensitive noble and unselfish.
2. The newborn prince was at once granted the status of “the heaviest successor in modern history” – 3.8 kilograms. His father William weighed just over 3.2 kg at birth, and grandfather Charles weighed a little more than 3.1 kg.
3. By the very fact of his birth, the new heir to the throne has solved a legal challenge that the British monarchy faced before his birth.
The Act of Succession, signed earlier this year, claimed that the first child of the Dukes of Cambridge became the third one in the line to the throne, even in case of birth of a girl. However, the lawyers of one of the Canadian provinces have filed a lawsuit demanding the abolition of the act because they believed its adoption contradicted the Constitution of the country.
The process could take from six months to several years. But with the birth of the boy, the situation resolved itself.
4. The baby prince was named George Alexander Louis. The first name was given after the father of Elizabeth II – King George VI, the third one was given in honor of the Duke of Edinburgh’s uncle, the last Viceroy of India, Louis Mountbatten. The origin of the second name – Alexander – is still under debate. The most common version is a tribute to Prince’s great-grandmother, whose full name is Elizabeth Alexandra Mary.
By the way, the Prince has a nickname – Georgie. That is how William, Charles and other members of the family name him in their interviews.
5. The baby’s full title is His Highness Prince George of Cambridge (in the future – King George VII). The “geographic” part of the prince’s title is borrowed from his father, the Duke of Cambridge.
6. The birth of George as the third line heir to the British throne is just the second similar case in history. The first case dates back to 1894, the year of the birth of future King Edward VIII, the great-grandson of the then ruling monarch, Queen Victoria.
7. The birth of a new heir was accompanied by the traditional fireworks and church bells. 103 guns, located within the walls of the Tower and the Green Park gave a total of 62 shots, and the bells of Westminster Abbey were ringing continuously for three hours.
8. The birth of Prince George was accompanied by the regular protocol violation: Prince William was present at the birth, the first people to see the newborn baby were the Middletons, and not the members of the royal family (and grandmother Carol was the first to give comments to the press). In addition, William himself took the wheel to drive Katherine and George to Kensington Palace. The family and the baby spent the first three weeks in the Middletons’ house in Berkshire.
The recent “innovations” were connected with the first official pictures of Prince George – they were taken by grandfather Michael and were criticized by the press.
9. The birth of Prince George has brought £240,000 to the UK economy – largely thanks to the sale of souvenirs and noisy festivities across the country.
In addition, even before his birth, George received the status of the most popular kid in the world. On the day of his birth, more than 25 thousand messages about him appeared on “Twitter” every minute.
10. What George has to expect now is the move to Kensington Palace (where there is an “African” room prepared for him), as well as the world tour to his parents’ favorite places, which will begin in New Zealand.
