The British royal family is on the verge of expanding.
Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, has gone into labor and been rushed to a London hospital with Prince William ahead of what may be one of the most anticipated births in world history.
It's now been more than 10 hours since the Duchess arrived at St. Mary's Hospital just before 6 a.m. GMT, according to Buckingham Palace and reporters who have been stationed outside for days in anticipation.
As soon as the royal bundle of joy makes his or her debut, the infant will instantly become the third in line to the throne — behind only grandfather Prince Charles and dad Prince William.
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Hundreds of royal baby-watchers, journalists, photographers are seen waiting in anticipation of the royal birth outside the London hospital's Lindo Wing.
A royal aide told
Us Weekly, "things are progressing normally," with a second source claiming that the Duchess went into labor naturally.
Though Kate’s due date was shrouded in secrecy, throngs of journalists and royal watchers camped out in front of the hospital's private Lindo Wing to await an official birth announcement from Buckingham Palace where Queen Elizabeth II was seen arriving around 2:30 p.m. GMT to immense excitement from the hundreds already packed outside the gates.
Sight of the Queen, however photographed expressionless inside her vehicle, produced some excited cries of "the Queen!" from those gathered outside.
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The baby is due to be delivered in St Mary's Hospital's Lido Wing, where Princess Diana had William in 1982 and his brother Harry two years later.
The baby is to be delivered in the posh Lindo Wing of the same hospital where Princess Diana had William in 1982 and his brother Harry two years later — where the private birthing suites cost $1,500 a day.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge reportedly don’t know the gender of their child any more than the rest of the world does.
Though the due date was never disclosed, many estimated that it was on or around July 13, so Kate was overdue.
Prince Charles, caught by a reporter with
SKY News while in York, said he himself knows “absolutely nothing at the moment” on news of his future grandchild.
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Queen Elizabeth II was photographed returning to Buckingham Palace in London around 2:30 p.m., approximately eight hours after her grandson slipped into the hospital with his expecting wife.
He later told a reporter, poking at the length of Kate's pregnancy and labor: "I'm very grateful indeed for the kind wishes for my rather slowly-approaching grandfatherhood."
Prime Minister David Cameron sent his “best wishes” to the couple, telling the Telegraph: “It is an exciting occasion and the whole country is excited with them, so everyone’s hoping for the best.”
The palace has said it plans to inform the world of the baby's birth through a mixture of traditional announcements — some that will ring loud and clear across the city — and social media as well.
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At the Buckingham Palace in central London crowds of tourists are also seen gathered on the steps of the Queen Victoria Memorial Statue where the birth will be formally announced.
Officials have said a royal aide will emerge from the hospital with a signed bulletin carrying the Buckingham Palace letterhead. The bulletin will be given to an official who will be driven to the palace, where it will be posted on an easel in public view in front of the building.
In anticipation of this sight, hundreds have steadily gathered outside the palace's front gates, cameras ready to snap the first sign of this easel.
At the same time the bulletin is posted, there will be an official announcement on Twitter and the media will be notified. The document will include the baby's gender, weight and time of birth.
For those not within range of sight, the firing of 103 shots from cannons are expected to be heard exploding across the city — 62 from the Tower of London and 41 from Green Park, AFP reports. The Union Jack flag will also be hoisted from government buildings across Britain.
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Media personnel and ladders have been outside the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in London for days, awaiting the royal baby's arrival.
The Royal salutes by the cannons are typical for Royal anniversaries with the most ever fired of 124 shots being when the Queen's birthday coincides with the Duke of Edinburgh's birthday in June, combining two 62-shot rounds.
As for the baby's name, it could be some time before it's made public. When William was born, a week passed before his name was announced. Charles's name remained a mystery for an entire month.
The baby's gender of particular interest because the prospect of Kate's pregnancy prompted a change to laws of succession, to ensure a daughter would not be passed over for the crown by a younger brother. Boy or girl, the child will titled the Prince or Princess of Cambridge and the prospective future monarch.
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The birth of Kate and Prince William's child may be one of the most anticipated in world history.
Despite the day's increasing heat and anticipated long wait in store, hundreds of members of the media and various spectators have been seen tightly packing the sidewalk directly across from Lindo Wing – some said for weeks in advance – with cameras ready for the slightest hint of an announcement. Among them enthusiastic well-wishers dressed, some, head-to-toe in Union Jack flags and carrying balloons mingled about.
As hours tick into Kate's labor reporters have been seen struggling to deliver continuous live reports outside the hospital with no news or updates to offer.
One BBC reporter's blatantly honest reporting on this obstacle has made him a kind of internet celebrity on YouTube and Twitter.
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Kate — looking ready to pop at a June 13 ceremony — is estimated to have been due July 13, making the royal tot fashionably late.
"Never have so many people been gathered in one place with nothing to say," Simon McCoy dryly says in one video report posted on YouTube by amused viewers.
After another report he throws back to his news anchors, perhaps a bit frustrated, with: "We'll have plenty more to come of here of course, none of it news, because that will come from Buckingham Palace, but that won't stop us."
Some journalists are seen busying themselves by placing bets on the baby’s name. An easel seen positioned among them reads the names: Alexandra, Charlotte, James, Victoria, Diana, Elizabeth, George, Mary, Alice, Frances, Alexander and Grace.
"Odds are it will a girl and called Alexandra, according to those betting. I've put 20 pounds done (sic) on the name being Victoria," Canadian Foreign Affairs Columnist Matthew Fisher tweeted outside the hospital early Monday morning.
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Pink for a girl? The Duchess of Cambridge and her husband reportedly didn’t find out the sex of their baby.
Others have been quick to point out that if the baby's born today under the Zodiac calendar it will be a Cancer. If born tomorrow it will be a Leo.
If a Cancer, the baby will share the same sign with William, who was born on June 21, and his mother Diana, whose birthday was July 1. If born a Leo it will share the same sign as Anne, Princess Royal, Princess Margaret, and President Barack Obama.
As the days dragged on and excitement grew, NBC “Today” show reporter Natalie Morales was photographed knitting baby booties to kill time in the media bullpen set up outside the hospital.
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The royal bundle of joy is coming! Kate Middleton is in labor after what may be the nine longest months palace-watchers have ever known.
Even Queen Elizabeth started to seem impatient for her royal grandchild to be born. “I would very much like it to arrive,” the queen said Wednesday during a visit with children. “I’m going on holiday.”
Officials have said that after the baby is born William will take two weeks' paternity leave and then return to his military duties as a search-and-rescue helicopter pilot in Wales.
His tour of duty is scheduled to end in September, and he and Kate are expected to move from their isolated cottage on the island of Anglesey off the coast of Wales to Kensington Palace in central London.
But refurbishment works at the palace won't be finished until at least a month or two after the baby's birth — meaning that William and Kate will most likely have to make do with their current home in London, a two-bedroom property at the palace.
Come autumn, however, the family will move into their permanent London home, Apartment 1a at Kensington Palace — a four-story house with a nursery, 20 rooms and a private garden.
With Sean Keane, Nina Golgowski and News Wire Services
