Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, enters hospital in early stages of labor

LONDON — Prince George and Princess Charlotte will soon have a baby sister or brother. On Monday morning, London time, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, 36, went into the early stages of labor and was taken to the Lindo Wing of St Mary’s hospital, the same place where she had her other two children, according to Kensington Palace. Her husband, Prince William, 35, was by her side.

Despite being overshadowed by that other upcoming royal event, the clamor surrounding the birth of the royal baby has ratcheted up in recent weeks. 

This is in large part due to parking authorities. 

Kensington Palace said that the baby was due in April, but they never dished on the exact due date. But earlier this month, yellow signs appeared outside of the Lindo Wing announcing parking restrictions from April 9-30 because of an “event.” As students of royal baby births know, this was code for the Royal. Baby. Watch. Is. On. 

A clutch of die-hard royal fans quickly changed into Union Jack-themed attire and made a beeline for St Mary’s hospital, a short drive from Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s home at Kensington Palace. For days now they have slept on benches and in tents outside of the hospital, opined on baby names with journalists, and stared at the door to the private maternity unit where Kate will give birth. 

“If it’s a boy, they could call it Philip Michael. Philip after the duke and Michael after Catherine’s father,” mused John Loughrey, 63. “If it’s a girl, would be nice if they called it Elizabeth, after the queen, or Victoria or Mary,” he said. 

The former chef, along with a handful of other hard core royal fans, has been sleeping in a red tent outside of the Lindo Wing since April 9. He also said that the staff at the hospital have been generous, offering them showers, coffee and food. 

To be sure, the royal baby fever never really rose to the soaring temperatures reached when Kate, as the duchess is also known, gave birth to her first child. Yes, the British satirical magazine Private Eye memorably published “Woman Has Baby” on its front cover in response to the birth of George, but their delightfully ironic response was to be expected.

In 2013, the nation was gripped by the news of the birth of George, which saw journalists from around the world camped outside of the hospital for the “Great Kate Wait.” The day of the birth was greeted by prime time specials and wall-to-wall media coverage. And that was just in the United States. 

But a royal baby is still a royal baby, even if it’s the third one. Attention will soon shift to the name of Baby Cambridge, which may not be announced immediately. George was two days old when the world learned of his name. 

Luckily, British bookies, which will take bets on nearly anything, are here to help fill that void. If the baby is a girl, then Alice, Mary and Victoria are the hot favorites. If a boy, then Arthur, Albert and Jack are top picks. And to be fair to the bookies, George and Charlotte were two of their top picks for the other Cambridge children. 

“Alice is trendy at the moment for middle and upper class — it’s not completely boring like Elizabeth or Mary and the other sort of names well known for royals,” said Rupert Adams, a spokesman for the bookmaker William Hill. He said that for Prince George, they took in about 1 million pounds in bets; for Charlotte, it was about 800,000 pounds. 

“We’d be chuffed if we got 600,000 this time,” he said. “It is the third child.” 

Last year, William quit his job as an air ambulance pilot and he and Kate packed up the family from their residence in Norfolk and moved to Kensington Palace, in central London. George started school last year in Battersea, south London, and earlier this year Charlotte started at a nursery near the palace.

The newest edition to the Cambridge family will be fifth in line to the throne — after Prince Charles, William, George and Charlotte. The new succession laws, which came into effect in 2015, mean that the new baby will not overtake Charlotte in the line of succession, even if it’s a boy. 

Prince Harry, alas, will be bumped down a notch to sixth in line. But we have a hunch he won’t be out of the media spotlight for too long.

Within seconds of hearing that Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, had been admitted to hospital, Twitter erupted in celebration. The hashtag #RoyalBaby began trending in Britain. Others used the hashtag #GreatKateWait3 to share their excitement and speculate as to whether William and Kate’s third child would be a boy or a girl.

The third baby’s gender wasn’t the only thing being debated on social media Monday morning. Many wondered how much the Royal Baby would weigh, what time he or she would arrive and what the all important name would be.

“My guess — Boy called Arthur or Jack,” wrote one user. “Prince George weighed 8lb 6oz and a Princess Charlotte 8lb 3oz so I would like to alter my #royalbaby weight prediction to 8lbs,” tweeted another.

Others were a little less traditional in their views and opinions. “I’m telling you, it’s going to be called Thor or She-Ra #royalbaby #YouHeardItHereFirst.”

As Royal Baby fever soared in Britain, some, seemed a little less fazed. “The Duchess of Cambridge is pregnant? I didn’t know,” wrote one Twitter user.

Jennifer Hassan in London contributed to this report.

Read more         

Where’s my invite?: 2,600 members of the public to attend Prince Harry and Meghan’s wedding

Queen Elizabeth loses her last corgi, marking the end of a scrappy canine dynasty

Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Read Again https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/catherine-duchess-of-cambridge-enters-hospital-in-early-stages-of-labor/2018/04/23/cee987b6-44d5-11e8-b2dc-b0a403e4720a_story.html

Bagikan Berita Ini