Royal Baby Watch: 72 Hour Countdown Begins

As the imminent arrival of the next King or Queen of England draws ever closer the “Royal baby watch” teams, A.K.A the world’s media are watching London closely.

Catherine (Kate) Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge is due to give birth to the royal heir on July 13th, which is less that 72 hours away. Once the baby is born, its birth will be announced in the traditional British way,

The birth announcement itself will be signed on official note paper, Buckingham Palace notepaper, no less.

Then the announcement is driven, with full pomp and ceremony, to the courtyard of the Palace, where it is received by a footman, bedraped in full, traditional regalia.

The birth announcement is then placed in a royal easel and displayed to the public, offering basic details about the weight of the baby and the time of birth.

The last time the easel was used was to announce the birth of baby William. Sometimes the note includes other details about the baby, such as eye or hair color.

Due to British protocol, the public, including media sources, will only get wind of the birth once it has be announced to the Queen and Kate’s family.

The name of the future heir has Royal baby watchers speculating as to what the name will be.

As royal family first names are traditional in England, lots of people are giving their best guess as to what the child will be called. Popular names, should the child be a boy are Charles or Philip, and for a girl baby Elizabeth or Diana are big possibilities.

Due to a deep rooted British tradition dating back to the 18th century, known as the rule of primogeniture, a girl only assumes the throne, and title of Queen, if she doesn’t have brothers. This means that whether the royal baby is male or female they will be third in line to the throne.

The Queen’s son, Prince Charles is next in line to be king, followed by his son, Prince William. So there will be a long wait for the royal baby to become King or Queen of England, in any event.

Here is a Video from ABC News showing Kate (looking very pregnant!,) on Sunday, on her last public appearance before giving birth:

What do you think about the way the “Royal baby watch” is being handled by the media? Should media leave the royals alone to have their baby in peace? Or, does the general public have the right to know all the gory details? Let’s hear your thoughts in the comments feed below.