Prince William
Prince William of Wales was born William Arthur Philip Louis Mountbatten-Windsor on June 21, 1982 in Paddington, West London. In keeping with the traditions of the Royal Family, William uses “Wales” as his surname. Growing up, William’s mother attempted to shield both he and his younger brother, Prince Harry, from the media. He did not make his first “official” public appearance until age nine, during a visit to Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff.
William attended Mrs. Jane Mynors' nursery school and pre-prep Wetherby School, both located in West London. He later attended the preparatory school Ludgrove in Berkshire. When he was nine years old, William suffered a depressed fracture to his skull, courtesy of a golf club-wielding classmate.
When he was 15 years old, William's mother, Princess Diana, Princess of Wales lost her life in a car accident in Paris, France. The car crashed in a tunnel while trying to avert the paparazzi. Just days before their mother’s death, William and his brother had spent a holiday with her in southern France.
After graduating from Eton College, William elected to take a year off from school. He spent his “gap year” training with the British Army in Belize. During the end of the year, William volunteered in southern Chile with Raleigh International. Photos of William performing normal chores such as cleaning and cooking were broadcast world-wide, and the media compared him to his late mother for carrying on the fresher, more down-to-earth image that she brought to the Royal Family.
After his gap year, William enrolled in University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland in 2001. He graduated from college in 2005 having pursued a degree in Arts History, later switching to Geography. With a Scottish Master of Arts degree with upper-second class honors, William holds the highest academic achievement of any heir to the British/Commonwealth Realm thrones.
July 2005's World War II commemorations in New Zealand marked William’s first official engagement representing Elizabeth II as Queen of New Zealand. In September 2005, it was announced that William would become president of The Football Association from May 2006. It was also announced that he would be starting his first patronage to UK charity Centrepoint, which works with homeless youth. William is also a patron of the UK-based African conservation charity Tusk Trust. He first became familiar with charitable work as a child when he would accompany his mother on her patronage visits.
In October 2005, William was employed in a land management work placement at Chatsworth House, a Peak District estate of the Duke of Devonshire. Next, he was placed with the HSBC Group in London.
In January 2006, William began cadets at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, in training to become an Army Officer. His younger brother Harry had previously joined up in 2005. William has expressed an interest in serving as an active soldier and eventually fighting on the frontlines.
As the oldest son of Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales and his first wife, the late Princess Diana, (Lady Diana Spencer), Prince William is the second in line to the British throne as well as the thrones of each of the other Commonwealth Realms, Austrailia and Canada being among them.
However, if his father predeceases William’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, William may become Prince of Wales and will automatically become Duke of Cornwall upon his father's accession or passing.
In 2004, William became romantically linked to his former university flat mate, Kate Middleton. It was widely expected that the two would announce their engagement in the spring of 2007 and then be married in the summer, but the bad news was released in April 2007 that the couple had decided to go their separate ways. Once agan, Prince William became one of the world's most eligable batchelors. |
