William, Prince of Wales

Prince William's Signature

**William, Prince of Wales** (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is a member of the British royal family and the current heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III by his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales.

Born in London, William was educated at Wetherby School, Ludgrove School and Eton College. He spent parts of his gap year in Belize and Chile before earning a Scottish Master of Arts degree in geography at the University of St Andrews. William then trained at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst prior to serving with the Blues and Royals. In April 2008, William graduated from Royal Air Force College Cranwell, joining RAF Search and Rescue Force in early 2009. He served as a full-time pilot with the East Anglian Air Ambulance from July 2015 for two years.

The Prince performs official duties and engagements on behalf of the King. He holds patronage with over 30 charitable and military organisations, including the Tusk Trust, Centrepoint, and London's Air Ambulance Charity. He undertakes projects through The Royal Foundation, with his charity work revolving around mental health, conservation, and emergency workers. In December 2014, he founded the "United for Wildlife" initiative, which aims to reduce worldwide illegal wildlife trade. In April 2016, the Cambridges and Prince Harry initiated the mental health awareness campaign "Heads Together" to encourage people to open up about their mental health issues. In October 2020, William launched the Earthshot Prize, a £50 million initiative to incentivise environmental solutions over the next decade.

In 2011, William was made Duke of Cambridge preceding his marriage to Catherine Middleton. William became Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay following the accession of his father Charles III to the throne on 8th September 2022. The following day he was made Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester, titles reserved for the heir apparent of a reigning monarch, and Catherine became Princess of Wales. The couple have three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

## Early life

Prince William was born in London at St Mary's Hospital on 21 June 1982 as the first child of the Prince of Wales (later King Charles III) and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. His names, William Arthur Philip Louis, were announced by Buckingham Palace on 28 June. He was baptised by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie, in the Music Room of Buckingham Palace on 4 August, the 82nd birthday of his paternal great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. William had six godparents: former King Constantine II of Greece (his paternal second cousin once removed); Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Mrs Ogilvy (his paternal first cousin twice removed); the Duchess of Westminster; Lady Susan Hussey; Lord Romsey (his paternal second cousin once removed); and Sir Laurens van der Post. He was the first child born to a Prince and Princess of Wales since Prince John in 1905. When he was nine months old, William accompanied his parents on their 1983 tour of Australia and New Zealand, as his first trip overseas. He travelled with his family to Canada in 1991 and 1998.

Prince William and his younger brother, Harry, were raised at Kensington Palace in London, and Highgrove House in Gloucestershire. Known informally as "Wills" within the family, William was nicknamed "Wombat" by his mother, who wished him and his brother to obtain broader life experiences than those usually available to royal children. She took them to Walt Disney World and McDonald's, AIDS clinics, shelters for the homeless, and bought them items typically owned by teenagers, such as video games. Diana was reported to have described William as "my little wise old man" whom she started to rely on as her confidant by his early teens. His parents divorced in 1996. Diana died in a car accident in the early hours of 31 August 1997. William, then aged 15, together with his 12-year-old brother and their father, were staying at Balmoral Castle at the time. The Prince of Wales waited until his sons awoke the following morning to tell them about their mother's death. At his mother's funeral, William and his brother walked alongside their father, paternal grandfather Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and maternal uncle Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, behind the funeral cortège from Kensington Palace to Westminster Abbey.

## Education

William was educated at independent schools, starting at Jane Mynors' nursery school and the pre-preparatory Wetherby School, both in London. Following this, he attended Ludgrove School near Wokingham, Berkshire, and was privately tutored during summers by Rory Stewart. At Ludgrove, he participated in football, swimming, basketball, clay pigeon shooting, and cross country running. He sat the entrance exam to Eton College and was admitted. There, he studied geography, biology, and history of art at A-Level, obtaining an 'A' in geography, a 'C' in biology, and a 'B' in history of art. Having already swum competitively at Ludgrove, he became captain of the swimming team at Eton. He also took up water polo and continued to play football, captaining his house team.

The decision to place William in Eton went against the family tradition of sending royal children to Gordonstoun, which his grandfather, father, two uncles, and two cousins all attended. Diana's father and brother both attended Eton. The royal family and the tabloid press agreed William would be allowed to study free from intrusion in exchange for regular updates about his life. John Wakeham, chairman of the Press Complaints Commission, said of the arrangement, "Prince William is not an institution; nor a soap star; nor a football hero. He is a boy: in the next few years, perhaps the most important and sometimes painful part of his life, he will grow up and become a man."

After completing his studies at Eton, William took a gap year, during which he took part in British Army training exercises in Belize, worked on English dairy farms, visited Africa, and for ten weeks taught children in southern Chile. As part of the Raleigh International programme in the town of Tortel, William lived with other young volunteers, sharing in the common household chores—including cleaning the toilet—and also volunteered as a guest disc jockey at a local radio station. His interest in African culture prompted him to teach himself Swahili.

By 2001, William was back in the United Kingdom and had enrolled at the University of St Andrews. Similar to his time at Eton, the media agreed not to invade William's privacy, and students were warned not to leak stories about him to the press. The extra attention did not deter him; he embarked on a degree course in Art History, later changing his main subject to Geography. William wrote his dissertation on the coral reefs of Rodrigues in the Indian Ocean and graduated with an undergraduate Master of Arts (MA Hons) degree with upper second class honours in 2005. While at university, he represented the Scottish national universities water polo team at the Celtic Nations tournament in 2004. He was known as "Steve" by other students to avoid any journalists overhearing and realising his identity. William returned to St Andrews alongside his wife in February 2011 as patron of the university's 600th Anniversary Appeal.

Upon graduation from university, William interned in land management at Chatsworth House and in banking at HSBC. To prepare for his eventual management of the Duchy of Cornwall, in 2014, he enrolled in a vocational agricultural management course at Cambridge, which was organised by the Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership (CPSL), of which his father is patron. According to a CNN report in 2014, the duchy is "a £760 million (about US$1.25 billion) entity established in 1337 to provide a private income for use by the reigning monarch's eldest son", which William inherited when his father became king in 2022.

## Military and air ambulance service

### Military training and secondments

Having decided to follow a military career, he was admitted to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in January 2006. William officially received his commission as a lieutenant at midnight. As "Lieutenant Wales"—a name based on his father's title Prince of Wales—he followed his younger brother into the Blues and Royals as a troop commander in an armoured reconnaissance unit, after which he spent five months training for the post at Bovington Camp, Dorset.

William's position as second-in-line to the throne at the time and the convention of ministers advising against placing that person into dangerous situations cast doubts on his chances of seeing combat, which increased after Prince Harry's deployment was cancelled in 2007 due to "specific threats". William, instead, went on to train in the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, obtaining his commission as a sub-lieutenant in the former and flying officer in the latter—both broadly equivalent to the army rank of lieutenant.

After completing his training, William undertook an attachment with the Royal Air Force at RAF Cranwell. Upon completing the course he was presented with his RAF wings by his father, who had received his own wings after training at Cranwell. During this secondment, William flew to Afghanistan in a C-17 Globemaster that repatriated the body of Trooper Robert Pearson. William was then seconded to train with the Royal Navy. He completed an accelerated Naval Officer training course at the Britannia Royal Naval College. Whilst serving on HMS *Iron Duke* in June 2008, William participated in a £40m drug seizure in the Atlantic, north-east of Barbados. He was a part of the crew on the Lynx helicopter which helped seize 900 kg of cocaine from a speedboat.

### Royal Air Force service

In January 2009, William transferred his commission to the RAF and was promoted to Flight Lieutenant. He trained to become a helicopter pilot with the RAF's Search and Rescue Force. In January 2010, he graduated from the Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury. On 26 January 2010, he transferred to the Search and Rescue Training Unit at RAF Valley, Anglesey, to receive training on the Sea King search and rescue helicopter; he graduated in September 2010. This made him the first member of the British royal family since Henry VII to live in Wales.

William's first rescue mission as co-pilot of an RAF Sea King was a response to an emergency call from Liverpool Coastguard on 2 October 2010. In November 2011, he participated in a search-and-rescue mission involving a cargo ship that was sinking in the Irish Sea; William, as a co-pilot, helped rescue two sailors.

William was deployed to the Falkland Islands for a six-week tour with No. 1564 Flight from February to March 2012. The Argentine government condemned the Duke's deployment to the islands close to the 30th anniversary of the beginning of the Falklands War as a "provocative act". In June 2012, Prince William gained a qualification to be captain or pilot in command of a Sea King rather than a co-pilot. His active service as an RAF search-and-rescue pilot ended in September 2013. He later became patron to the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

### Air ambulance pilot

In 2014, it was announced that William would accept a full-time role as a pilot with the East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) based at Cambridge Airport. Despite his qualifications as a military helicopter pilot, William needed a civil pilot's licence and further training before being permitted to take command of the Air Ambulance. Although his position was paid, Kensington Palace announced that William would donate his full salary to the EAAA charity. He underwent part of his training as an EAAA pilot at Norwich Airport. On 13 July 2015, William started his new job, which he felt was a natural progression from his previous role as an RAF search-and-rescue pilot. The Duke described working irregular shifts and dealing mostly with critical care cases. He also publicly discussed the consequences, witnessing intensive trauma and bereavement as an emergency worker, stating that it impacted his mental health and personal life. The BBC has written that the Duke was "exposed to the National Health Service in a way that no other senior royal has been or possibly ever will be."

William left his position with EAAA in July 2017 to assume full-time royal duties on behalf of his grandmother. After supporting an anniversary campaign for London's Air Ambulance Charity in 2019, the Duke became the charity's official patron in March 2020. In May 2020, he granted permission to the charity to use Kensington Palace's private lawn to refuel during the COVID-19 pandemic. To mark Air Ambulance Week 2020, he wrote a letter thanking air ambulance workers, stating his "profound respect" for the community, particularly during the "immeasurably difficult" outbreak, and stated that "the country owes you an enormous debt of gratitude."

## Personal life

### Bachelorhood

In 2001, William met Catherine Middleton while they were students in residence at St Salvator's Hall at the University of St Andrews. She reportedly caught William's attention at a charity fashion show on campus. The couple began dating in 2003. During their second year, William shared a flat with Middleton and two other friends. From 2003 to 2005, they both resided at Balgove House on the Strathtyrum estate with two roommates. In 2004, the couple briefly split but continued their relationship soon afterwards.

Their relationship was followed so closely by the tabloid press that bookmakers took bets on the possibility of marriage, and the retail chain Woolworths produced memorabilia bearing their likenesses. Media attention became so intense that William formally asked the press to keep their distance from Middleton. On 15 December 2006, Middleton attended Prince William's Passing Out Parade at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.

In April 2007, William and Middleton ended their relationship. Middleton and her family attended the Concert for Diana in July 2007 at Wembley Stadium, where she and Prince William sat two rows apart. The couple were subsequently seen together in public on a number of occasions and news sources stated that they had "rekindled their relationship". Middleton was in attendance during the Order of the Garter procession ceremony at Windsor Castle in June 2008, where Prince William was made a Royal Knight of the Garter. In June 2010, the couple moved into a cottage on the Bodorgan Estate in Anglesey, Wales, where William resided during his RAF search-and-rescue training and subsequent career.

### Marriage and children

On 16 November 2010, Clarence House announced that William and Catherine were to marry; the couple had become engaged in Kenya in October. The engagement ring given by William to Catherine had belonged to his mother. The wedding took place on 29 April 2011 in Westminster Abbey, London. A few hours before the ceremony, William's new titles Duke of Cambridge, Earl of Strathearn, and Baron Carrickfergus were announced. Estimates of the global audience for the wedding ranged around 300 million or more, whilst 26 million watched the event live in Britain alone. The couple were given the country home, Anmer Hall, on the Sandringham Estate, as a wedding gift from the Queen. Following their marriage in 2011, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge used Nottingham Cottage as their London residence. They moved into the four-storey, 20-room Apartment 1A at Kensington Palace in 2013. Renovations took 18 months at a cost of £4.5 million. Kensington Palace became the Duke and Duchess's main residence in 2017, moving from their country home, Anmer Hall. In 2022, it was announced that the couple, along with their children, would move to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.

Catherine's first pregnancy was announced on 3 December 2012. She was admitted on 22 July 2013 to the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital, London, where Prince William had been delivered. Later that day, she gave birth to Prince George. On 8 September 2014, it was announced that the Duchess of Cambridge was pregnant with her second child. She was admitted on 2 May 2015 to the same hospital and gave birth to Princess Charlotte. The Duchess's third pregnancy was announced on 4 September 2017; Prince Louis was born on 23 April 2018.

The Duke and Duchess have owned two English Cocker Spaniels, named Lupo and Orla. William is the godfather of Prince Constantine Alexios of Greece and Denmark (b. 1998), a distant relation through his grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, and Mia Tindall (b. 2014), the eldest child of his paternal cousin, Zara Tindall.

### Wealth and inheritance

William and his brother Harry inherited the "bulk" of the £12.9 million left by their mother on their respective 30th birthdays, a figure that had grown since her 1997 death to £10 million each in 2014. In 2002, *The Times* reported that William would also share with his brother a payment of £4.9 million from trust funds established by their great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, on their respective 21st birthdays and would share a payment of £8 million upon their respective 40th birthdays. It was reported that Harry would inherit the bulk of the money left by the Queen Mother for the two brothers, as William is set to ascend to the throne which will bring him more financial benefits. As the eldest son of the King, William has inherited the Duchy of Cornwall, which brings him an additional income.

In 2014, the brothers inherited their mother's wedding dress along with many other of her personal possessions including dresses, diamond tiaras, jewels, letters, and paintings. The brothers also received the original lyrics and score of "Candle in the Wind" by Bernie Taupin and Elton John as performed by John at Diana's funeral.

### Health

On 3 June 1991, William was admitted to Royal Berkshire Hospital after being accidentally hit on the forehead by a fellow pupil wielding a golf club. He suffered a depressed fracture of the skull and was operated on at Great Ormond Street Hospital, resulting in a permanent scar. News of this incident spread quickly and media reporters descended on Ludgrove School to seek the name of the boy who had swung the golf club, but nobody divulged the name after the headmaster briefed his pupils and swore them to silence. In a 2009 interview, he dubbed the resulting scar a "Harry Potter scar" and said, "I call it that because it glows sometimes and some people notice it—other times they don't notice it at all". In 1999, he underwent an operation on his left hand after he broke a finger.

On 1 November 2020, it was reported that William had tested positive for COVID-19 in April but decided not to alert the media to 'avoid alarming the nation'. *The Daily Telegraph* reported he had been "very ill" and had isolated away from his family; other sources say that he had not been seriously ill, not bed-ridden and working for most of the time.

## Public life

At the age of 21, William was appointed a Counsellor of State; he first served in that capacity when the Queen attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2003. On his 21st birthday, William accompanied his father on a visit to Wales, visiting the Anglesey Food Festival and opening a centre for the homeless in Newport. Upon graduating from university, William began royal duties in support of, and on behalf of, the Queen at official events, public engagements, and overseas tours. In July 2005, he embarked on his first solo overseas tour, travelling to New Zealand to participate in World War II commemorations. For the 30th anniversary of his father's charity The Prince's Trust, William and his brother were jointly interviewed for the first time by television personalities Ant & Dec. According to author Tina Brown, he had, like his father, expressed a desire to become Governor-General of Australia. Prime Minister of Australia John Howard expressed his wish for the position to be held by an Australian citizen. In 2009, the Queen set up a private office for William with David Manning as his adviser. Manning accompanied him in January 2010 as he toured Auckland and Wellington; William opened the new building of the Supreme Court of New Zealand and was welcomed by a Māori chief.

In June 2010, William and his brother visited Botswana, Lesotho, and South Africa, visiting projects relating to wildlife, sport, and young children. In November 2010, he attended a memorial service held on Remembrance Day at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan. In March 2011, William visited Christchurch, New Zealand, shortly after the earthquake, and spoke at the memorial service at Hagley Park on behalf of his grandmother. He also travelled to Australia to visit areas affected by flooding in Queensland and Victoria. In April 2011, *Time* magazine selected him as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. In May 2011, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met with U.S President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama at Buckingham Palace. The couple toured Canada in summer 2011, attending Canada Day celebrations on Parliament Hill. On 2 November, the Duke and Duchess visited the UNICEF Supply Division for malnourished children in Copenhagen, Denmark.

William and Catherine served as ambassadors for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, during multiple sporting events throughout the games. In September 2012, they toured Singapore, Malaysia, Tuvalu, and the Solomon Islands as part of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. The Duke and Duchess attended further commemorations of the Jubilee throughout the year, including the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant in July. The Duke hosted his first investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace in October 2013. In April 2014, William and Catherine undertook a royal tour to New Zealand and Australia with their son, Prince George. The itinerary included visiting the Plunket Society for children and visiting fire-damaged areas in New South Wales. In June 2014, the couple visited France to attend the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Normandy landings at Gold Beach. In September 2014, the Duke visited Malta to commemorate its 50th independence anniversary, substituting for his wife after the announcement of her second pregnancy. On 21 October, the Duke and Duchess met the President of Singapore, Tony Tan, during his state visit to the UK. In December 2014, the William met with President Obama in the Oval Office, and made a speech at the World Bank in Washington, D. C., condemning the illegal trade in wildlife. In December 2014, the couple visited New York and attended a charity dinner at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In February 2015, the Duke visited Japan, meeting with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko at the Imperial Palace and visiting survivors devastated by the 2011 tsunami. From 1 to 4 March, the Duke visited the Chinese cities Beijing, Shanghai, and Yunnan and met with President Xi Jinping. It was the first royal visit to mainland China in almost three decades. In April 2016, William and his wife undertook a tour to India and Bhutan. Activities included visiting children's charities such as Childline India, as well as a visit to Lingkana Palace. Later that month, the couple met again with the Obamas at Kensington Palace. In April 2016, William and Catherine toured to India and Bhutan. The couple toured Canada once again in September 2016. In November 2016, he visited Vietnam, meeting with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and touring local primary schools. Countries visited by the couple in 2017 include France, Poland, Germany, and Belgium. In January 2018, the couple visited Sweden and Norway. The visits, which were, like others, requested by the Foreign Office, were interpreted to benefit UK-European relations post Brexit. In June 2018, the Duke toured Jordan, Israel and Palestine.

In February 2019, William and Catherine carried out a two-day visit of Northern Ireland, visiting Belfast, Fermanagh, and Ballymena. In March and April 2019, William spent three weeks working for MI6, MI5 and GCHQ. The Duke and Duchess toured Pakistan in October 2019, which was the royal family's first visit to the country in 13 years. In December 2019, William visited Kuwait and Oman, commemorating the 120th anniversary of the Anglo-Kuwaiti Agreement of 1899. In March 2020, the couple carried out a three-day tour of Ireland, visiting County Meath, Kildare, and Galway. In October 2020, the Duke and Duchess met Volodymyr Zelensky, the President of Ukraine, and First Lady Olena Zelenska, at Buckingham Palace, the first royal engagement held at the residence since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. In December, the couple embarked on a three-day tour of England, Scotland, and Wales via the British royal train "to pay tribute to the inspiring work of individuals, organisations and initiatives across the country" in 2020. Prime Minister Boris Johnson expressed his support for the initiative, while First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon criticised the tour, citing travel restrictions; UK, Scottish and Welsh governments were consulted before planning the tour. In William's capacity as Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the couple toured Edinburgh, Fife and Orkney in May 2021. In Cornwall on 11 June 2021, William and Catherine attended the G7 summit for the first time. They also attended a reception, where the Duke and his father discussed governmental and corporate solutions to environmental problems.

In March 2022, the Duke and Duchess embarked on a tour of Belize, The Bahamas and Jamaica as part of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations. They encountered criticism from a number of political figures and the press, given the British royal family's ancestral connections to colonialism and the Atlantic slave trade. Reparations for slavery emerged as a major demand of protesters during the couple's visit. During the visit, Jamaican prime minister Andrew Holness told the couple that the country planned to become a republic. William assured that the royal family would accept each country's decision with "pride and respect". During the unveiling of the National Windrush Monument in London, William described the Caribbean tour as "an opportunity to reflect" on "the different issues that matter most to the people of the region", and referring to the Windrush scandal, he condemned the racism faced by members of the Windrush generation and discrimination against minorities in 2022.

In May 2022, William attended the State Opening of Parliament for the first time as a counsellor of state, where his father the Prince of Wales delivered the Queen's Speech on behalf of William's grandmother.

## Charity work and interests

### Humanitarian and environmental patronages

William became aware of HIV/AIDS in the mid-1990s when he accompanied his mother and brother on visits to shelters and clinics for patients. In January 2005, William and his brother volunteered at a British Red Cross aid distribution centre to pack emergency supplies for countries affected by the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. In 2005, William worked in the children's unit at The Royal Marsden Hospital, his mother's former patronage, for two days of work experience; he also assisted in the medical research, catering, and fundraising departments. In May that year, he spent two weeks in North Wales with Mountain Rescue England and Wales (MREW). In May 2007, William became patron of MREW and president of The Royal Marsden Hospital, the latter of which was a role previously held by his mother. In October 2020, the Duke laid the foundation stone of the hospital's Oak Cancer Centre, 30 years after his mother did the same for their Chelsea Wing in 1990.

In 2007, William and Harry organised the Concert for Diana, in memory of their mother, which benefitted the charities and patronages of Diana, William, and Harry. In October 2008, William and his brother embarked on the 1,000 mile eight-day Enduro Africa motorbike ride across South Africa to raise money for Sentebale, UNICEF and the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. In 2010, he also became a patron of 100 Women in Hedge Funds Philanthropic Initiatives. William succeeded Lord Attenborough in 2010 as the fifth president of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. In March 2011, the Duke and Duchess set up a gift fund held by The Foundation of Prince William and Prince Harry to allow well-wishers who wanted to give them a wedding gift to donate money to charities instead. The gift fund supported 26 charities of the couple's choice, incorporating the armed forces, children, the elderly, art, sport and conservation. The charity has since been renamed The Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

The Duke has spoken out for LGBT rights as part of his work against cyberbullying, stating the importance of being "proud of the person you are" and discussing the effects of online abuse and discrimination. In 2016, he appeared in the July issue of *Attitude* and became the first member of the royal family to be featured on the cover of a gay magazine. He was recognised at the British LGBT Awards in May 2017.

In March 2020, the Duke appeared in a video for the National Emergencies Trust, launching a fundraising appeal to help charities during the pandemic. The appeal raised £11 million in its first week, eventually totalling to £90 million, with the money going out to "front line charities" and to the UK Community Foundations to be distributed among "local community foundations". In April 2020, he officially became the patron of the organisation. In April 2020, he made a surprise appearance in *The Big Night In*, a 20 April 2020 telethon held during the COVID-19 pandemic, in a skit which he held a video call with Stephen Fry, who revised his role as (a descendant of) Lord Melchett, from the *Blackadder* series.

In May and June 2020, the couple, alongside their children, delivered food parcels made on the Sandringham Estate to local isolated pensioners during the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2020, the Duke and Duchess became joint patrons of NHS Charities Together.

In February 2021, William visited a vaccination centre in King's Lynn and later encouraged use of the vaccine, denouncing false information that could cause vaccine hesitancy. In May 2021, he got his first dose of COVID-19 vaccine by NHS staff at the Science Museum in London. In September 2021, it was reported that William had helped an Afghan officer who was a graduate of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and an assistant to the British troops be evacuated from the Kabul airport along with more than 10 members of his family amid the 2021 Taliban offensive.

In March 2022 and amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, William and Catherine made a donation to help the refugees.

#### Conservation

Prince William became a patron of the Tusk Trust in December 2005, a charity that works towards conserving wildlife and initiating community development, including providing education, across Africa. He became associated with the organisation after he witnessed its work first hand in Africa. Stating that "rural African initiatives that foster education, responsibility and participation in the local community light the way to conservation", he carried out his first official duty with the trust in launching a 5,000-mile (8,000 km) bike ride across the African continent in 2008. Later, William helped with launching the Tusk Conservation Awards, which have been presented to selected environmental activists annually since 2013. William has occasionally commented on the effects of overpopulation on the wildlife of Africa, but his remarks have been criticised for not taking resource consumption and population density into consideration, both of which affect wildlife in rich and developed countries. In December 2014, the Duke founded the United for Wildlife Transport Taskforce, which aims to reduce worldwide illegal wildlife trade.

After two years of research, the Duke launched the Earthshot Prize in October 2020, designed to provide funding and incentive for environmental solutions over the next decade. The Prize is slated to be given every year from 2021 until 2030 to five winners each year, in accordance with five categories detailing the restoration of nature, air cleanliness, ocean conservation, waste-free living, and climate change. The selection process will be performed by the Duke, alongside a council of judges from six continents, overseen by a panel of experts. The first awards ceremony is slated to take place in London in autumn 2021. Following the launch, William gave a TED Talk on environmental protection and conservation as part of the TED Countdown climate change initiative. Later that month, the Duke took over the patronages of Fauna and Flora International and the British Trust for Ornithology, passed on from the Queen and Prince Philip. In the same month, he appeared in an ITV documentary titled *Prince William: A Planet For Us All* to discuss environmental issues.

In early 2021, William made a private donation to the Thin Green Line Foundation, which provides grants for the relatives of conservation park rangers that are killed every year while protecting wildlife. In July 2022, William condemned the murder of South African park ranger Anton Mzimba and asked for the responsible parties to "be brought to justice". In August 2022, he voiced his support for the 63-month prison sentence given in the United States to a man responsible for trafficking rhinoceros horns and elephant ivory, calling it "a significant victory". He had previously called for harsher punishments and penalties for poachers and smugglers at the Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference in 2018.

#### Mental health

In 2016, the Royal Foundation launched multiple mental health initiatives, including Heads Together, a campaign led by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry to de-stigmatise mental health. Legacy programmes include Mental Health at Work, launched in September 2018 to change the approach to workplace mental health in the UK, as well as Heads Up, launched in May 2019 in partnership with the Football Association, utilising football to affect the conversation surrounding mental health in adults. Later that month, the Duke and Duchess together with William's brother and sister-in-law launched Shout, the UK's first 24/7 text messaging service for those who suffer from mental issues. William later volunteered on the crisis helpline during the COVID-19 lockdowns to provide support via text message. In October 2019, the Duke of Cambridge, together with other members of the royal family, voiced a PSA video for Public Health England "as part of its Every Mind Matters program". William has cited his interest in mental health to his experiences as an air ambulance pilot, as well as his work with homelessness, veterans welfare, and his wife's advocacy on addiction.

In late March 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge began supporting a new mental health initiative by the Public Health England amidst the coronavirus pandemic. In April 2020, the Duke and Duchess announced Our Frontline, an initiative providing mental health support to emergency medical workers. In May 2020, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's recorded radio message for Mental Health Awareness Week was broadcast across all the stations in the UK.

In June 2020, the Duke of Cambridge stated that he had been serving as a volunteer on the Shout hotline during the pandemic. In September 2020, the Duke established the Emergency Responders Senior Leaders Board, commissioned by the foundation to research the mental health and wellbeing of emergency responders. The project is in partnership with King's College London and the Open University.

In May 2022, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge voiced the Mental Health Minute message, which was broadcast on every radio station in the UK on 13 May and asked people to help individuals around them that suffer from loneliness.

#### Homelessness

In September 2005, William granted his patronage to Centrepoint, a charity that assists the homeless. In December 2009, he, as part of a Centrepoint-organised event, spent the night sleeping bag near the Blackfriars Bridge to raise awareness of the experiences of homeless youth. The Duke opened their new facility, Apprenticeship House, in November 2019 to mark their 50-year anniversary.

William has been patron of homelessness charity The Passage since 2019 after first visiting the centre in 1992 with his mother. In October 2020, he wrote the introduction to the organisation's 40th-anniversary fundraising cookbook, discussing the importance of helping victims of homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2020, the Duke volunteered at the charity to help prepare donation bags for homeless residents in emergency hotel accommodations and spoke with residents about their experiences. In March 2022, he was spotted selling copies of *The Big Issue* on the streets, copies of which are usually sold by homeless and unemployed people to collect money.

### Sport

William often plays polo to raise money for charity. He is a fan of football, and supports the English club Aston Villa. He became President of England's Football Association in May 2006 and vice-royal patron of the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) in February 2007, supporting the Queen as patron. The same year, the WRU's decision to name a new cup for test matches between Wales and South Africa the Prince William Cup caused controversy; some believed it would have been more appropriate to name it after Ray Gravell. In December 2010, William and Prime Minister David Cameron attended a meeting with FIFA vice-president Chung Mong-joon at which Chung suggested a vote-trading deal for the right to host the 2018 World Cup in England. The English delegation reported the suggestion to FIFA's ethics investigator because they considered vote-swapping to be a violation of anti-collusion rules. In 2011, William as President of the English FA, voted against Australia's 2022 FIFA bid and instead voted for South Korea; despite being the country's future heir. In 2020, again as President of the English FA, he voted against the joint Australia–New Zealand 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup bid and instead voted for Colombia.

In February 2021, following an investigation into racism directed at Marcus Rashford, the Duke released a statement as president of the FA, denouncing the "racist abuse... whether on the pitch, in the stands, or on social media" as "despicable" and stating that "we all have a responsibility" to create an environment of tolerance and accountability. In April 2021, William criticised the planned breakaway competition The Super League, adding that he "share[d] the concerns of fans about the proposed Super League and the damage it risks causing to the game we love." In July 2021, he condemned racist attacks against England football players following their loss at the UEFA Euro 2020 finale.

In 2006, William, along with other Sandhurst officers, took part in a one-mile (1.6 km) run to support the charity Sport Relief, as he had done in 2004 with a team from Clarence House. In May 2007, William became patron of the English Schools' Swimming Association. In 2012, together with the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, William launched Coach Core. The program was set up following the 2012 Olympics and provides apprenticeship opportunities for people who desire to pursue a career as a professional coach. In 2013, he succeeded his grandfather Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, as president of the UK charity Fields in Trust. In 2014 he and the Duchess were awarded Honorary Life Membership of the Marylebone Cricket Club. In May 2020, the Duke of Cambridge appeared in a BBC One Documentary titled *Football, Prince William and Our Mental Health* as a part of a campaign to promote men to discuss their mental issues using football as a common medium.

Both William and his brother are enthusiastic motorcyclists; William owns a Ducati 1198 S Corse. In May 2014, William, like his father and paternal grandfather, became president of the British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC). He enthusiastically took part in a bandy event in Stockholm in January 2018.

## Privacy and the media

The death of Diana, Princess of Wales, in Paris while being chased by paparazzi in 1997, influenced the Prince's attitude towards the media. The Prince and his wife have asked that, when off-duty, their privacy should be respected.

On 13 November 2005, an article appeared in the *News of the World* written by royal editor Clive Goodman, that claimed that Prince William was in the process of borrowing a portable editing suite from ITV royal correspondent Tom Bradby. Prince William noted that another equally improbable leak had recently taken place regarding an appointment he had made with a knee surgeon. After some discussion, the Prince and Bradby concluded it was likely that their voicemails were being accessed. An investigation under Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke concluded that the compromised voice mail accounts belonged to Prince William's aides, including Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, and not the Prince himself. However, Clive Goodman later stated that he had hacked William's phone on 35 occasions.

In September 2012, the French edition of *Closer* and Italian gossip magazine *Chi* published photographs of the Duchess of Cambridge sun-bathing topless while on holiday at the Château d'Autet, a private château on a 260-ha estate in Provence. Analysts from *The Times* believed the photographs were taken from the D22 (Vaucluse) road half a kilometre from the pool—a distance that would require an 800-mm or a 1000-mm lens. On 17 September 2012, the Prince and Princess filed a criminal complaint with the French prosecution department and launched a claim for civil damages at the *Tribunal de Grande Instance de Nanterre*. The following day the courts granted an injunction against *Closer* prohibiting further publication of the photographs and announced a criminal investigation would be initiated. Under French law, punitive damages cannot be awarded but intrusions of privacy are a criminal offence carrying a maximum jail sentence of one year and a fine of up to €45,000 for individuals and €225,000 for companies. In September 2017, *Closer* was fined €100,000 and its editor Laurence Pieau and owner Ernesto Mauri were each fined €45,000.

In October 2014, William and Catherine sent a legal letter to a freelance photographer who had put their son George and his nanny "under surveillance", asking the individual to stop "harassing and following" them. In August 2015, Kensington Palace published a letter detailing what it stated were the "dangerous" and invasive efforts of the media to get paparazzi pictures of Prince George and Princess Charlotte. Jason Knauf, communications secretary to the Cambridges, wrote the letter to media standards organisations in various countries.

In March 2017, a video of William "dad dancing" at a nightclub in Verbier, Switzerland surfaced in tabloid media. At the time, he was on a skiing holiday, and was reportedly observed partying alongside friends and models. The incident garnered commentary and criticism as it took place on Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, which was attended by other senior members of the royal family. The following month, when asked a music-related question during a BBC One interview for the Heads Together campaign, he commented, referring to the reports: "I've got into enough trouble with my dancing recently. So it's probably best to stay away from that one".

In November 2018 and during a visit to the BBC studios in central London, William publicly criticised the social media firms' approach to handling "misinformation and conspiracy" and added, "Their self-image is so grounded in their positive power for good that they seem unable to engage in constructive discussion about the social problems they are creating".

In July 2021, ITV aired a documentary entitled *Harry and William: What Went Wrong?*, centering on the princes' relationship. Before the film aired, footage of journalist Omid Scobie claiming that a senior aide from Prince William's household had briefed journalists about "concerns regarding Prince Harry's mental health" was partially cut from the documentary after Kensington Palace informed the broadcaster that the claim was "potentially defamatory".

In June 2022, a three-minute video of William confronting Terry Harris, a paparazzi photographer, was posted to Harris's YouTube channel. It was recorded by Harris in January 2021 and shows William arguing with Harris as he attempts to film his family on a bike ride near Anmer Hall. Kensington Palace described the video as a breach of the family's privacy and asked for it to be removed from public websites. The couple's lawyers also contacted the photographer, who claimed he was on public roads and had filmed the video after hearing about allegations that the Prince and Princess had broken the "rule of six" as they toured a public attraction at Sandringham while William's uncle and aunt, the Earl and Countess of Wessex, and their children happened to be in the same spot.