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Christened: Charles Philip Arthur George The Heir Arrives Prince Charles is the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. The heir apparent to the throne was born at Buckingham Palace on 14 November 1948, and was christened Charles Philip Arthur George.
 In a speech to the House of Commons two days after Charles' birth, Winston Churchill remarked: Our ancient Monarchy renders inestimable services to our country and to all the British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations. Above the ebb and flow of party strife, the rise and fall of Ministries and individuals, the changes of public opinion and fortune, the British Monarchy presides ancient, calm and supreme within its functions, over all the treasures that have been saved from the past and all the glories we write in the annals of our country. Our thoughts go out to the mother and father and, in a special way today, to the little Prince, now born into this world of strife and storm." The little Prince was soon followed by a sister, Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise. She was two years younger, and was a boisterous little girl. Younger but tougher, she took after their father, Prince Philip. When she grew older, her personality was certainly that of Philip's. Anne had a no-nonsense approach to life and often spoke her mind, although sometimes it was a bit gruff. Charles, on the other hand, was gentle and shy like his mother. When approached by photographers, he would let them snap a few shots and offer a small 'Hello'. Anne would not have it. If she was not in the mood to be photographed, she would crinkle her nose in disgust and hold up her hand to shoo them away. But despite different personalities, Charles and Anne were very close, bonded by the fact that they were the only children of the Queen and Prince Philip at the time and very close in age. When they were older, they even went on royal tours together, representing their mother during her reign.
Prince Philip, meanwhile, was often away at sea as a naval officer in command of his own ship. When King George died February 6, 1952, Elizabeth succeeded him as Monarch. This was quite a change in everyone's life, especially that of the little Prince. When she became Queen, Philip had to leave the Navy and the workload increased 100-fold for both of them. With all of that, the time for their children grew even slimmer. Everyone's time was now being devoted to arranging royal tours to present the new Sovereign to her people. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother stepped in most times, doting on the young lad. Their bond was as strong as ever into Charles' adulthood due to her care and devotion when he was a child. Travel plans aside, the most important thing now was to organize Elizabeth II's coronation. At four years old, Charles probably did not understand the significance of the grand event, but little did he realize that he was witnessing his own future. Royal School Days Elizabeth had ascended the throne, and Philip was now in charge of the household and the heir's schooling. Philip was educated at Cheam School and at Salem, a spartan and rigorous school in Southern Germany. Salem's headmaster, Kurt Hahn, moved to Scotland to start Gordonstoun, a British version of Salem. Philip followed Hahn to Gordonstoun and was a promising student. He excelled in sport and enjoyed the challenging way of life it presented. Philip thought it fit for his son, but the sensitive and quiet Charles was of a completely different opinion. He was not comfortable at Gordonstoun at all. Even after being there for a couple of years, life was still miserable. Charles wrote letters home complaining of the bullying: It's such hell here, especially at night... The people in my dormitory are foul. Goodness they are horrid... They throw slippers all night long or hit me with pillows or rush across the room and hit me as hard as they can... It's such a HOLE this place!" He was teased mercilessly about his ears, which was cruel to say the least. Lord Mountbatten, his great-uncle and mentor, told the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh to surgically fix the problem, but to no avail. As Charles grew older though, he 'grew into' his ears, thus eliminating a need for surgery. Charles spent part of the school year in 1966 as an exchange student in Melbourne, Australia - the first member of the British Royal family to attend an overseas school in the Commonwealth. He had a delightful time there, and although activities could be just as strenuous as Gordonstoun's at times, Charles felt happy being part of a group and making friends. The boys with him at Timbertop were much nicer than in Scotland's spartan school, and although he was much farther from home, Charles was not stricken with homesickness. Between 1967 and 1970, the Prince read archaeology and anthropology and, for his last two years, history at the University of Cambridge. He particularly enjoyed appearing in several college revues and gaining his University Colours for polo. In 1969 he spent one summer term in Aberystwyth at the University of Wales, before his formal investiture as Prince of Wales in Caernarvon Castle on July 1 of that same year. Soon after, he graduated from Cambridge with a BA degree in 1970. He is the first Prince of Wales to obtain a university degree. King Edward VIII, Charles' great-uncle 'David', said he dreaded having to dress in the uniform of silk breeches and carry out the investiture. He claimed it was a "perposterous rig" and felt embarassed at the thought of his schoolmates seeing him in this costume. Young Edward felt he had no choice, however, and noted that it would most likely be "helpful to Papa [George V]...". Charles, however, took the ceremony very seriously and greatly enjoyed carrying on the tradition.
 The Prince of Wales took up his first Service appointment in 1969 as Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Regiment of Wales. He became Colonel of the Welsh Guards in 1975, succeeding his father, The Duke of Edinburgh, and now holds a number of Service appointments. He learned to fly jet aircraft and obtained his RAF wings at the Royal Air Force College at Cranwell. In the Fall of 1971 the Prince joined the Royal Navy. He operated the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and in early 1976 he took command of the coastal minehunter HMS Bronington. Charles had also qualified as a helicopter pilot in 1974 at the Royal Naval Air Station and joined the Naval Air Squadron on flying duties. He currently holds the rank of Rear-Admiral in the Royal Navy, Major-General in the Army and Air Vice-Marshal in the Royal Air Force.
 Family Life July 29, 1981 was the date of The Prince of Wales' marriage to Lady Diana Spencer in St Paul's Cathedral. Fifteen years later, the marriage would be dissolved. However, during their union, they produced the future king, Prince William Arthur Philip Louis ("the heir") and his brother Prince Henry Charles Albert David ("the spare"). The two boys are second and third in line to the throne. Charles adores his sons, and as they have grown older he has tried to keep them as safe as possible from the prying lenses of the media. He knows that their lives are of public interest, just as his has been. Charles is very aware that things have changed since his youth, however, and the intrusion of the press into the lives of public figures was brought home during his marriage to Diana.
In April of 2005, Prince Charles married Camilla Shand Parker-Bowles. Upon marriage, Camilla officially became known as HRH the Duchess of Cornwall, the feminine form of Charles' other title, Duke of Cornwall. Camilla is, in fact, Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales, but instead goes by Duchess. This was done to circumvent any animosity from the public at the use of the Princess of Wales title. Charles at Home Charles' home, Highgrove, was purchased for him by the Duchy of Cornwall, the hereditary estate of the Prince of Wales. The Gloucestershire home had once belonged to the son of former Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. When The Duchy of Cornwall bought Highgrove in 1980, the grounds were decidedly sparse. However, The Prince of Wales is a bit of a greenthumb and over the past 20 years has been the central figure in the transformation of the grounds into a well-renowned organic garden. It is not a grandiose area, but one of intimacy and the love of the environment.
The Prince has written a book with Charles Clover about Highgrove's garden and how he has developed it with advice from professional garden designers. The royalties from the sale of Highgrove: An Experiment in Organic Gardening and Farming Important Prince Charles Links:
The latest news on Charles and family
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Even though Charles had Anne for companionship, a large part of his life was spent in the care of nannies and his grandparents, the king and queen. While he loved and admired his parents, it was the nannies and his grannie with whom he formed personal relationships. When Charles was little, his mother was quite busy with royal duties. She was having to take on more and more as her father's illness grew worse.
Charles has allowed orchestrated photo sessions with his sons, but he tries as hard as he can to help retain their privacy. The Prince is supported in this endevour whole-heartedly by Her Majesty, who has since given William and Harry the task of representing the Crown abroad. The royal family hopes that the media will be satiated by the Princes at official events, rather than come after them in their private time.
, benefit The Prince of Wales' Charitable Foundation.