IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Meet Prince George! Royal baby gets a name

The name of Britain’s newborn prince was revealed Wednesday.And his name is...George Alexander Louis!According to the statement, the baby will be known as His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge.Though Prince Charles and Princess Diana took a week to announce William's name, Will and Kate took just two days. Prince George was born Monday at St. Mary's hospital in London at 4:24 p.m. local
LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 23:  Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, depart The Lindo Wing with their newborn son at St ...
Prince William, Duchess Kate and Prince George.Oli Scarff / Today

The name of Britain’s newborn prince was revealed Wednesday.

And his name is...

George Alexander Louis!

According to the statement, the baby will be known as His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge.

Though Prince Charles and Princess Diana took a week to announce William's name, Will and Kate took just two days. Prince George was born Monday at St. Mary's hospital in London at 4:24 p.m. local time, 11:24 a.m. ET.

The name was announced in an email from Kensington Palace. Most of the royal family does not use a last name, though in 1917, King George V adopted the name surname Windsor for his family.

The prince isn't obliged to take any of these names as his title when he eventually becomes king.

George is the name of Queen Elizabeth's dad, subject of the 2010 film "The King's Speech." King George VI was known to his family as Bertie.

Before George's name was revealed Wednesday, James and George had been jostling for position as the bookmakers’ favorite, British betting firms Ladbrokes and Coral said. (Coral said the royal baby had been the biggest non-sporting event in the company’s history.)

Another favorite among bettors was Henry — Prince Harry’s real name. Harry, Oliver and Jack are the most popular names for baby boys in England, according to the most recent records, followed by Alfie, Charlie, Thomas, Jacob, James, Joshua and Williams.

Some U.K. media reports speculated on Francis — the masculine form of Princess Diana’s middle name.

Prince Charles, who is next in line to the throne after the queen, was christened Charles Philip Arthur George, while William is named William Arthur Philip Louis.

Earlier Wednesday, the third-in-line to the U.K. throne was visited by the current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who spent 30 minutes with her new great-grandson. Prince Harry visited with the couple and his new nephew, according to a Kensington Palace spokesman, traveling to London from where he's stationed in Eastern England.

The young prince was introduced to the world by proud parents Prince William and Duchess Kate moments after 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The new family departed Kensington Palace by car at 8 a.m. ET Wednesday and headed to the Middleton home in Bucklebury.

Tuesday was the first in a lifetime of photo ops for the baby, taking place only 25 hours after his birth. But despite a screaming crowd of well-wishers and thousands of flashing cameras, he seemed oblivious to his global audience and even managed a tiny royal wave.

"He's got a good pair of lungs on him, that's for sure," William told the screaming crowd as he and Kate beamed. "He's a big boy. He's quite heavy."

"He's got her looks, thankfully," Will joked, winking and tipping his head towards his wife, who wore a polka dot dress by British designer Jenny Packham for the occasion. The outfit echoed Princess Diana, who wore a green polka-dot dress when William made his first appearance outside the same hospital in 1982.

After their comments outside St. Mary's hospital, Will and Kate took the prince back through the hospital doors then emerged again with the baby safely in his car seat. William swiftly installed the car seat into the back seat of his Range Rover before driving his new family home to Kensington Palace.

For William, who has pledged to give his son as normal an upbringing as possible, it was the first journey along a road fraught with danger.

He will get to know Britain’s future king, taking advantage of Britain’s statutory two-week paternity leave, before returning to his full-time job as a search-and-rescue helicopter pilot.

Although Kensington Palace provides every amenity a new mother could need, it is expected Duchess Kate will ensure the baby spends time in the village of Bucklebury, Berkshire — the home of her own parents, Carole and Michael Middleton.

The world celebrates the royal baby birth

Slideshow  26 photos

The world celebrates the royal baby birth

From restaurant decorations to dancing in the streets, check out how the world is celebrating the U.K.’s new royal heir.


Toddlers in tiaras: Royals and their babies

Slideshow  20 photos

Toddlers in tiaras: Royals and their babies

Kate and Will brought their first child into the world on July 22, but they aren't the first royals to welcome a bundle of (titled) joy. Click through to check out other mini-majesties and their proud parents.


TODAY's Eun Kyung Kim contributed to this report.