The Duchess of Cambridge has given birth to a boy. Kate and William’s third child was born at 11.01am at St Mary’s hospital, Paddington, central London. The baby weighed in at 8lb 7oz.
The birth was announced to the public by Kensington Palace with a tweet.
The arrival of the Cambridges’ third child was also marked with a traditional bulletin on show at Buckingham Palace. A proclamation for the public – on foolscap-sized paper set in a dark wooden frame – was placed on an ornate golden easel on the forecourt of the palace. The notice used to be handwritten, but is now typed.
The prime minister, Theresa May, offered her “warmest congratulations to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on the birth of their baby boy”.
Labour’s leader Jeremy Corbyn offered the couple “all the very best” as he tweeted “Congratulations to Kate and William on the birth of their baby boy”.
The new Prince of Cambridge is fifth in line to the throne, and is Queen Elizabeth II’s sixth great-grandchild.
Under previous rules of succession, a prince would have leapfrogged over his older sister, Princess Charlotte, in the line of succession. However, the Succession to the Crown Act 2013 removed the automatic bias towards male offspring, meaning royal children now inherit the throne in strict order of birth.
Supporters celebrated outside the hospital in central London. Some dedicated royal watchers, including Terry Hutt, in his 80s, had been camped outside the hospital awaiting the new arrival for over a week.
John Loughrey, from Streatham, south London, was part of a group who had camped outside the hospital. “We are so pleased,” he said. “We have been here for 15 days. I’m so pleased it’s St George’s Day. St George himself would be very pleased if the baby’s born today. It doesn’t matter if it’s a boy or a girl as long as it’s a healthy baby and a healthy mother.”
Loughrey said he planned to celebrate the birth with England flags and a portion of fish and chips.
Those at the hospital were also treated to the sight of an unofficial town crier announcing the birth. Self-proclaimed royalist town crier Tony Appleton is not an official part of the birth announcement, although he has made it a habit to turn up in costume at the hospital whenever the Duchess of Cambridge has given birth.
The royal couple are yet to announce a name for the baby. After opting for the traditional names George and Charlotte for their first two children, William and Kate are expected to keep it traditional.
Arthur – one of William’s father’s middle names – is the favourite name with bookmakers, then Albert, Frederick, James and Philip.
Before the birth was announced, one bookmaker flew a plane over the hospital, trailing a banner offering the latest odds on the new baby being declared a boy or girl.
In other stunts surrounding the arrival of the child, a waxwork model of Queen Elizabeth II was driven past the hospital in a black taxi, and political artist Kaya Mar arrived with a painting of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with their children posing in a biblical scene reminiscent of the nativity.
The crew of the HMS Albion celebrated by posing for a photograph with sailors and Royal Marines forming the word “Boy!” on the ship’s flight deck. The vessel was deployed to the Asia-Pacific region earlier this month.
Two senior royal doctors oversaw the birth – consultant obstetrician Guy Thorpe-Beeston and consultant gynaecologist Alan Farthing. Both were called in for the arrival of Prince George in 2013 and Princess Charlotte in 2015. The new arrival is slightly heavier than his siblings were at birth. Charlotte weighed 8lb 3oz, slightly less than George’s 8lb 6oz. All three babies were above the national UK average birth weight of about 7lb 7oz.
The Duchess of Cambridge’s younger sister, Pippa Middleton, recently announced she was expecting her first child later in the year.