Prince William is the royal golden boy who will one day take the crown.
Growing from a boisterous toddler into a shy teenager and then a confident and settled RAF pilot, Prince William is about to embark on the next stage of his life.
A sensible, older brother to Prince Harry, Prince William relies on a circle of close, trusted friends and still regards the media with suspicion.
He witnessed the bitter breakdown of his parents’ marriage and then, in 1997, the tragic death of his mother in a car crash.
Prince William Arthur Philip Louis of Wales was born at 9.03 p.m. on June 21, 1982, at St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington in London.
Naughty as a youngster, school reports showed he had a flair for spelling and was good at sports.
As a teenager, Prince William would, like his mother once did, hide under his floppy blond fringe when confronted by photographers.
The royal marriage crumbled amid scandal and intense press interest while Prince William was at Eton. Then on August 31 1997 came Diana’s devastating death.
In the aftermath the papers agreed to leave Prince William and Prince Harry alone while they finished their education, meaning news on the boys during their teen years was limited.
At Eton, Prince William went on to gain 10 GCSEs in 1998, with three A*(star) grades, five As and two Bs, and became one of 21 prefects.
In his A-levels he achieved an A in Geography, B in History of Art and a C in Biology.
After leaving school, he went on a gap year which included jungle training in Belize with the Welsh Guards and a stint with Raleigh International in Chile.
Prince William was shown tackling domestic chores – making him possibly the first future king to be pictured in rubber gloves scrubbing a toilet floor.
He began his four years at St Andrews university in Scotland in 2001. He switched from history of art to geography, got used to the isolated town and began dating flatmate Kate Middleton.
During his final year, news broke that Prince Charles was to finally marry his former mistress Camilla Parker Bowles.
Prince William, who acted as a witness on the day, supported his father’s decision, knowing Camilla made him happy.
He gained a 2:1 in his MA and his graduation was attended by his new stepmother, the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Queen.
His first solo foreign tour was to New Zealand in the summer of 2005 when he joined the British Lions to support them in their clashes against the All Blacks.
His first royal patronage was announced the same year – Centrepoint, one of his mother’s favourite homelessness charities.
He is also President of the Football Association and has taken on the numerous other patronages, including Tusk Trust, the African conservation charity.
Prince William has started to carry out royal engagements, but his public appearances remain limited, with his focus being on his military career.
This year, he embarked on his first official overseas tour to Australia and New Zealand and by the autumn had graduated as a full-time RAF Search and Rescue helicopter co-pilot.