As Prince George turns 11, some fascinating insights about his life and name have emerged.
George, the second in line to the British throne after his father, Prince William, was not always going to be known as George. His mother, Kate Middleton, had different plans.
Prince George was born on July 22, 2013, and the now-Prince and Princess of Wales revealed to the world that their son’s name will be George Alexander Louis.
However, it has been revealed that “George” was not Kate Middleton’s preferred name.
The origin of prince George’s name
Choosing a name for a future British heir is a time-honored practice with personal meaning.
In an interview with ‘The Mirror’, renowned royal analyst Katie Nicholl revealed that the then-Duchess of Cambridge wanted her firstborn to be named Alexander, a Greek name meaning “defender of men.”
The Prince and Princess of Wales did not find out the baby’s gender until after it was born. However, Kate was adamant that if it was a boy, he should be named Alexander.
This proposal, however, did not fully impress William, who favored more conventional names in the British royal family, such as George, after his great-grandfather George VI or George V.
When they couldn’t reach an agreement, the couple decided to put their trust in someone extremely special: their dog Lupo.
They spread out sheets of paper with the names on the floor and let Lupo choose. The dog picked the paper with the name George, and thus the little prince’s name was determined, albeit Kate insisted on Alexander as a middle name. The result was George Alexander Louis.
When Kate became pregnant for the second time, the same scenario played out with the names of the girls. When William and Kate found out it was a girl, they decided to name her Charlotte in honor of Queen Elizabeth and the late Princess Diana. So, on May 2, 2015, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana was born.
The couple named their third kid, Louis, after Lord Mountbatten, and he was born on April 23, 2018. They gave Louis the names Arthur, which is favored by Kate, and Charles, which pays honor to the current ruler.
