HOUSE OF WINDSOR: [29/35 Members] // ♕ PRINCE WILLIAM
The Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, is the first born son of The Prince of Wales and the late Princess of Wales. He is also a grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, and second in the line of succession to the British throne.
William Arthur Philip Louis was born on 21 June 1982 at St. Mary’s Hospital, Paddington. William had six godparents including King Constantine II of Greece, Princess Alexandra of Kent and The Duchess of Westminster. William was the first royal prince to attend an ordinary primary school, rather than being educated at home. In other respects William’s childhood was anything but typical. Wherever Prince William went, bodyguards (and photographers) were not far behind. At the age of eight, William was sent to Ludgrove, a boarding school, where he shared a room with four other boys during his five years there. It was around this time that his parents separated, forcing William and Harry to divide their time between Charles and Diana when they were not in school. William received his secondary education at the exclusive Eton College, where he was generally treated as a normal pupil. His world was shattered on 31st August, 1997 when Princess Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris. Despite his intense grief, William helped to make the arrangements for his mother’s unusual funeral. It was his idea for Elton John to sing ‘Candle in the Wind’. Prince William walked in the funeral procession with his father, brother and grandfather. In 2000, Prince William graduated from Eton after passing three A-level exams and spent a year travelling and pursuing educational projects, before embarking on a History of Art degree at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, where he met his future wife. After changing his main subject to Geography, William graduated in 2005 with a Master of Arts degree with upper-second class honours, the highest academic achievement of any heir to the British throne. The following year, William joined his brother at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst to train as an Army Officer. He passed out in December 2006, following his brother into the Blues and Royals regiment as a troop leader. 2006 was an important year for the young royal, as the Queen appointed William to two patronages of the Royal Navy. He became Commodore-in-Chief for Scotland and Commodore-in-Chief for submarines. He also started to carry out more public engagements in parallel with his military career. William’s personal life has been the subject of intense media scrutiny. Prince William was appointed as a Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter on 23 April 2008, St George’s Day. He earned his wings by completing pilot training at Royal Air Force College Cranwell. He went on to become a lieutenant in the Household Cavalry and started training to become a search and rescue pilot with the Royal Air Force.In January 2010, William graduated from the Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury and by autumn of the same year, he had finished his generic and special-to-type helicopter training. This allowed the future king to be posted on Anglesey at RAF Valley on No. 22 Squadron where he performed co-pilot duties on the Sea King search and rescue helicopter. Like his father, Prince Charles, and late mother, Prince William is president or patron to a variety of charities, including Centrepoint, which helps young, homeless people, conservation charity, Tusk Trust and the Child Bereavement Charity. In September 2009 The Foundation of Prince William and Prince Harry was set up to help them both forward their charitable ambitions. These will focus on three particular areas of interest for the Princes: young people, the environment and the armed forces. In November 2010 it was announced the Prince William was engaged to his long-term girlfriend, Kate Middleton. The couple met during their time at St Andrews University in Fife, Scotland, and have been together since. Their wedding was scheduled for 29 April 2011, which would have been the thirtieth anniversary of the marriage of his parents. On 29 April 2011, all eyes were on Prince William when he married Kate Middleton at Westminster Abbey. Just a few hours prior to his nuptials, William was made the Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathern and Baron Carrickfergus. After their honeymoon, William was sent to the Falklands for ten weeks for RAF training and due to the remote location, his new wife couldn’t join him. The couple have moved into an apartment at Kensington Palace which is where they will stay when they are in London. On 22 July 2013, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge became the proud parents of a baby boy. Their son, the Prince of Cambridge, is third in line to the throne. (x)
