It’s official — a royal baby is on the way!
“Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very
pleased to announce that The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting a baby,”
the palace said in a statement. “The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The
Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry and members of
both families are delighted with the news.”
“The Duchess was admitted this
afternoon to King Edward VII Hospital in central London with hyperemesis
gravidarum,” the statement continued, noting Middleton’s bout with an
acute morning sickness. ”As the pregnancy is in its very early stages,
Her Royal Highness is expected to stay in hospital for several days and
will require a period of rest thereafter.”
The announcement follows over a year of baby bump watch, as the public
and media endlessly speculated when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
would start a family following their royal wedding on April 29, 2011.
The baby will be Queen Elizabeth II’s third grandchild. Due to a drastic
shift in the rules of succession last year, Prince William and Kate’s
first-born will now likely be the heir to the British throne, regardless
of the baby’s gender.
