Back To School For George & Charlotte

As with millions of other families, the Cambridges will be busy this week organising their children for a return to school after the summer break.

Prince George, 5, will be starting year one at Thomas's Battersea on Thursday. Although he attended Reception last year and will keep the same friends, George will have a new teacher and classroom as well as more advanced work to adjust to.

Princess Charlotte, 3, started at Willcocks Nursery School in Kensington in January. She will return to her routine on Wednesday.

The royal youngsters have had a wonderful summer break with baby brother Louis and mum and dad Catherine and William.

The family of five first celebrated Louis's baptism on 9th July and the following day the children watched the RAF Centenary flypast from a Buckingham Palace window while the adults stood on the balcony.

Mustique in the Caribbean was the venue for a beach holiday with their grandparents Carole and Michael Middleton. It was here George celebrated his birthday.

Then the family spent a large amount of time at their country residence, Amner Hall on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk. Amner allows the children to run and play in privacy as well as enjoy the property's tennis court.

Towards the end of the holiday the Duke and Duchess and children headed to Balmoral Castle in Scotland to visit the Queen and Prince Philip. Here George took part in his first grouse shoot which is quite a milestone for a royal youngster. 

All in all a lovely holiday before school begins again.

Christmas Images

We hope all of our readers and your loved ones enjoy a wonderful Christmas season. A beautiful wintery scene of Buckingham Palace was sent out on Buckingham Palace Shop emails this weekend. 

Below is an image of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth recording the Christmas broadcast. On the desk you will see framed photos of the Queen with Prince Philip at their wedding in Westminster Abbey and another released to mark their 70th wedding anniversary. Birthday portraits of Prince George and Princess Charlotte of Cambridge are also featured.

The Queen at 90

Although this website focuses on the children of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and eventually any children of Prince Harry, I have decided it timely to include some information about the official celebrations this weekend to mark H.M. The Queen's 90th birthday.

The Queen was born Princess Elizabeth, first child of the Duke and Duchess of York. Her birth took place on 21st April 1926 at 17 Bruton St, Mayfair, London. Her father Prince Albert was the second son of King George V and Queen Mary. Whilst being second in line to the throne it was never anticipated that Albert would ever succeed the throne.

The heir to the throne was the Prince of Wales, Prince Edward and when King George V died in 1936, Edward became King Edward VIII. However a coronation never took place. Edward was given a choice- be crowned King of England and hence Head of the Church of England or abdicate and marry his divorced American lover Wallis Simpson. He chose the latter and formally abdicated in December 1936.

Overnight the lives of the York family changed forever. Albert became King George VI, his wife now Queen Elizabeth and his daughter Elizabeth became heir to the throne. Although she had a younger sister Princess Margaret Rose, should the King and Queen have a son in the future, the boy would overtake Elizabeth as heir.

It is interesting to note that before Princess Charlotte's birth in 2015,  the law was changed so that younger brothers could not overtake older sisters in the line of succession.

Princess Elizabeth would go on to marry Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark on 20th November 1947. Prince Philip's surname was the German Battenburg but this was "softened" to Mountbatten ( his mother's British family name) to reassure Britons still suffering after World War II. Philip also had to renounce claims to the Greek and Danish thrones and covert to the Anglican Church.

Philip was a serving British Naval Officer and whilst the couple met previously, it was a meeting at the Dartmouth Naval College when the Princess was 13 that they became attracted to one another .

The couple had Prince Charles in 1948 and Princess Anne in 1950.

When King George VI died of lung cancer on February 6th, 1952 at Sandringham House, Princess Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth II. Queen Elizabeth I was of course the daughter of Tudor King Henry VIII.

The Queen's coronation took place on 2nd June 1953 at Westminster Abbey. Prince Charles and Princess Anne looked on with their grandmother who would come to be fondly known as the Queen Mother. 

The Queen later had two further children, Prince Andrew in 1960 and Prince Edward in 1964.

The Queen has gone on to become Britain's longest serving Monarch and is also it's oldest ever Monarch.

Over this special weekend when the formal birthday festivities takes place, I will add further posts.

Royal Family 2015 Trooping The Colour source: royal.gov

Highrove House Playground For Cambridge Children

Monday 3rd August, 2015

source:princeofwales.gov.uk

A tree house that once belonged to Princes William and Harry has been restored for a new generation of royal children to enjoy.

The tree house was built in 1989 for the brothers at the Prince and Princess of Wales' country home Highgrove House in Gloucestershire. It includes a retractable rope ladder which William wanted so he could be left alone if he so desired!

The retreat has been restored for George and Charlotte and other grandchildren in the future.

An example of a shepherd's hut source:plankbridge

Prince Charles has also been given a beautiful artisan shepherd's hut
which has been placed on the edge of Highgrove's wildflower meadow. The hut which has a day bed and wood burner was a gift to Prince Charles for George's first birthday last year.

Dorset company Plankbridge donated the hut to thank The Prince of Wales whose Prince's Trust gave support to the company when it was a start up.

George and Carole Beach Photos

Photos of Prince George and his grandma Carole Middleton enjoying a trip to the beach near Anmer Hall have appeared on the internet.

Carole, George and the Cambridge's dog Lupo were snapped playing in the sand on the morning of George's second birthday.

Later that day a birthday party was held at Anmer Hall for a dozen little friends. The Queen, Prince Philip and Carole Middleton were among the guests.

As the beach photos were taken at a time when privacy was expected I have chosen not to add the snaps to this blog.

Princess Charlotte Christening News

Tuesday 30th June, 2015

Prince George 2013, Chapel Royal

Kensington Palace has announced more details for Princess Charlotte's christening. 

The tiny princess will be christened this coming Sunday 5th July at 4.30pm. The service will take place in St Mary Magdalene church on the Queen's Sandringham estate in Norfolk. 

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's country home Anmer Hall is close by and as a special gesture towards the local residents, the paddock adjacent to the church will be opened for the public to congregate. 

It is thought that William, Catherine, young George and baby Charlotte ( in a pram or held by her parents) will walk along the path between Sandringham House and St Mary Magdalene. This will give the public a chance to view the family together for the first time.

The Queen, Prince Philip, the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, and members of Catherine's family will be present. However Prince Harry will miss the event as he is spending three months in Africa in relation to his charity work.

The Archbishop of Canterbury will perform Charlotte Elizabeth Diana's christening, supported by Reverend Canon Jonathan Riviere of the Sandringham churches group.

St Mary Magdalene is the church where William and Harry's late mother Diana (below right) was christened in August 1961. At the time Diana's family were living in Park House also on the Queen's estate.

Diana Spencer 1961, Sandringham

Prince William 1982, Buckingham Palace