The wait is over! Kensington Palace have finally announced the name of the new Prince of Cambridge.
George Alexander Louis and Charlotte Elizabeth Diana's brother is named Louis Arthur Charles!
Here is a rundown of the royal significance to his names:
Louis
In an unexpected twist, the Cambridges have chosen to re-use a name that they had already given to Prince George.
Louis is significant to Prince William as it is, not only one of his own middle names but honours Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (1900-1979), born "Prince Louis of Battenberg," uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, British naval officer, last Viceroy of India (1947) and the first Governor-General of independent India (1947–48). Lord Mountbatton was a mentor to both Prince Philip and Prince Charles and was a key figure in both of their lives.
Louis is predominantly seen as a French royal name – having been borne by no less than 18 Kings of France from 815-1830. However, the name does have use in the British royal family.
George I's full name was George Louis (Georg Ludwig in his native German) and Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales, was the eldest son and heir of King George II. When he predeceased his father, his son, George (III), became king instead, making him a "king we never had". His name in English was written interchangeably as Frederick Louis and Frederick Lewis in Britain, demonstrating the old English pronunciation of Louis as LOO-is.
Louis has been a British staple since the 1990s when it returned to the top 100. It has remained there ever since, with the addition of the spelling Louie rising. Louis currently ranks at #71 in England and Wales with Louie at #47 (#46 in England alone).
Read more about the name Louis here.
Arthur
This was the bookies’ favourite for a boy and it wasn’t hard to see why. If the Duke and Duchess’s choice of George and Charlotte showed us anything, it’s that they prefer not only traditionally royal names (not currently bagged by other royals) but also popular ones. If we discount the names currently used by the royal family (Charles, Henry, Edward, William, James etc), then Arthur is the highest ranking of all the royal names left over at #27 in England (#30 overall in England and Wales combined) and rising rapidly.
Not only is it famous for the legendary King Arthur, we almost had an actual “King Arthur” when Henry VII gave it to his eldest son. Sadly, we were deprived when he died aged 15, leaving his brother Henry (later Henry VIII) to take the throne.
Queen Victoria later reintroduced the name to British royalty when she gave it to one of her sons, giving the name a quirky Victorian charm that is so fashionable right now. This Prince Arthur (1850-1942) was so named because he was born on the birthday of national hero Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769–1852), who also acted as the prince's Godfather.
Most likely the main reason the Duke and Duchess chose this name as a middle name is because it has more immediate family connections as it is one of the middle names of both Prince Charles and Prince William as well as the Queen’s father, King George VI.
Read more about the name Arthur here.
Charles
Charles is a clear nod to William father, Prince Charles. Just like Charlotte who received Diana as a name from her grandmother, so too has her brother.
A perennial classic since at least the 16th century, Charles is a name born by royalty right back to the early Frankish kings. Most notably, it was borne by two British Kings -- Charles I and Charles II.
Despite being such a staple (and in the top 10 for most of the 18th and 19th centuries) the name had little use in the British royal family once the Georgians came to the throne and was only revived as a royal name when the Queen gave it to Prince Charles in 1948.
Read more about the name Charles here.
Shared Sibling Names:
If we think of Charlotte as a variation of Charles, then young Prince Louis Arthur Charles shares a name link with both his elder brother and sister.
Unlike his siblings, whose names were announced just two days after their birth, this announcement has kept us waiting four days.
It isn't unusual for royal announcements to take their time. Prince Charles' name was announced a full month after his birth, while Prince William's took a week. On the other hand, Prince Harry's name was announced less than 24 hours after he was born
There are a few reasons why I think this announcement took longer than for Prince George or Princess Charlotte.
Firstly, two days after Prince Louis's birth, happened to be ANZAC day – an incredibly important day of memorial in Australia and New Zealand which commemorates the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (Anzacs) who fought and died at Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire on behalf of the Commonwealth during World War I. The Queen is the head of the Commonwealth and has strongly supported the union throughout her reign. Prince Charles gave a reading at the ANZAC day service in Villers-Bretonneux in France. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle laid a wreath on behalf of The Queen at the Cenotaph, and were joined by Prince William for a service of commemoration in Westminster Abbey.
With such an important memorial day for the Commonwealth, it was clear that the Palace didn't want to overshadow it with the release of the the new royal baby name.
Secondly, it is traditional for the Queen to visit the newborn herself before an official announcement, and Prince Charles himself was in France before he was able to visit his grandson.
