Fun facts about royal christenings over the years

While christenings are fairly common for most families - even those who might not consider themselves religious - for the royal family, they are quite the big deal.

That's what happens when you have a direct connection to the founder of the Church of England, one expects. 

Fans have got used to some seriously iconic moments from royal weddings over the years, but christenings are just as steeped in centuries of tradition and symbolism. Find out more about the history and hidden details of royal christenings. 

Fun facts about royal christenings over the years

Every member of the royal family is christened under the Church of England

When it comes to getting christened, it's not really up for debate when it comes to the royal family. As monarchs, they are considered the Head of the Church of England (or Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England, to give it its full title).

It's been this way since 1534 when Henry VIII pushed through the Act of Supremacy. 

The Act made him, and all of his heirs, Supreme Head of the Church of England.

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Every royal needs to be christened... no matter their age

Meghan Markle was christened into the Church of England faith ahead of her wedding to Prince Harry in 2018 when she was 37.

Meghan was brought up as an Episcopalian - which has some similarities to the Church of England - but went to a Catholic high school in Los Angeles. 

It's not known if she was obliged to enter the Church of England or if she did it as a mark of respect. There technically isn't any requirement anymore. From 1701 until 2013, a royal could marry a Catholic, but would then lose their place in the succession to the throne. But since 2013, marriage to a Catholic no longer affects it.

The same gown was worn for nearly 200 years

When one thinks of the royal family and their fabulous tiara moments and enviable style moments, one wouldn't expect that they all used the same hand-me-down for literal centuries. But that's exactly what they did, with no less than 62 royal babies wearing the same Christening gown, dating all the way back to Queen Victoria's first child in the 1800s. 

A replacement christening gown was made in 2008

After 62 babies (and, oh, nearly a couple of... centuries), Queen Elizabeth II decided enough was enough. The original christening gown that had been passed down the family since the 1800s was becoming increasingly at risk of permanent damage, so Her Majesty decided to painstakingly create a new replica. 

The Queen turned to her reliable dresser, Angela Kelly, and her team to lovingly reconstruct a new gown that would be worn by all future royal babies. 

There’s been one thing present at every christening since 1840

While the original christening gown managed to last 62 babies, there's something which has outlasted it - the Lily Font. 

A gilded silver font, it weighs 21 pounds and was commissioned by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert ahead of the birth of their first baby back in 1840. 

The bowl is designed to appear like a large, open lily and the font is decorated with more lilies - the flower seemingly chosen to represent purity. 

Not just any holy water will do

Of course the royals don't just use any old water the church has lying around - no matter how many blessings might be splashed around. 

Royal babies are usually christened with water brought from the River Jordan, long believed to be where Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist. 

The water isn’t the only historic touch

The royals rely on some truly special water from the River Jordan, so it's no surprise that it goes into something equally as special. 

The water is traditionally poured from a silver ewer made for the christening of the future King George III in 1735.

King Charles stocked up for many christenings to come

In 2021, the then Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla went on a tour of Jordan.

During the visit, His Majesty made sure to plan, collecting bottles of the sacred holy water to stock up for all the royal christenings to come in the future. 

Rustom Mkhjian, director general of the baptism site, told The Mirror at the time, "...we provided them with five dozen, six dozen [bottles]." 

The queen's dressmaker used tea to create the royal christening gown

Along with Barbara Buckfield, Queen Elizabeth's trusted dresser Angela Kelly revealed just how she managed to recreate a true artefact of history when she was commissioned to make a new Christening gown in 2004.

In her book, The Other Side of the Coin: The Queen, The Dresser and the Wardrobe, Angela revealed how the task required her to travel to Italy to find the perfect lace material - and the unconventional methods used to get it perfect. 

She wrote, "Together, we sourced lace to complement that being made in Italy, and to make sure it looks authentic we dyed it in Yorkshire tea... We placed each piece of lace in a small bowl, from the Dressers' kitchen, filled with cool water and a tea bag, and left it for about five minutes, checking regularly until the colour was perfect."

All the christening artefacts are heavily guarded

The Tower of London is famously considered to be the nation's most secure castle, which is why it houses the ludicrously valuable Crown Jewels. 

But as it turns out, there's even more than the Imperial State Crown and the rest of the jewels. 

It's understood that, when not needed, the Christening regalia including the Lily Font, are stored at the Tower. 

The most senior representative of the church usually conducts

Except for the Monarch, the Archbishop of Canterbury is understood to be the most senior post held in the Church of England. And, as such, it's expected that the Archbishop would oversee the royal christenings. 

Fans will remember the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, for overseeing the likes of the Queen’s funeral and the coronation, and he has recently performed the christenings for George, Charlotte, Louis and Archie.   

The original christening gown had a touching nod to history

The hand-me-down christening gown became an artefact of history after being worn by so many different generations of royals, going back to Queen Victoria. 

But as well as sharing history with the generations who came before, the special gown had other elements of history woven into it. 

The original christening outfit was reportedly made by Janet Sutherland using the same fabrics which Queen Victoria had incorporated into her wedding dress the year before - reusing the same Spitalfields silk and Honiton lace.

The Queen’s Christening location was destroyed

While many of the locations picked for royal christenings can be open to the public - including the Chapel Royal at St James' Palace, where Prince Louis was christened - fans cannot visit the site of Queen Elizabeth's christening. 

This is because Buckingham Palace's private chapel was destroyed by a German bombing raid in 1940.

Charles’s name wasn't known until his christening

If you thought the current generation of royals are guilty of pulling some dramatic moves, the entire world didn't even know what the future King Charles's name was until his christening - which took place nearly one whole month after being born. 

It wasn't until the monarch's christening in December 1948 that it was revealed the firstborn child of the then Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip was called Charles Philip Arthur George. 

Prince William’s christening was missing something

Like his father before him, Prince William’s christening took place in the music room of Buckingham Palace.

William was christened on August 4, 1982, and it was a celebratory affair that cemented the future of the monarchy, what with Charles baptising his heir. 

However, despite William's prominent role as a future King, he was given a rather stark reminder that, sometimes, titles mean nothing. A popular story widely reported has it that Prince William had to be christened with regular tap water, as the River Jordan supply had run out! 

Sophie and Edward's children bookended history

Edward and Sophie, the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall, hold the rare honour of having their children be pivotal in two chapters of royal history. 

Lady Louise Windsor, their firstborn, was the very last royal child to be christened wearing the original gown that had been passed down the family since the 1800s. She was christened on April 24, 2004. 

James, Viscount Severn, their youngest child, was then the first child to wear the newly-created replica when he was christened on April 19, 2008.

A photographer helped avoid a disaster on William’s christening

The royals really are just like any other family - big events can nearly lead to fall-outs and accidental slights. 

During Prince William's christening, they nearly overlooked his great-grandmother, the Queen Mother. 

The photographer, Kent Gavin recounted the story to PureWow years later saying, "I went across to the queen and said, "Excuse me, ma’am, there is a very historical picture missing from the lineup - Queen mom holding Prince William... She looked at me and said 'Goodness me. Goodness me. How have we missed that? Mother, Mother.'"

Kent then shares that Diana came over and handed a crying William to his great-grandmother. 

There was something unusual about Eugenie’s christening

Royal christenings are usually private and surprisingly intimate affairs, but Princess Eugenie’s was held during a regular Sunday service at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, where the family traditionally congregate for their annual Christmas walkabout. 

Eugenie was also older than royal children usually are, being christened at around nine months old. This was reportedly down to Prince Andrew being busy with his work with the navy at the time. 

Kate and William served up a slice of history for Prince George's christening

Rather than a formal lunch at Buckingham Palace, William and Catherine wanted a more intimate afternoon tea at Clarence House, where they served slices of their wedding cake to their immediate family. 

While this might seem odd - considering their wedding had taken place two years before - serving a layer of the wedding cake at the christening is an old tradition thought to bring luck. 

Their wedding fruitcake was still edible after a couple of years due to the alcohol that it contained, which helped preserve the cake.

The late Queen wasn't christened by the Archbishop of Canterbury

It's expected for the Archbishop of Canterbury to oversee most of the christenings of the senior royals, but that wasn't the case with arguably one of the most distinct royals of all time. 

Queen Elizabeth II - who became the longest-reigning British monarch of all time - was christened by the Archbishop of York when she was a young Princess Elizabeth in 1926. 

Harry’s christening coincided with another major royal tradition

Prince Harry was christened Henry Charles Albert David on 21 December 1984. 

His christening marked the first time one was included in the Queen’s annual Christmas message that same year. A video clip of Harry's christening was included in her Christmas Broadcast.

Harry was christened at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, where he would eventually marry Meghan Markle in 2018.

George’s christening made history

When Prince George was christened on October 23, 2013, many might not have realised the importance of it.

The official photos brought together four generations in the same image – the first time this had taken place since 1894 when 80-year-old Queen Victoria posed with three of her heirs. 

The special photo, featuring Queen Elizabeth, King Charles, Prince William and Prince George would feature in the Queen’s Christmas broadcast that year. 

William and Kate embraced modernity with George’s christening

Prince William and Kate Middleton were allowed to have a bit more flexibility when it came to George's christening in 2013 - not only choosing a more intimate location in the Chapel Royal, but also in their choice of godparent.  

Willliam and Kate chose one relative, his cousin Zara Phillips, three personal friends of theirs from childhood or university, a trusted aide, and two family friends with connections to Princess Diana.

This was unprecedented for the godparents of a future monarch, as they typically bestow the honour on other royals from foreign countries, and aristocrats. 

Prince William's godparents, for example, include King Constantine II of Greece, Princess Alexandra of Kent, the Duchess of Westminster, Lord Romsey, Lady Susan Hussey and Sir Laurens van der Post.

Harry and Meghan broke with convention for Archie's christening

While the names of a royal child's godparents are usually revealed to the public, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle opted to break tradition (as is their custom) and not formally announce the names of their choices for their firstborn, Prince Archie. 

Archie was christened in the private chapel at Windsor Castle on July 6, 2019.

Attendees included Prince William, Kate Middleton, King Charles, Queen Camilla, Meghan's mother Doria Ragland and Princess Diana's sisters.

Lilibet’s christening was unique for many reasons

Princess Lilibet's christening was unique for several reasons. Due to the breakdown in the relationship between Harry and his family, the couple had already relocated to California by the time Lilibet was officially christened Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor on March 3, 2023. 

This marks the first time a British royal was christened outside of the United Kingdom, and she didn't wear the original or the replica christening gown worn by every royal infant since the time of Queen Victoria. 

Prince George's christening broke the mould

Prince George was the first future monarch for several generations not to be baptised at Buckingham Palace. 

Prince William and Kate Middleton had instead decided on the more intimate Chapel Royal at St James's Palace. 

Prince Harry’s christening might have caused some family feuding

If you thought feuding royals was reserved for the likes of Prince William and Prince Harry, think again. 

Long before the likes of Spare rocked the world, it was believed Prince Charles and Princess Anne got into a bit of a tense row over Prince Harry's christening. 

After the Princess Royal wasn't picked to be the godmother of either of her brother's children, she did not attend the ceremony for Harry's christening at all. (She had made Charles the godparent to her son, Peter Phillips).

Robert Lacey wrote of the seeming feud in his book, Battle of Brothers, "The Prince did not return the compliment when it came to William - or, rather, according to rumour, he had very much wanted to invite his sister, only to be blocked by his wife.

"Anne made her feelings obvious on the day. As the three-month-old Prince Henry Charles Albert David, third in line to the British throne, was being baptised as Windsor in the presence of the Queen, the Queen Mother, Philip and the rest of the Royal Family, there were two conspicuous absentees."

George got one of the most unusual gifts

Per The Telegraph, Prince George got one of the most unexpected gifts from an unusual source - the Count of Transylvania. 

The Count gifted the young prince his own field of wildflowers in the Transylvanian hills. Just what every young infant needs.

The cake that kept on going - Charlotte's christening

If keeping their wedding cake preserved for two years to serve at Prince George's 2013 christening wasn't already impressive and surprising enough, the Wales' managed to make that cake last and served it at Princess Charlotte's christening on July 5, 2015. 

Another intimate affair, wrapped up with an afternoon tea at Sandringham House, the godparents included Sophie Carter, James Meade, Adam Middleton. The Hon. Laura Fellowes, and Thomas van Straubenzee.

Charlotte got a tremendous gift worth over £100k

Princess Charlotte reportedly received a tremendous, and unique, gift - a one-off painting worth £130,000. 

The painting of Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was given to the young princess by "someone very close to the family", per a Vanity Fair report at the time.

Said to be painted on a seven-foot-wide canvas featuring a colourful oil painting of the original movie poster of the 1937 film, Stephen Cawston was the maestro behind the gift.

Prince Harry's gift to Louis connected three generations

Prince Louis, the youngest child of Prince William and Kate Middleton, was christened on July 9, 2018. 

For his young nephew's gift, Prince Harry reportedly bought him a first edition of AA Milne's Winnie The Pooh, spending around £8,000 on the book. 

The gift has many layers of sentimentality. Not only was it inspired by Harry's childhood memories, per a source in The Sun, it was suggested that Princess Diana used to collect first editions of classic books as valuable and cherished gifts. 

Prince George’s christening had a sweet nod to Diana

It's not surprising that the first child of Prince William and Kate Middleton would be significant - emotionally and historically. His birth marked a whole new chapter for the royals, but there was no doubt the lingering sense of the past - and people who couldn't be present, including Princess Diana. 

Fittingly, the now Prince and Princess of Wales chose the hymns Breathe on Me, Breath of God and Be Thou My Vision for George's ceremony. The latter was sung at the memorial service for the 10th anniversary of Diana's death.