Prince William used a rarely seen name as he made a personal donation last week.
According to the SportsGiving website, the Prince of Wales donated £5,000 to Dave "Dinger" Bell from Bere Regis in Dorset, who completed a solo, unsupported row across the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
The former Royal Marine spent 327 days at sea without setting foot on land, raising funds and awareness for Rock2Recovery, a charity supporting veterans and emergency service personnel affected by PTSD.
The Prince left a personal message under the name "William Wales", a nod to his title as Prince of Wales, which he was given following the late Queen Elizabeth II's death in 2022.
© Getty ImagesSigning his donation with his personal initial, William said: "An extraordinary achievement. Huge congratulations to Dinger for completing this incredible challenge in support of a brilliant cause. Well done! W."
Dave later shared a thank-you message on social media, with a video message saying: "Thank you for all the donations. I'm recovering well. I have a very, very special thank you to make to His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales, for a donation he made yesterday to Rock2Recovery. Thank you very much."
© SportsgivingPrincess Catherine shares her real name after making donation
The Prince's use of "William Wales" may indicate his preferred name in a personal capacity, and reflects the wishes of his wife, Princess Catherine.
In June, the Princess of Wales donated to the campaign of an 11-year-old boy she met while completing her Three Peaks mountain challenge.
© Getty ImagesTed, an 11-year-old wheelchair user, was raising money for Molly Olly's wishes, which helps make the wishes of children with serious illnesses come true.
The royal donated to Ted's campaign and, in a rare move, left a message signed under 'Catherine Wales'.
She wrote: "One of the real highlights of the Three Peaks Challenge was meeting inspiring people like you along the way. Huge congratulations to the entire team for raising money for such a wonderful cause. C".
The Princess climbed the UK's three highest mountains – Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in England and Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) in Wales – over 24 hours.
George, Charlotte, and Louis's real names at school
In addition, the couple's three children, Prince George, 13, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, eight, don't use their titles at school.
Instead, the royal children are known simply as George Wales, Charlotte Wales, and Louis Wales to their school friends.
© Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty ImagesWhen William and Catherine were known as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, their children used Cambridge as a last name at their previous schools.
This was also the case for Prince William and Prince Harry, who took on their father Charles's former title, Wales, as their surname when they were at school.
Harry's wife, Meghan, previously revealed that she and her family use the "Sussex" surname, correcting her friend Mindy Kaling, who had addressed her as "Meghan Markle" during her With Love, Meghan Netflix series.
