It's been thirteen whole years since the Prince and Princess of Wales (then the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge) introduced their first child, Prince George, to the world on the steps of the Lindo Wing.
Two days after the royal baby was born on 22 July 2013, William and Kate revealed their firstborn's name to be George Alexander Louis. But did you know that the Princess had a different name in mind for her eldest son?
In his book, William and Catherine, The Monarchy's New Era: The Inside Story, The Daily Mirror's Royal Editor, Russell Myers explained that while expecting her first child, of whom they did not find out the sex prior to the birth, Kate "spent hours" researching names for their first baby.
According to the book, Kate was keen on Alexander or Alexandra, while William wanted to include a tribute to his late mother, Princess Diana, if they had a girl.
"Catherine had her heart set on Alexander for a boy or Alexandra (also Queen Elizabeth's middle name) for a girl. William had privately voiced his preference for having a girl, and was keen to incorporate a tribute to his late mother, most likely in the form of a middle name," Russell wrote.
© Getty ImagesAdding: "The couple had been given a book of baby names by a close friend, which they spent hours thumbing through - they often ended up in fits of laughter after one or the other had presented a more left-field suggestion."
According to the excerpt, while Kate would run potential names past her fellow mum friends, William would surprise his press team by suggesting unexpected names, and would begin meetings by asking, "What do you think about Rodney for a boy, or maybe Graham?" and pause for a response before erupting in laughter.
© Samir Hussein/WireImageAccording to etymology, while Alexander is a classic name, it is also derived from the Greek word Alexandros, which means "defending men". Therefore, it has always been categorised as a very strong and masculine name.
Eventually, according to Russell, the couple settled on George as their preferred boy's name.
Steeped with meaning
Despite not being the first choice, Alexander did make it into George's name as his middle name. Meanwhile, Louis is also one of George's middle names, giving him a sweet link to his little brother and is also one of William's middle names.
© UK Press via Getty Images, Antony Jones/Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty ImagesMeanwhile, the future King and Queen honoured William's late mother, Princess Diana, by making Diana one of Princess Charlotte's middle names, also honouring his grandmother, including Elizabeth as another.
George becomes a teenager
To celebrate Prince George's 13th birthday on Wednesday, the Prince and Princess released a new portrait of their son, which was taken by photographer Matt Porteous at Kensington Palace after he returned from last month's Trooping the Colour.
The image showed a relaxed George standing with his hands in his pockets and wearing an open-necked white shirt and dark suit.
© Matt Porteous / Kensington PalaceThe Waleses also shared footage of George playing cricket on the beach and clambering over rocks during a private holiday in Cornwall during the family's Easter break.
Future king George is heading to a new school in September, following in his father's footsteps by attending the prestigious Eton College, close to his Windsor home.
He was last seen publicly when he and his 11-year-old sister Princess Charlotte joined William and Kate in the royal box at Wimbledon.
