Royal Profile:The Prince Charles Philip Arthur George of Wales

Charles Philip Arthur George Mountbatten-Windsor (aka The Prince Charles of Wales) was born on 14 November 1948 weighing 7 lbs 6oz, he was the eldest son and heir apparent to The Princess Elizabeth, The Duchess of Edinburgh and Philip, The Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace{Source}.

His godparents were:
  • King George V (his maternal grandfather)
  • King Haakon VIII (his distant cousin)
  • Queen Mary (his maternal great grandmother)
  • The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon (his maternal aunt)
  • Prince George of Greece (his paternal granduncle)
  • Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine (his paternal great-grandmother)
  • Patricia Edwina Victoria Knatchbull, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma (his paternal cousin)
  • The Hon. David Bowes-Lyon (his maternal granduncle)
When he was just three years old, he became heir-apparent to the throne at his mother's ascendance to the throne in 1952{Source}.

He was 4 years old on his mother's 2 June 1953 Cpronation at Westminister Abbey. Many who watched the Coronation have vivid memories of him seated between his widowed grandmother, now to be known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and his aunt, Princess Margaret. {Source}.

Unlike his mother's upbringing of an education at Buckingham Palace, the young Prince's parents decided to educate him at top private schools in London{Source}. He began his education at the prestigious Hill House school in West London, shortly before his eighth birthday {Source}. After just one school year (10 months to be exact), he became a boarder at the prestigious Cheam School. Like his father previously, Prince Charles attended Gordonstoun School beginning when he was 13 years old{Source}. In 1966, he attended two terms as an exchange student at Timbertop, a remote outpost of the Geelong Church of England Grammar School in Melbourne, Australia{Source}.. After two terms in Australia, he returned for a final year at Gordonstoun School, where he was appointed School Guardian (Head Boy){Source}.. Having passed six O Levels, the Prince took a Levels in 1967, where he received a B in History, C in French and a disticition in an optional special history paper. After graduting from Gordonstoun, he attended the University of Cambridge, where he studied archaeology and anthropology at Trinity College, changing to history for the latter half of his degree, and was awarded a 2:2 degree in 1970{Source}..

When he was just 9 years old, his mother created him The Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester{Source}. He was invested as Prince of Wales by The Queen on 1st July 1969 in a colorful ceremony at Caernarfon Castle{Source}. Before the investiture The Prince had spent a term at the University College of Wales at Aberystwyth, learning to speak Welsh.{Source}


In February 1970, he took his seat in the House of Lords. A year later, the Prince began a brief military career. He flew himself to Royal Air Force (RAF) Cranwell in Lincolnshire, to train as a jet pilot. At his own request, The Prince had received flying instruction from the RAF during his second year at Cambridge. In September 1971 after the passing out parade at Cranwell, The Prince embarked on a naval career, following in the footsteps of his father, grandfather and both his great-grandfathers. The six-week course at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, was followed by service on the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk and two frigates. He qualified as helicopter pilot in 1974 before joining 845 Naval Air Squadron, which operated from the Commando carrier HMS Hermes. On 9th February 1976, The Prince took command of the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington for his last nine months in the Navy.

On 29th July 1981, The Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in St Paul's Cathedral{Source}. The Spencer family had a long standing connection with the British Royal Family-Lady Diana's father had been a equerry to Queen Elizabeth's parents and Lady Diana's maternal grandmother was a close friend and lady-in-waiting to Prince Charles's grandmother{Source}. The Prince's marriage produced two sons, in addition to a daughter-in-law, a grandson and a grandbaby on the way{Source}:

  1. Prince William Arthur Philip Louis, Duke of Cambridge
    1. Catherine, The Duchess of Cambridge
    2. Prince George of Cambridge
  2. Prince Henry Charles Albert David of Wales

During their marriage, the Prince and Princess of Wales carried out numerous overseas tours and engagements throughout the United Kingdom. In December 1992, it was announced that the Prince and Princess of Wales agreed to separate. The marriage was official dissolved in August 1996. Even with the end of the marriage, the Princess remained a member of the British Royal Family as mother of the heir apparent's heir. She continued to reside at Kensington Palace and carry out work for numerous charities. Upon her death in August 1997, the Prince flew to Paris with his two former sister-in-laws to accompany her body back to England. On the day of her funeral, he accompanied their two sons, who were age 15 and 12 at the time behind the coffin from The Mall to Westminster Abbey, along with the Princess's former father-in-law and her younger brother.

In April 2005, Prince Charles chose to make another change in his familial life. He married Camilla Parker-Bowels at the Guildhall, Windsor. After the ceremony, Camilla became known as The Duchess of Cornwall, which is one of the titles that Prince Charles holds as heir apparent{Source}. She chose this title out of respect for her stepsons and the association the title Princess of Wales had with their mother. From his second marriage, he gained a stepson and stepdaughter, who were later joined by their own spouses and children:
  1. Tom Parker-Bowels
    1. Sara Parker-Bowles
      1. Lola Parker-Bowles (2007)
      2. Freddy Parker-Bowles (2010)
  2. Laura Lopes
    1. Harry Lopes
      1. Eliza Lopes (2008)
      2. Gus Lopes (2009)
      3. Louis Lopes (2009)
Prince Charles is very active in charity work. He has developed an organization titled The Prince's Charities, which he is patron and President of. The charity reflects his long term and innovated perspectives, and seeks to address areas that have previous unmet needs. The Prince's primary interests are in feilds such as the built of the environment, global sustainability, youth opportunity, education and faith.

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