Prince William: 7 Frequently Asked Questions About the Future King, Answered
Get to know Prince William with answers to frequently asked questions about the heir to the throne. From the 42-year-old British royal’s full name to his marriage and relationship with Prince Harry, learn more about the future king.
1. What is William’s full name?
Now known as Prince William, the Prince of Wales, the heir to the throne was born William Arthur Philip Louis Mountbatten-Windsor. King Charles III and Princess Diana welcomed him on June 21, 1982.
Over the years William has received many nicknames. He’s known as “Willy” to his brother, “One-Pint Willy” to his cousin’s husband, and, once upon a time, “Wombat” to his parents.
2. How old was Prince William when Princess Diana died?
Diana died on Aug. 31, 1997, following a car crash in Paris, France. William was 15 at the time having celebrated his birthday just two months earlier.
3. What is William’s college degree in?
William graduated from the University of St Andrews in 2005 with a degree in geography. Initially, he majored in art history, just like Kate Middleton, but as William said years later, he switched majors because he kept falling asleep during art history classes (via Express).
4. Is William on good terms with Harry?
No. William and his brother, the Duke of Sussex are estranged and have been for years. While they occasionally attend the same events, such as their maternal uncle’s memorial in August 2024, they aren’t on speaking terms.
5. Did William break Prince Harry’s necklace?
According to Spare, William did break Harry’s necklace. As Harry recalled in his 2023 memoir, they got into a heated argument about Meghan Markle at Nottingham Cottage, the couple’s former home on the grounds of Kensington Palace.
“He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me. I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out,” Harry wrote in Spare.
During an appearance on The Late Show, Harry told host Stephen Colbert the necklace had since been repaired. (He pulled it out from under his shirt for a little show-and-tell moment.) On it are “heartbeats” for Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3, a gift from his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, and a tiger’s eye charm from a friend in Botswana.
6. How did William propose to Kate Middleton?
William proposed to the now-Princess of Wales on a trip to Kenya with friends in October 2010. As he recounted in their engagement interview the following month, William popped the question with Diana’s sapphire and diamond engagement ring, which he’d been carrying around in a backpack for weeks.
“I just decided that it was the right time, really,” William said. “We’d been talking about marriage for a while, so it wasn’t a big surprise, but I took her up somewhere nice in Kenya and proposed.”
Kate called William’s proposal “very romantic,” adding that she “didn’t expect it all” because they were with friends. “It was a total shock when it came.”
7. Why doesn’t Prince William wear a wedding ring?
The simple answer is jewelry’s not William’s thing. When he and Kate married in 2011, unlike the bride, he didn’t get a wedding band made of Welsh gold.
“He’s not one for jewelry,” a source previously told the Mirror. “He’s never worn any. He decided he didn’t want to wear one now. It’s all down to personal preference.” After all, as royal commentator Eloise Parker pointed out in 2018, it’s not exactly royal tradition.
“Although it’s traditional for royal women to wear both an engagement ring and a wedding ring after they get married,” Parker told Marie Claire, “it’s never been traditional for royal men to wear one. That’s why Prince Philip and Prince William don’t wear them. I think when you have a wedding watched by millions, everyone knows you’re married.”
