A PRINCE IS BORN
Charles’ early years saw many separations from his mother and father
The official birth announcement came just before midnight on 14 November, 1948. Celebration bonfires were lit around the UK and outside Buckingham Palace, crowds sang and partied into the small hours until they were asked to quieten their cheers to allow mother and baby to rest. A decade after the abdication crisis, it was felt the House of Windsor had been strengthened and the country was desperate for a baby name. On 15 December 1948, the archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, baptised the second in line to the throne as Charles Arthur Philip George.
His Royal Highness Prince Charles of Edinburgh, as he was officially known, spent his first Christmas with family at Sandringham. But 1949 would bring big changes for the little Prince. In July, Clarence House was finally ready for its new residents after an extensive refurbishment, so Charles left his grandparents’ home to move round the corner with his parents.
His parting from George VI and Elizabeth was not to last long though. Philip, who wanted a return to active service, had been
