Title of Prince William. Biography of Prince William. Not at all a palace family idyll

Prince William (Wilhelm) Arthur Philip Louis, Duke of Cambridge, June 21, 1982 - Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus, eldest son of the Prince of Wales Charles and his first wife, Princess Diana, grandson of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. Second in line to the throne of the United Kingdom.

In England, the birth of every child in the royal family is accompanied by actions that are subject to strict rules. This also applies to the choice of names; expert on the history of the royal family, Patrick Montagu-Smith, compiled a list of names from which parents should choose a name for their child, necessarily only from this list.

For a boy, the future heir to the throne, the following names are recommended: William (upon accession to the throne - Wilhelm), Edward, Richard, Charles (upon accession - Karl), James or George (upon accession - George). Recommended for girls: Elizabeth (actually, in everyday English speech, this name sounds like Elizabeth. - Y. R.), Margaret (during the ascension - Margarita), Anna (sounds like Ann), Louise, Maria (sounds like Mary), Victoria or Catherine (sounds like Catherine). In extreme cases, as outsiders, the lists include Henry (during the ascension - Henry) and Robert, and for girls - Francis and Philip.

Diana did not give birth in a palace. The two princes of the blood, William and Harry, are the only direct heirs to the throne who were born outside of its walls. Both were born in the Lindo Wing of one of London's most famous hospitals, St Mary's Hospital (St Mary of Paddington), which is not a posh or expensive clinic, but that's where Dr. George Pinker, the royal gynecologist, works. Dr. Pinker has broken with custom and tradition because he does not belong to the titled nobility. An old, grinding elevator delivers patients to his office on Harley Street.

It was he, Dr. Pinker, who insisted that the princes be born in the hospital, and flatly refused to listen to all the nonsense about the fact that children from the royal family should be born in the palace, because he considered this place completely unsuitable for childbirth. The family and royal entourage were somewhat shocked and excited by his statements. The queen believed that traditions should be honored and that the custom would be observed. For Dr. Pinker, this was out of the question, and the princess, who had complete confidence in him, was of the same opinion.

The nursery at Kensington Palace is very different from the nursery at Buckingham Palace. Charles and Diana chose pastel colors for her. For the curtains, Diana chose pink flowered cretonne on a white background. On a bed with a soft featherbed in a cover with frills lay a luxurious bedspread to the floor, and crowned all this luxury with a canopy with draperies with many frills. Little blue rabbits and pink daisies flaunted on white chairs and cabinets. On a light carpet that covered the whole room, there were pillows and there was a deep chair for the nurse.

The process of raising royal children has changed since the childhood of Charles's grandfather, George VI, nicknamed Bertie, who was force-fed from a bottle and whose legs were kept between steel plates for a long time, because his knees were slightly dislocated and this threatened that he would grow up bow-legged.

The nanny was so jealous of his parents and so angry with him for spending some time with them that she twisted and pinched his arms before pushing him into the living room so that he would always come in to them in tears. Well, how not to be surprised that he became a stutterer?

Henry (Harry) and William avoided all this. If Charles wanted his sons to be honest, decent, polite, serious, reasonable, well-bred, then Diana, for her part, wanted the children to be happy first of all. “The Princess is a very devoted mother and dedicates a lot of time to Prince William,” said Victor Chapman, Assistant Private Secretary to the Queen, shortly before the birth of Prince Henry. “She watches how he is treated, how he is spoken to, how he plays. She corrects him if he doesn’t do something the way she would like.”

Prince William as a child and Prince George

The Princess of Wales, who showed extraordinary attention to the most insignificant acts of her sons, even kept a detailed diary in which she entered all the details of the growing up of her children.

She chose the clothes for them herself: the thinnest, softest cashmere sweaters and scarves adorned with the most intricate embroidery - all the best for William and Harry.

Basic items of clothing for boys Diana supplied the most luxurious children's clothing store "White House" ("White House"). The Princess of Wales, who suffered greatly from loneliness as a child due to the divorce of her parents, was constantly with her children. She breastfed her sons herself and taught Charles to change their linen, swaddle and bathe them. She spent a lot of time with them every day, and in the autumn of 1985 she even took the eldest herself to a kindergarten in Notting Hill. Then, as it seemed, with the upbringing of children, everything was fine.

“The elder,” thought the princess, “is a cheerful, enthusiastic boy, not at all timid, very independent. He is a born leader and organizer, which will later benefit him greatly. So, on the day of the beginning of the school year, he chose his own clothes, and it was better to let him do it ...

Although the princes were very different in character from each other, they got along well with each other and really did not like when they were separated. William, who was called "Will" in the family, was the most agile, the most groovy of the two, but Harry easily agreed to participate in the stupid things that his brother did.

In the photographs, William always has a roguish, playful look, while Harry looks into the camera with a certain amount of apprehension. As William is smiling, charming, lively, Harry is just as timid, secretive, insecure and attached to his mother. Diana tried to give everyone what they most needed - love.

“William,” he argued, “is far from being an ordinary boy. One day he will be King of England." In his opinion, Barbara Barnes too often took the side of William, and not his wife. And Charles began to demand that a nanny be hired for his son, "brought up and trained in the old manner," if possible, sharing ideas that had gone out of fashion. Expel the over-popular babysitter! Banish!
I must say that William showed great liveliness and mobility.

He first showed his rambunctious temper when he was only a year and three months old and was already able to walk pretty well to get to the toilet and throw his father's shoes down the toilet. He repeated his maneuver with his mother's shoes, and then with his own; by the way, young children, for reasons known only to the Lord God, love to take off their shoes.

His dreadful nature came into full play when he wanted to force his little brother Harry, who was then only seven months old, to nibble on a stuffed rabbit, of course, completely indigestible. During the marriage of Andrew and Fergie, he amused himself by sticking his tongue out at the little pages.

His first real foolishness was done for a specific purpose: to watch the most interesting sight, and for this he caused a fire alarm to be announced at Balmoral Castle. He vented his frenetic energy by riding Whiskey, his first steed. Charles gave him riding lessons

Prince Charles looks like his great-great-grandfather King Edward VII, according to People

The queen did not hide the fact that she would like to see more firmness towards William. The choice of the college in which the eldest son of Charles and Diana was to study turned into a bitter dispute. Diana did not want her children to be imprisoned within the walls of an educational institution located far from home. However, in 1990, William was sent to full board at Ludgrove School, in Berkshire.

The loss of a mother was a tragedy for children ... however, as for any child

So, at the age of eight, the prince was forced to learn to live away from the family, whom he saw only on Saturdays and Sundays. Diana somehow adapted and began to arrange herself so that her schedule, which included the performance of official functions, coincided with the schedule of her children's classes and did not interfere with her communication with them. In the first place in her weekly records were always the dates of school holidays, the dates of choir concerts in which the boys participated, the dates of sports competitions, etc.

In the autumn of 1995, William entered Eton. In the famous college, he was under the strict control of very high officials. At his disposal was a separate room with a separate toilet (this privilege applies only to princes of the blood). His personal security officer moved into the next room to ensure his protection. As a precaution, William was given a special watch worthy of James Bond, waterproof, ingenious, with an electronic device embedded in it that allows you to follow the movement of its owner on the screen.

Up to the sixth grade (the final year of high school in England.) for the first three years - no television, no radio! Forbidden and all! It was out of the question to hide at least a transistor receiver in a suitcase! Despite his title and position in society, upon entering Eton, William was perceived as a beginner. He already knew by heart the history of the college, founded in 1440 by King Henry VI, who expressed the wish that seventy needy boys be enrolled as students.

Since then, eighteen future prime ministers and many famous, eminent figures, among whom we can mention the Duke of Wellington (the winner at the Battle of Waterloo), Keynes, an economist and George Orwell, a writer, have studied at the college. The cost of education for each of the 1267 students was about 15 thousand euros per year (for 1267 students - 130 teachers). Parents could put their offspring on the list of candidates at the age of four, but without much hope, because only one in ten "thirsty" was accepted as a student. The waiting lists are already filled and "closed" for two years in advance. What's this? Tribute to old-fashioned mores? Probably not, considering how great Eaton's power is, even if you admit that some of his rules are outdated.

William in England is a celebrity, a star of the first magnitude. He inherited his mother's features: he is also blond, like her, he has the same smile, both timid and dazzling, the same delicate white skin, he is just as slender as she is, and just as charming, he is endowed with the same all-conquering charm. In short, William is everyone's new favorite, the perfect future Prince Charming. But when Lady Diana died, a very heavy burden fell on William's shoulders: he realized that whether he wanted it or not, one day he would become king, and against his will he should have a childhood like a future king; in addition, an even more responsible mission was entrusted to him: to become the hope of the monarchy and its savior in case it was threatened with death. They say he is very smart.

Next to his father, he comprehended the basics of his future "craft", his future "profession" - to be a king. William watched his father carry the burden of his duties, he saw his father rush from various conferences to opening ceremonies, from funerals to the handover ceremony to form a government or political party nominations, as he rushed from charity events to military parades. He now knew that his turn would soon come. He was also trained by another, truly irreplaceable member of the royal family - the queen. Eton is close to Windsor Castle, and on Sundays William often had tea with Her Majesty. A car came for him, and he and the queen spent two hours together.

After the death of Diana, William really becomes more and more close to the other Windsors. The soft influence of Diana was gradually erased, disappeared. And yet she "bequeathed" to him extremely important values: the desire to help others, the need for sincerity and truthfulness, the ability to listen to others. This posthumous influence is beneficial for the future king.
When William celebrated his eighteenth birthday on June 21, 2000, it became known that the servants in the royal palaces began to call him "Your Highness".

William also trained in very exotic places in South America (he spent two and a half months in Chile working with members of the Rally International charity) and in Africa, probably in search of adventure. So, he had a pretty fun (if not tumultuous) year before going to St. Andrew's (St. Andrew's) University in Scotland.

He began his "history of love" with Emma, the niece of Camilla Parker-Bowles. He is also credited with fleeting affairs (more or less virtual) with Holy, the daughter of Richard Brunson, with Annalise Asbjornsen, with Elizabeth Jagger, with Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, with Isabella Anstrader-Cog-Colthorpe and with Natalie Hicks-Lobbechke ... not counting the so-called innocent flirting with Britney Spears. William became the most excellent, most enviable groom in the world, the most coveted party and, of course, the number one tabloid press.

The sons of Charles and Diana, distinguished by their special charm, ease, naturalness and carelessness, brought a light breeze of youth to the royal court of Great Britain. Perhaps they will succeed in the case in which Diana failed. Perhaps they will be able to force the monarchy to change.

The Prince's thesis in 2005 was devoted to coral reefs. He graduated with very good results (although not with honors), and in this he surpassed his father, a graduate of Cambridge. According to William himself, he spent four happy years in St. Andrew.

For some time after graduation, William worked and was engaged in socially useful affairs, for example, he represented Her Majesty in New Zealand, in the cities of Wellington and Auckland at celebrations dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. In May 2006, Prince William entered the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

He received his commission in December 2006 and joined the Royal Cavalry as a Second Lieutenant. In this regard, his career does not differ from that of his male ancestors, starting with Henry V, since in Great Britain the monarch formally heads the country's armed forces.

In 2009, after graduating from the RAF Flight School in Cranwell, he was transferred to the Royal Air Force and promoted to Captain (Flight Lieutenant). In December 2011, he participated in the operation to rescue Russian sailors from the sinking ship Swanland.

On November 16, 2010, Clarence House announced the engagement of Prince William and his longtime girlfriend Kate Middleton.

The future duchess has been waiting for a marriage proposal from her indecisive prince for almost 10 years. For her royal patience, Kate Middleton was awarded not only the royal status, but also the love of her subjects, and most importantly, two amazing babies. We remembered the love story of Prince William and Duchess Katherine and, of course, dreamed of our princes (maybe even bald ones)…

The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton took place on 29 April 2011 at London's Collegiate Church of St Peter's in Westminster Abbey.

Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams officially proclaimed Prince William and Kate Middleton husband and wife, and Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain awarded the young couple the title of Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

On December 3, 2012, an official representative of the British royal court announced that the wife of Prince William, the Duchess of Cambridge, was pregnant and was in the King Edward VII Hospital in central London with symptoms of toxicosis and would stay there for the next few days.

On July 22, 2013 at 4:24 pm local time, Prince William and Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton gave birth to a boy. The weight of the newborn was 3.8 kilograms. On July 24, 2013, it was announced that the name of the first child of Prince William is George (George) Alexander Louis. He is third (at the time of birth) in the line of succession to the British throne.

Three months after his birth, the little prince was christened in the Royal Chapel of St. James's Palace. Royal heirs are supposed to be baptized at Buckingham Palace, but Prince William and Kate Middleton broke this tradition. In the chapel where the sacrament of baptism took place, Kate received communion before the wedding, and in 1997 the body of Princess Diana lay here.

Even before the prince was born, The Washington Post called him "the most famous baby in the world." Prince George of Cambridge was one of the first people in history to have articles about him in several Wikipedia languages even before he was born.

On September 8, 2014, a royal official announced that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were expecting their second child. The Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to a daughter, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, on May 2, 2015 at 8:34 am in the presence of her husband. At birth, a weight of 8 lb 3 oz (3.71 kg) was recorded.

Prince William, who is on two weeks of "maternity leave" from his service in the Royal Air Force, was present at the birth. He also spent the night that soon followed in the hospital - in a room specially allocated for him next to Kate's room. William decided that he would personally take part in the care of his son.

Fans of the British royal family celebrated the birth of the princess with might and main. The famous restaurant Zizzi even prepared a pizza with a portrait of Charlotte and her parents.

Knowing the love of ordinary Britons for the royal family, Kate Middleton invited everyone to the christening of Princess Charlotte on July 5 at the Church of St. Mary Magdalene in Sandringham (Norfolk County). Outsiders were not allowed into the church itself, but everyone was able to see Princess Charlotte before and after the ceremony.

Moreover, the guests were invited not only to witness the event, but also to join the charity event: all the flowers that the guests brought with them were sent to the East Anglia's Children's Hospice (EACH) - the organization has been patronized by Kate Middleton since 2012.

God bless the Queen, Duchess, Princess and photographer Mario Testino who gave us these pictures!

Prince William does not miss the opportunity to remember his beloved mother Princess Diana. At a charity gala, William gave an emotional speech dedicated to Diana. And not just as her son and heir to the royal throne - Prince William heads an organization, once founded by his mother, which provides assistance to children and adults who have suffered severe psychological trauma, primarily the death of loved ones.Prince William continues the many good undertakings of the princess Diana. And this work gives him real pleasure and satisfaction. And we are waiting for Christmas and keep our fingers crossed for the prince ... or maybe the king?

To be continued...

Full name: Prince William Arthur Philip Louis

Official title: Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus

Height and weight: 185 cm and 78 kg

Family status: married, three children with Kate Middleton

Field of activity: professional pilot, second pretender to the British throne (as the eldest son of the Prince of Wales Charles and his first wife, Princess Diana, grandson of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain), philanthropist

Education: Defense Helicopter Flying School

State awards: Commander of the Order of the Garter

Hobbies: horse polo, yachts, swimming, skiing

Prince William was born into one of the world's oldest monarchies and is himself second in line to the British throne. The prince became the first child of Princess Diana and her husband Prince Charles. Today, the personality of the Duke of Cambridge (these are all the titles of William!) is of great interest: a smart, tactful, prosperous heir to the throne married a very interesting woman, Kate Middleton, together they brought interest in the royal family to a new level.

From childhood, William was prepared for life in the palace, it’s already established: from an early age, the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II of the blood with dignity fulfills the duties assigned to him. After all, even a child in the royal family is obliged to appear in secular society, pose for official photos and perform feasible secular duties.

William's childhood was wonderful, a loving mother and an authoritative father did everything for the versatile development of William and his younger brother Harry. The eldest son of Diana and Charles was born on June 21, 1982 at the London Hospital. St. Mary's was the first time in history that a descendant of kings was born outside the walls of Buckingham Palace. He was baptized under the name William Arthur Philip Louis and very soon charmed the British: the paparazzi began to lie in wait for his mother at the gates of the maternity hospital.

Inquisitive William grew up, like all children, playful and kind, he inherited his mother's open smile and his father's thoughtfulness. As a teenager, the boy was very interested in studying, his mother was glad to see that the eldest son read a lot and with pleasure, jokingly called him a “thinker”.

The school that William (and later his younger brother) went to was the best: the royal grandchildren were educated at a boys' boarding school in Berkshire. Mother Diana was categorically against the private education of her sons, appealing to the fact that William and Harry should grow up in a society of peers, not looking up from life. Later, William will call school the happiest days - live communication and exchange of thoughts with peers are important for every person, especially for the future monarch.

At school, the young man lived in the same room with four other students, in high school he formed into a tall, broad-shouldered young man with a height of 191 cm, who became interested in football, hockey, marathon running, athletics, swimming and horse polo.

On his coming of age in 1990, William received his own coat of arms, based on the national coat of arms of Great Britain.

William continued his education at the prestigious Eton College, where he chose art history, geography and biology as his core subjects. The teachers remembered the heir to the throne as a diligent, educated, disciplined student. The sociable and charming prince quickly made friends, but at Eton he had to live in a separate room - so security reasons ordered, everyone understood this.

In his freshman year of college, William suffered a series of family troubles that culminated in a divorce and an ugly tabloid hype. The heir to the royal throne was very upset by the breakup of his parents, but he supported his mother in this situation - the sons adored Diana!

And on August 31, 1997, Princess Diana died in a car accident, William suffered such a severe injury for a long time, many years later he admitted that he still could not believe in the death of his mother. Then the young man suffered the loss of the closest person, began to spend more time in solitude, stopped attending classes and closed himself in.

It was then that the prince formed a persistent rejection of journalists as such, William was sure that it was the paparazzi who provoked the tragic death of Lady Diana.

Psychoanalysts helped William and his brother come back to life step by step, the grief that befell the princes was too hard to handle alone. The prince managed to pull himself together and continued his studies, striving to fulfill the cherished dreams of the late mother, who saw her sons as educated gentlemen.

Prince William's Education

After graduating from Eton, Prince William took a year-long break from his studies and devoted himself to palace affairs, and the prince had a lot of them. The young man decided to follow in the footsteps of Princess Diana, he visited many third world countries, where he held large-scale charity events - in memory of his mother. During this time, William managed to collect his thoughts and decide on the direction for his subsequent education.

The choice of the royal heir fell on the prestigious St. Andrews University, located in Scotland, where the heir submitted documents like everyone else. After becoming an art history student, the prince realized that this subject no longer aroused his interest, so in his third year he changed departments. So he became interested in geography, finished his studies with pleasure and defended his diploma of higher education - Princess Diana would undoubtedly be proud of her educated son!

Prince's favorite job is piloting

In mid-2006, Prince William entered the Royal Military Academy, which repeated the career of all members of the royal family in the male line. The young man had to serve in the British regiment of the Royal Horse Guards. In 2009, William graduated from Sandhurst with the rank of second lieutenant and entered the KVVS flight school, from which he graduated with the rank of captain.

During the same period, Prince William was awarded the honorary title of defense lawyer (barrister), making the duke the sixth member of the royal family who, since the 19th century, managed to receive this prestigious title. But William did not see himself as a lawyer, so the prince devoted himself to work in the British rescue service. He worked as a pilot until the summer of 2017, and then retired from service in order to devote himself to his family and service to the Queen.

Prince's personal life

The personal life of Prince William has always been interesting to the public, until 2011 he was the most enviable groom in the world, and after it became known about his engagement to Kate Middleton, he drew double attention. The Duke of Cambridge met his future wife in 2003 while studying at St. Andrews University. It was very difficult for both of them to maintain an ordinary romantic relationship due to the intrusive attention of the press.

The lovers could not withstand such an “attack”, so in 2007 they decided to leave. Three years later, the couple, out of mutual love, decided to renew their relationship, after which the world spread the news about the engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

The wedding of the heir to the royal throne took place on April 29, 2011 at St. Peter's Church in London, where thousands of people from all over the world gathered to see the wedding ceremony of the royal couple. According to media reports, the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton cost the municipal treasury nearly $175 million and became the most discussed event in Europe.

After the archbishop declared William and Kate husband and wife, Queen Elizabeth II awarded the young couple the title of Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Their official residence was Kensington Palace, which was inherited by the newlyweds from Princess Diana.

Two years after the wedding, Kate Middleton gave her husband an heir, who was born on June 22, 2013. On May 2, 2015, Kate gave birth to a daughter, Charlotte. Both offspring have already begun to fulfill their palace duties and have accompanied their parents several times on official trips to different countries of the world.

After the birth of children, Prince William retired from military service, directing his energy and authority to wildlife conservation. After his grandfather Prince Philip retired from royal duties in the summer of 2017, William and Harry tightened their palace work schedules.

In mid-2017, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge filmed for the ITV documentary Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy. In an interview, Prince William told reporters that every night he tells Prince George and Princess Charlotte about his grandmother.

On April 23, 2018, the prince and his wife announced the arrival of their third child, Louis, and for Prince William, the time has come when he is called a father of many children. As the Duke of Cambridge himself admitted, for him there is no greater joy than family happiness and prosperity - and here Lady Diana would be proud of her eldest son.

William highly values the family, so on May 19, 2018, the prince became the best man at the wedding of his younger brother Harry, when he married American black actress Meghan Markle. The broadcast of the wedding of the year was watched by the whole world!

Prince William, the eldest son of Prince Charles of Wales and Princess Diana, was born on June 21, 1982 in London. So that William and his younger brother Harry could communicate with their peers, Diana insisted on their enrollment in kindergarten, and then in school, although this was not accepted in the royal family, whose members always studied in isolation. William's parents divorced in 1996, and a year later his mother died in a car accident.

From 1990 to 1995 he attended Ladgrove boarding school in Bergshire. During his school years, he was the captain of the hockey team and the rugby team. In 1996 he entered Eton College, where he studied geography, biology and art history.

After graduating from college in 2000, William took a sabbatical and traveled for a year: he visited Chile, Africa, and also worked on an English dairy farm.

In 2001 he entered the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, graduating in 2005. His thesis was on coral reefs.

After graduation, he worked in the civil service and represented the interests of the Queen of Great Britain in New Zealand.

In May 2006, he entered the Royal Military Academy, after which, in December of the same year, he received the rank of second lieutenant. After that, Prince William studied at the RAF flying school in Cranwell, where he was promoted to the rank of captain in the Royal Air Force. Today he is a rescue helicopter pilot.

In addition, since May 2006, William has been President of the Football Association of England.

Hobbies : Football, charity, cinema

Personal life : Prince William and his future wife Kate Middleton met at the University of St. Andrews in 2002. Officially, their romance was recorded in the media in 2004. After graduation, William and Kate broke up, but soon resumed their relationship.

In November 2010, it became known about the engagement of William and Kate. For the engagement, the prince gave his beloved his mother's engagement ring. The lovers got married on April 29, 2011 at the London Collegiate Church of St. Peter's in Westminster Abbey. After marriage, they received the title of Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

On July 22, 2013, William and Kate became parents for the first time: their son George was born. On May 2, 2015, the Duke and Duchess had a daughter, Charlotte.

In September 2017, it became known that the couple were expecting their third child.

Scandals\interesting facts\charity

In 2011, Prince William, as a rescue helicopter pilot, took part in the operation to rescue Russian sailors from the Swanland.

In March 2017, the media attributed Prince William an affair with an Australian model who kept him company during his trip to a ski resort in Switzerland. In addition, during this trip, the Duke of Cambridge was filmed in one of the nightclubs. According to media reports, Kate Middleton was very unhappy with her husband's behavior, which almost led to a divorce.

Prince William took the death of Princess Diana very hard and visited a psychoanalyst of his own free will.

Prince William

Prince William (full name - William Arthur Philip Louis) Born June 21, 1982. Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn and Baron Carrickfergus, eldest son of the Prince of Wales Charles and his first wife, Princess Diana, grandson of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain. Second in line to the British throne.

William was the first crown prince to be born outside the royal palace - he was born at St Mary's Hospital in London. He became the object of attention of the paparazzi as soon as he was born: already at the exit from the maternity hospital, Diana and Charles fell under the lenses of cameras of numerous photographers who wanted to be the first to take a photo of the heir.

On August 4, 1982, the Prince was baptized by the Archbishop of Canterbury at Buckingham Palace and given the name William Arthur Philip Louis.

From 1990 to 1995, the Prince attended Ludgrove School in Berkshire. In this boarding school, William did everything on an equal basis with the rest, even shared a room with four other students. At school, he was the captain of the hockey and rugby teams, was fond of swimming, played football and basketball well, and also represented the school more than once in cross-country running marathons.

After school, William entered the famous Eton College, where he studied geography, biology and art history. The prince was always a diligent student and received good grades both in core subjects and in education, in addition, he easily found a common language with his peers. Thanks to sociability, natural tact and modesty, with an absolute absence of arrogance, he quickly acquired friends and acquaintances. True, in college he lived in a separate room and used a separate shower - but not out of arrogance, but for security reasons.

When William's parents divorced in August 1996, the prince took it hard. He was always closer to his mother than to his father, but Princess Diana talked a lot with her children even after the divorce. Even after the divorce, she continued to be considered a member of the royal family and lived in Kensington Palace, doing a lot of charity work.

The big blow in the prince's life came on August 31, 1997, when his mother, Princess Diana, died in a car accident in Paris.

The prince learned about the tragedy only on September 1 from his father, as Prince Charles forbade children to have a radio in the house. No matter how hard it was for him to cope with the grief that fell upon him, William found the strength to take part in organizing the funeral. He and his brother, Prince Harry, followed the mother's coffin in a funeral procession all the way to Westminster Abbey, where the funeral took place. After the death of his mother, William voluntarily visited a psychoanalyst. During this period, William's long-standing dislike of the press escalated to the limit: he blamed the paparazzi for the death of his mother.

In July 2000, after graduating from Eton College, the prince, like many students, decided to take a year off from his studies. He traveled a lot, visited Chile, visited African countries after his mother (Princess Diana was actively involved in charity), and even worked on an English dairy farm.

After a year, Prince William chose his future path: he decided to enter the prestigious St. Andrews University in Scotland, and soon became a student. The prince celebrated his coming of age (according to British law, it comes at 21 years old) with an African-style party, which he held at Windsor Castle under the supervision of the queen herself.

The Prince's thesis in 2005 was devoted to coral reefs. He graduated with very good results (although not with honors), and in this he surpassed his father, a graduate of Cambridge.

According to William himself, he spent four happy years in St. Andrew. For some time after graduation, William worked and was engaged in socially useful affairs, for example, he represented Her Majesty in New Zealand, in the cities of Wellington and Auckland at celebrations dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II.

In May 2006, Prince William entered the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He received his commission in December 2006 and joined the Royal Cavalry as a Second Lieutenant.

In this regard, his career does not differ from that of his male ancestors, starting with Henry V, since in Great Britain the monarch formally heads the country's armed forces.

In 2009, after graduating from the RAF Flight School in Cranwell, he was transferred to the Royal Air Force and promoted to Captain (Flight Lieutenant). He is currently serving as a rescue helicopter pilot. In December 2011, he participated in the operation to rescue Russian sailors from the sinking ship Swanland.

Prince William Height: 191 centimeters.

Personal life of Prince William:

The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton took place on April 29, 2011 at the London Collegiate Church of St. Peter's in Westminster Abbey. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams officially proclaimed Prince William and Kate Middleton husband and wife, and Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain awarded the young couple the title of Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton

On July 22, 2013 at 4:24 pm local time, Prince William and Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton gave birth to a boy. The weight of the newborn was 3.8 kilograms. On July 24, 2013, it was announced that the name of Prince William's first child was George (Georg) Alexander Louis.

September 4, 2017 . Although rumors that the couple is expecting a third child appeared much earlier.

He is a fan of the Birmingham football club Aston Villa. Rooting for Aston Villa, William began while studying at Eton. He is the President of the Football Association of England.

While at school, he was a fan of the American band Linkin Park.

William, as a member of the royal family, has his own coat of arms, based on the coat of arms of Great Britain, which he received on his 18th birthday.

Quadruple shield: in the first and fourth fields, the coat of arms of England - three golden leopards with azure weapons in a scarlet field, in the second field, the coat of arms of Scotland - in a golden field with a scarlet double inner border, sprouted with lilies, a scarlet rising lion with azure weapons, in the third field, the coat of arms of Ireland - a golden harp with silver strings in an azure field. On top of the shield is a silver titel with three ends burdened with a scarlet scallop shell (escalope).

Around the shield is the symbol of the Order of the Garter.

Shield holders: on the right - British, crowned with an open crown of children of the heir to the throne, a lion with a silver title (as in a shield) around the neck; on the left - a Scottish unicorn with a crown of the children of the heir to the throne and a silver title (as in a shield) around the neck.

The shield is crowned with the crown of the children of the heir to the throne, with a peer's cap inside.

Above the crown is a golden royal helmet. A gold bait lined with ermine. Crest: gold, crowned with an open crown of the children of the heir to the throne, a leopard with a silver title (as in a shield) on the neck, standing on the crown of the children of the heir to the throne.

Davina Duckworth-Chyde. Initially, Prince William was supposed to marry Davina - according to the agreement between Prince Charles and the girl's parents. Davina and William met in 1999, but even a common love for tennis and yachts did not keep the young people together. Now Davina is married and her twins are growing up. Since William was a guest at her wedding, it is likely that she, too, was on the April 29th wedding invitation list.

Rose Farquhar. William's first serious relationship. Prince met the young actress/singer when he graduated from high school in 2000. Rose is said to have been William's first love. The relationship was not long-term. Rose soon left for New York to study at the Leah Strasberg Academy, and then recorded several albums. We will also see her among the guests at the royal wedding.

Arabella Musgrave. William met the head of Gucci's PR department at a polo match in 2001. The prince was struck by the beauty and intelligence of the girl. William and Arabella were together until Will left for St. Andrews, where he met Kate Middleton. The PR director also received an invitation to the wedding.

Carly Massey-Birch. A short but stormy romance with a simple village girl Carly occurred when Will had just arrived to study at the University of St. Andrews. The couple broke up when Carly found out that the monarch was having a parallel affair with Arabella Musgrave.

Olivia Hunt. At the same show, during which William saw his future bride Kate Middleton in a transparent black dress, the prince came with his girlfriend Olivia Hunt. It was the fastest novel of the heir to the throne.

Isabella Anstruther-Goch-Kalsorp. When Kate and William already met, Isabella tried in every possible way to win the heart of the prince. Rumor has it that it was because of an affair with a student with an unpronounceable last name that Kate broke off relations with the prince. But in the end, Isabella lost.

Jecca Craig. Zhekka and William met when he was only 16 years old. The couple denied their relationship for a long time, but when Kate Middleton left the prince again in 2003, he left to “lick his wounds” to an old friend. On the reservation in Kenya where Zhekka worked, the "doves" got engaged. The engagement did not last long. Zhekka is invited to the wedding with her boyfriend Captain Philip Kay and her parents.