Meet Prince William and Princess Kate's three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis
The Prince andPrincess of Wales married each other in a truly fairytale wedding on 29 April 2011, but one of their true joys came two years later on 22 July 2013 when the royal couple became parents for the first time following the birth of Prince George.
The parents looked besotted with the future King when he was introduced to the world less than 24 hours after his birth. George was born at the Lindo wing of St Mary's Hospital, just as his father was 31 years prior.
Less than two years later, happiness came again for the couple as on 2 May 2015, they welcomed their daughter, Princess Charlotte. Much like her older brother, Charlotte was introduced to the world by her beaming parents just hours after her birth. Gunshots heralded Charlotte's arrival and national landmarks were also lit up in pink in her honour.
Less than a week before William and Kate's seventh wedding anniversary, the pair got the sweetest present with the birth of their youngest child, Prince Louis, with the young prince born on 23 April 2018 and royal watchers got their first glimpse of the youngster just seven hours after his arrival.
Read more
Look back at Prince Archie's rare playdate with royal cousins Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis
The sweet link between Princess Charlotte and her grandmother Carole Middleton
Why Prince George, 11, won't be moving to secondary school this year
Princess Kate 'made it clear' to King Charles that her children come first in royal role
Did Princess Kate take inspiration from Crown Prince Christian with birthday photo of Prince George?
But how much do you really know about George, Charlotte and Louis? Read on to find out all you need to know about the future senior royals…
Prince George, 11
Prince George was born on 22 July 2013 at St Mary's Hospital and is currently second in line to the throne, with his father, Prince William, the only one ahead of him. The royal baby was born at 4:24pm, and weighed 8lbs and 6oz at the time.
George is quite a typical name for the Windsor family, with George's great-great-grandfather being King George VI. The choice of name will no doubt have touched the late Queen, who will have needed to have given her permission for the name under royal custom.
George had a huge impact on his parents, and during an appearance on the Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast, Kate shared how "amazing" it was to hold her young son for the first time. "It is extraordinary as I've said," the then Duchess of Cambridge said. "How can the human body do that? It is utterly extraordinary actually. And he was very sweet. And I was also sort of relieved that he was a happy, healthy boy."
Due to his lineage, George is destined to the King one day in the future, something that the young royal will be acutely aware of. However, his parents are still making sure that the youngster is able to enjoy his childhood, and when he was three, William explained: "There'll be a time and place. Right now, it's just a case of keeping a secure, stable environment around him and showing as much love as I can."
Royal watchers have been able to see the young prince growing up before their eyes, with George first accompanying his parents on a royal tour before he had even turned one. The young royal was with his parents for a three-week trip to Australia and New Zealand, and made two public appearances, one at a playgroup and another at a zoo. The young prince was described as having "stolen the show" despite only being nine months old.
RELATED: Prince George and Princess Charlotte's cutest royal tour moments in photos
George has been a trendsetter during his life, making a historic appearance at his grandfather's coronation as a page of honour. It's been speculated that the young royal will be able to skip military service, unlike some of his predecessors and might not have to undertake full-time royal duties until he is in his twenties.
"Whereas Charles III had his future mapped out without consultation, Prince William had a significant degree of autonomy in his choice of university education, his engagement with the armed forces and his introduction to regular royal duties," Robert Hardman wrote in King Charles III: The Inside Story. "He is determined that Prince George should have a similar if not greater involvement in the way he develops his own royal role."
Princess Charlotte, nine
Princess Charlotte is the only daughter of the Prince and Princess of Wales and was welcomed into the world on 2 May 2015 at 8.34am and weighed 8lb and 3oz. The young royal's middle names were references to her relatives with Elizabeth coming from her great-grandmother, the late Queen, while Diana is a reference to William's late mother who died in 1997.
After she was introduced to the world, Charlotte was whisked off to the family's residence of Anmer Hall in Norfolk, as William and Kate have always been keen to maintain their children's privacy while they are growing up.
Much like her older brother, Charlotte embarked on her first royal tour at a young age, joining her family on a trip to Canada when she was a one-year-old, and the youngster was the centre of attention and even performed her first royal wave.
In recent years, Charlotte has taken on the role of a mother hen with the younger royals, often working to keep them in check during public appearances, whether this be at the Trooping the Colour or the Queen's funeral, where she reminded George to bow when needed.
Speaking to HELLO!, supernanny Jo Frost explained: "Charlotte knows the rules. She's the one in the middle. She knows how to keep everyone in good stead. There are moments when I've watched George and he's looked over at his sister, and he's probably annoyed with her one minute and then grateful that she's there being able to remind him of things, when he's taking it all in as well."
Prince Louis, six
Rounding out the Wales children is Prince Louis, who was born at 11.01am on 23 April 2018 at a weight of 8lbs and 7oz.
Young Louis has been renowned for some of his cheeky antics during royal outings. Who can forget him shushing his own mum during the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations, or covering his ears when the planes flew by? Louis has also been seen pretending to ride a motorcycle at Trooping the Colour and trying to blow out candles while at Princess Kate's carol concert, with his older sister usually trying to keep him in line.
Speaking about his public behaviour, supernanny Jo Frost told HELLO!: "Prince Louis is a child I believe who is a highly sensitive person, he is elevated by high energy experiences and can sometimes get excited beyond the point that his behaviour may be unpredictable. Sometimes it can be cute like blowing out candles or cheeky when he doesn't want to accept what's being asked of him by a parent."
Family moments
The Wales children are typically out of the spotlight but have shown up at several royal occasions over the years allowing us to watch them grow up before our eyes whether it be with Prince George's first royal tour before his first birthday, or Louis stealing the show with his antics at the late Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations and Trooping the Colour.
George and Charlotte have often been seen with their parents on more formal visits, including following the late Queen's death, while Louis has begun making his first appearances at certain events, including the royal's church visit in Sandringham on Christmas Day or at his grandfather's coronation.
In March 2024, Kate publicly announced her cancer diagnosis and explained how she and husband William had taken time to digest the news and how to tell their children in the best way.
During her message, the mum-of-three explained: "William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family. As you can imagine, this has taken time. It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment. But, most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be ok."
The Wales children have supported their mum during her chemotherapy, with Princess Charlotte sharing a sweet moment with Kate during their Trooping the Colour appearance.
The children took centre stage with Kate during her recent video where the Princess of Wales revealed that she had completed her chemotherapy treatment. In one touching moment, George cuddled into his mum who wrapped her arms around her eldest and kissed his head. Another moment saw Kate and Charlotte sharing a hug with the doting mum kissing her young girl on the cheek.
