Prince George will wear a replica of a 172-year-old gown for his christening day on October 23.
For 167 years, Britain’s royal babies wore a one-of-a-kind, custom-made, hand-me down Christening gown.
Ever since Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter, over 30 newborns including Prince William, Prince Charles and the Queen, have all worn the same Honiton lace and white satin gown to mark their entrance into the Church of England.
Prince George, however, will wear a new form of the family heirloom to celebrate this historic and religious rite of passage.
Following the baptism of Lady Louise Windsor in 2004, it was decided the ancient garment was too delicate to be used again. As a result, the Queen commissioned an exact replica of the 1841 christening gown to replace the original robe.
Prince George will wear a replica of a 172-year-old gown for his christening day on October 23
In keeping with tradition, Prince William and Kate Middleton are also expected to serve the first tier of the wedding cake at the ceremony for their son.
Usually just one official photo of the royal baby is released in keeping with the private nature of the royal christening. It is expected that a single photograph of George in his robe will be released after the event.
Designed by the Queen’s senior dresser Angela Kelly, and her creative team at Buckingham Palace, the replica retains the same features of the original, including the lengthy skirt and elaborate collar and bow.
Prince George will be christened on Wednesday, October 23, at the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace – just over three months after his birth.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, will perform the christening.
Prince George, who was born on July 22 at St Mary’s Hospital in London, is third in line to the throne.
While the royal baby is yet to be born, he or she is already influencing baby name choices on a wider scale as traditionally royal monikers see a rise in popularity.
A new survey reveals that 22% of expectant parents are taking inspiration from the excitement of the impending royal babies and are strongly considering naming their child after Royals from over the years, with Harry and Sophie topping the list as the two of the most popular names.
The study asked over 2,000 expectant parents-to-be whether or not they had planned a name with any kind of Royal connotation for their unborn child, to which just over a fifth of the parents taking part said they had.
These respondents were then asked to state what these Royal names were, revealing the top five most popular Royal names amongst expectant parents for their unborn children as Harry, William and Charles for boys and Sophie, Kate and Elizabeth for little girls.
Respondents were asked if they believe that the recent buzz surrounding the upcoming royal births sparked their desire to want a more traditional first or middle name for their child. Eighty two per cent agreed with this statement.
George Charles of VoucherCodesPro.co.uk, who carried out the research, said: “I must say, the result of this study really surprised us, especially with the recent trend of celebrities favoring more obscure names for their children such as Blue Ivy, Apple, Harper Seven, Suri and North.
“It seems that this celebrity obscurity doesn’t hold as much sway nowadays, and we Britons are looking to keep things traditional and follow in Royal footsteps!
“I don’t mean to sound like too much of a Katie Hopkins here, but the fact is that every parent wants their child to go on and do great things, and may feel that a strong regal name will help them achieve these things.
While the royal baby is yet to be born, he or she is already influencing baby name choices on a wider scale as traditionally royal monikers see a rise in popularity
“We certainly can’t wait to see what both impending royal babies will be named – and it will definitely be interesting to see if the chosen names make expectant parents change their minds.”
Another recent survey found a record numbers of newborn babies are expected to go unnamed this month as parents across the country wait to discover the name chosen by the royal couple.
Parents are given six weeks to register their baby’s name and that means thousands are expected to pause for thought until they hear the news from Clarence House.
Experts believe that thousands of couples are likely to find inspiration in the choice of Kate Middleton and Prince William and follow suit.
Netvouchercodes.co.uk found more than 10% of respondents in their survey of expectant mothers said they were hoping to postpone having to name their offspring until they heard the royal name.
“My baby is due before the royal baby, but I already know I definitely want it to have the same name,” one said.
“The birth of Will and Kate’s baby is such a monumental event that is going to be remembered forever, just like the royal wedding. Giving my baby the same name is my personal way of celebrating.”
Top 5 boys names:
Harry (22%)
William (16%)
Charlie/Charles (14%)
James (13%)
George (12%)
Top 5 girls names:
Sophie (24%)
Kate (20%)
Elizabeth (18%)
Sarah (16%)
Victoria (12%)
