Prince William Young Photos: See The Prince of Wales Throughout The Years
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From birth, Prince William was set to be the future King of England. Following in the footsteps of his father, King Charles, and the monarchs before him, he has dedicated his life to public service while carving his own journey toward the throne.

Read on as we explore photos of Prince William young, from his baby photos and family holidays to fulfilling his royal duties.

Prince William (born William Arthur Philip Louis) was born in St. Mary’s Hospital in London, England, on June 21, 1982. He is the eldest son of King Charles III and the late Princess Diana. Prince William has a younger brother, Prince Harry, who was born on September 15, 1984. As a member of the British royal family, William is first in line to the throne.

When he was nine months old, William accompanied his parents on their 1983 tour of Australia and New Zealand. Princess Diana took a nurturing approach to raising Prince William and Prince Harry; she wanted them to have as normal an upbringing as possible despite their royal status. She often took the boys to homeless shelters, hospitals, and AIDS clinics to teach them about social issues and helping others.

After his parents divorced, William was very protective of his mother. “Both boys lived through what was going on on a daily basis,” said Andrew Morton, Diana’s biographer, in 2017. Charles and Princess Diana remained devoted parents until the Princess of Wales’ tragic death in 1997. After his mother’s passing, William spoke about the devastating loss of his mum. “Never being able to say the word ‘Mummy’ again in your life sounds like a small thing. However, for many, including me, it’s now really just a word — hollow and evoking only memories,” William wrote in the Daily Mail newspaper, according to CNN.

William attended the prestigious Eton College, where he studied geography, biology, and art history. Before starting university at St. Andrews in Scotland, he took a gap year to travel through Kenya, the Indian Ocean island of Rodrigues, and volunteer in Patagonia, South America. While at St. Andrews, he met his future wife, Kate Middleton. The pair were friends for a year before they started dating.

“I think you said I actually went bright red when I met you and sort of scuttled off. [I was] feeling very shy about meeting you,” Kate said to William years later in their engagement interview, according to People. On November 16, 2010, the couple announced their engagement to the world after eight years of dating (and a brief breakup in April 2007). William proposed while the pair vacationed in Kenya with friends a few weeks before the interview. “As every guy out there will know, it takes a certain amount of motivation to get yourself going. So I was planning it and then it just felt really right out in Africa. It was beautiful,” William recalled.

Prince William and Kate officially married in a royal ceremony in April 2011. Since then, they’ve welcomed three children: Prince George (age 10), Princess Charlotte (age 8), and Princess Louis (age 5). Following Queen Elizabeth’s death and Charles’ ascension to the throne, Prince William and Catherine Middleton now hold the titles of the Prince and Princess of Wales.