Prince George of Wales (George Alexander Louis; born 22 July 2013) is a member of the British royal family. He is the eldest child of William, Prince of Wales, and Catherine, Princess of Wales. George is the eldest grandchild of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. He is second in the line of succession to the British throne behind his father.
The British royal family comprises King Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considered part of the royal family. Members typically support the monarch in carrying out public engagements and take part in charitable work and ceremonial duties.
Senior royals collectively undertake thousands of official engagements across the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, Crown Dependencies and abroad each year, including state visits, national events, and patronage activities. The family also represents the UK on the global stage and contributes to soft power through diplomacy and cultural presence.
Grand prince or great prince (feminine: grand princess or great princess) (Latin: magnus princeps; Swedish: storfurste; German: Großfürst; Greek: Μέγας Αρχών, romanized: Megas Archon; Russian: великий князь, romanized: velikiy knyaz) is a hereditary title, used either by certain monarchs or by members of certain monarchs' families.
Grand duke is the usual and established, though not literal, translation of these terms in English and Romance languages, which do not normally use separate words for a "prince" who reigns as a monarch (e.g., Albert II, Prince of Monaco) and a "prince" who does not reign, but belongs to a monarch's family (e.g., Prince George of Wales). Some Slavic (Królewicz), Germanic, Dutch, and Scandinavian languages do use separate words to express this concept, and in those languages grand prince is understood as a distinct title (for a cadet of a dynasty) from grand duke (hereditary ruler ranking below a king). Some recent sources also use Archduke.
William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales.
William was born during the reign of his paternal grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. He was educated at Wetherby School, Ludgrove School and Eton College. He earned a Master of Arts degree in geography at the University of St Andrews where he met his future wife, Catherine Middleton. They have three children: George, Charlotte and Louis.
Succession to the British throne is determined by descent, sex, legitimacy, and religion. Under common law, the Crown is inherited by a sovereign's children or by a childless sovereign's nearest collateral line. The Bill of Rights 1689 and the Act of Settlement 1701 restrict succession to the throne to the legitimate Protestant descendants of Sophia of Hanover who are in "communion with the Church of England". Spouses of Catholics were disqualified from 1689 until the law was amended in 2015. Protestant descendants of those excluded for being Roman Catholics are eligible.
King Charles III has been the sovereign since 2022, and his heir apparent is his elder son, William, Prince of Wales. William's three children are next, in order of birth: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. Fifth in line is Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, the younger son of the King; sixth is Harry's elder child, Prince Archie. Under the Perth Agreement, which came into effect in 2015, only the first six in line of succession require the sovereign's consent before they marry; without such consent, they and their children would be disqualified from succession.
Catherine, Princess of Wales (born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton; 9 January 1982), is a member of the British royal family. She is married to William, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the British throne.
Born in Reading, Catherine grew up in Bucklebury, Berkshire. She was educated at St Andrew's School and Marlborough College before earning a degree in art history at the University of St Andrews in Scotland, where she met Prince William in 2001 and graduated in 2005. She held several jobs and pursued charity work before their engagement was announced in November 2010. She became Duchess of Cambridge by her marriage on 29 April 2011 at Westminster Abbey. The couple have three children: George, Charlotte, and Louis. On 9 September 2022, she became Princess of Wales when William was created Prince of Wales by his father, King Charles III. In early 2024, she was diagnosed with cancer, underwent chemotherapy, and resumed duties later that year.