The birth of a royal baby has long been a cause for celebration, the child welcomed with great excitement by a waiting world.
If you’re a keen royal baby watcher, we’re sharing a few facts about royal births to bandy about.
Centuries old custom used to dictate that the Home Secretary was always present at a royal birth to ensure the baby wasn’t swapped with one not of royal descent. This tradition ended much ahead of the birth of Prince Charles in 1948.
The Queen gets the first call that there’s a new royal baby in town. News of Britain’s newest royal family member is posted first on an easel outside Buckingham Palace. Signed by key medical staff, this is the world’s first chance to find out if it is a boy or a girl.
Just like his older siblings, the baby has been born with an impressively long title, His Royal Highness Prince (Name) of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. This is the baby’s official title — but he will have others.
The members of the royal family have no surname. Instead, they have their respective titles, first name, and typically numerous middle names usually paying tribute to previous monarchs or relatives. Princess Charlotte’s full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana. When a last name is required on documentation they typically use one of their family titles. Prince George is simply known as George Cambridge.
The new royal baby is fifth in line to the throne, behind Prince Charles, Prince William, Prince George, and Princess Charlotte. Princess Charlotte has created history, thanks to the Succession to the Crown Act put in place in 2013. She became the first female royal to retain her claim to the throne.
Princess Diana started a new birthing tradition. Both Prince William and Harry were born at St. Mary’s Hospital in the private Lindo Wing. Kate Middleton gave birth to Prince George, Princess Charlotte and the new prince here itself.
Royal births are usually celebrated with a 41-gun salute by the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery. At the Tower of London, 62 rounds are fired.
You might be surprised to know that Wills and Kate’s new son is technically a COMMONER. This is because the only people who aren’t are the Sovereign, peers of the realm, and those with titles such as Duke, Marquess, Earl, Viscount, and Baron.
Prince Phillip wasn’t around during Charles’s birth — he is said to have been having a game of squash while the Queen was in labour. The day after Prince Harry was born in 1984, Prince Charles took part in one of his favourite pastimes, a game of polo. Diana said: “If men had babies they would only have one each.”
When Prince Charles was born the Trafalgar Square fountains were given a vibrant update with blue colouring — for a boy.
Diana’s first born, Prince William, was the first royal baby to wear disposable nappies. Nappy newsflash!
Welcome to ‘Nutty’s Infotainment. YAYS!’
And your time starts NOW.
If he was born 12 years earlier, his family name would have been Schicklgruber. His father, Alois Schicklgruber, changed his name in 1877. This changed family name is arguably the most infamous in human history. Identify this person?
Adolf Hitler.
Name the celebrated Iraqi-British architect who designed Al Wakrah stadium, one of the venues for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Zaha Hadid.
The city Bandar Seri Begawan is the administrative capital of which country?
Sultanate of Brunei, a tiny nation on the island of Borneo. Bandar, as it is known, does boast the biggest water village in the world. Kampong Ayer, as it is called, has over 4,000 houses, schools, police stations, clinics, markets and mosques constructed on stilts.
In Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories, how many times does Sherlock Holmes utter the phrase, “Elementary, my dear Watson”?
Never. Although he does say both “elementary” and “dear Watson” separately, the fictional detective never utters the line as a whole.
Also known as dermal ridge, its technical term is ‘dactylogram’. Its primary function is to provide friction and traction. What are we talking about?
Fingerprint.
What is the dialling code or country code for Russia?
007.
In 1810, Peter Durand, a British merchant, received the first patent for the idea of preserving food using tin cans. For long, people who wanted to eat canned food had to use a hammer and chisel. When was can opener invented?
1858.
Which international organisation has won the Nobel Peace Prize the most often?
International Red Cross.
What is Pogonophobia?
Fear of beards and facial hair.
Identify the national flag below that contains flags of six other countries.
(Answer next week. Last week’s answer to photoquiz: George & Barbara Bush)
What’s the Good Word?
1. Camisado: (a) attack at night (b) odor (c) obtuse (d) representative
2. Bereavement: (a) connection (b) abrupt (c) grief (d) eerie
3. Defervescence: (a) shrewd (b) furniture (c) required (d) abatement of a fever
4. Nascent: (a) mollitious (b) lively (c) beginning (d) paucity
5. Invigilate: (a) supervise (b) embarrass (c) ponder (d) commend
6. Complacency: (a) unrelenting (b) humility (c) failure (d) self-satisfaction
7. Bird Dog: (a) pursue (b) disturb (c) requital (d) homely
8. Otalgia: (a) marshy (b) earache (c) boorish (d) beyond
9. Rabble: (a) recede (b) left-over (c) powerful (d) mob
10. Meander: (a) ramble (b) windowless (c) retrieve (d) straighten
Answers: 1 (a); 2 (c); 3 (d); 4 (c); 5 (a); 6 (d); 7 (a); 8 (b); 9 (d); 10 (a)