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It's a boy! Prince Charles is born

Broadcast Date: Nov. 15, 1948

One year after the marriage of their Princess Elizabeth, Britons are celebrating again: on Nov. 14, 1948, a future king is born. All the excitement is rather puzzling for outsiders, reports Matthew Halton for CBC Radio. And it could be a long time before this prince becomes the 41st monarch: "If his grandfather, the King, and his mother, the princess, both live the full span of life," says Halton, "he may well be 50 or 60 years old before he ascends the throne."

It's a boy! Prince Charles is born

• A crowd of thousands waited outside the palace gates for news of the infant prince. The proclamation of the baby's arrival was posted at the palace less than three hours after his birth at 9:14 p.m. on Nov. 14, 1948. Newspapers reported that an anonymous member of the royal household described him as "a lovely boy, a really splendid baby."

• The Globe and Mail surmised that since less than two hours passed between the summoning of the royal anaesthesiologist and the birth, the princess "had a relatively easy time of it."

• The following morning, church bells pealed and gun salutes thundered from warships and cannons in London's Hyde Park to herald the birth.

• Upon his birth, the baby – whose title was Prince of Edinburgh – displaced his aunt, Princess Margaret, as second in line to the throne after his mother.

• The baby's full name, Charles Philip Arthur George, was not publicly announced until one month after his birth. He was christened by the Archbishop of Canterbury at Buckingham Palace on Dec. 15, 1948.

• Prince Charles was the first heir to the throne to attend school rather than being educated by a private tutor.

It's a boy! Prince Charles is born

Medium: Radio

Program: CBC News Roundup

Broadcast Date: Nov. 15, 1948

Reporter: Matthew Halton

Duration: 2:26

Last updated:
Nov. 14, 2008