Prince George will be christened during a ceremony that will be both a private family occasion and a historic event. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s baby will be welcomed into the Christian faith surrounded by his immediate family and the close friends of his parents.
But as a future King, his baptism in the little known Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace this afternoon will be performed by the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby.
The guest list has not been released but Kensington Palace has said that “close members of both families” will attend.
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are expected to be at the christening along with the Prince of Wales, who has become a grandfather for the first time, the Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry.
There has been speculation about who the Cambridges might choose to be their son’s godparents
Kate’s family – parents Carole and Michael Middleton and siblings Pippa and James – are likely to be invited, along with the godparents who have not been publicly named.
There has been speculation about who the Cambridges might choose to be their son’s godparents.
Close friends Hugh van Cutsem and Thomas van Straubenzee are thought to be in the running along with Old Etonian James Meade.
In past decades, senior royal babies – the Queen, Charles and William – have been christened at Buckingham Palace.
But the Cambridges have chosen the Chapel Royal, where the coffin of the Duke’s mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, lay before her funeral.
Princess Beatrice was the last well-known royal baby to be christened at St James’s Palace, in December 1988.
Following the ceremony a historic photograph will be released showing the Queen with three future monarchs – Charles, William and George. It will echo the picture taken in July 1894 during the christening of the future Edward VIII, showing the royal baby with his father, later George V, grandfather, the future Edward VII, and great grandmother, Queen Victoria.
George will be christened in a replica of the intricate lace and satin christening gown made for Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter, Victoria, the Princess Royal, in 1841.
The Earl and Countess of Wessex’s son, Viscount Severn, became the first royal baby to wear the new robe at his christening in 2008.