Kate Middleton, Prince William & Baby George News Update: Prince George Christening Today, Godparents Revealed
Today, Prince George made his first public appearance in three month for a special event in his life: the royal baby to be christened at St. James's Palace on October 23, 2013.
Arriving to the Chapel Royal with his parents Prince William and Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, the baby prince was dressed in an elaborate white lace-satin christening gown, which is a replica of traditional garment made in 1841 for the christening of Queen Victoria's eldest daughter.
The momentous occasion has been kept intimate and exclusive, inviting the select few to the ceremony. Baby George's great-grandparents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, grandfather Prince Charles, uncle Prince Henry, were among the guests, as well as Kate's parents Carole and Michael Middleton, her siblings, James and Pippa.
The Archibishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev. Justin Welby, who will mark the sign of the cross on the baby prince's head, greeted the arriving guests at the chapel. The silver font to be used for George's baptism has been used for every royal christening since 1841 and will be filled with water from the River Jordan. Welby also talks about the significance of the royal baby's christening.
"As a nation we are celebrating the birth of someone who in due course will be the head of state. That's extraordinary. It gives you this sense of forward looking, of the forwardness of history as well as the backwardness of history, and what a gift to have this new life and to look forward."
Prince George will have seven godparents, among then Prince William's cousin Zara Tindall, daughter of Princess Anne, and close friends of the his parents, including Oliver Baker, who got to know the couple at St. Andrew's University, Emilia Jardine-Paterson, who went to school with Kate, and William van Cutsem, William's childhood friend.
The other godparents are Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, a former private secretary to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Henry; Julia Samuel, who was a good friend of William's mother, Diana, Princess of Wales; and Earl Grosvenor, son of the Duke of Westminster.