The Prince of Wales, oldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of

Edinburgh is heir apparent to the throne.

The Prince was born at Buckingham Palace on 14 November 1948, and was christened

Charles Philip Arthur George.

When, on the accession of Queen Elizabeth in 1952, he became heir apparent,

Prince Charles automatically became Duke of Cornwall under a charter of King

Edward III dating back to 1337, which gave that title to the Sovereign's eldest

Son. He also became, in the Scottish Peerage, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick

And Baron Renfrew, Lord of the Isles, and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.

The Prince was created Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester in 1958. In 1968, The

Prince of Wales was installed as a Knight of the Garter. The Duke of Rothesay

(As he is known in Scotland) was appointed a Knight of the Thistle in 1977

Education

The Prince was educated at Cheam School and at Gordonstoun, Scotland. He spent

Part of the school year in 1966 as an exchange student at the Geelong Church of

England Grammar School, Melbourne, Australia - the first member of the British

Royal family to attend an overseas Commonwealth school.

Between 1967 and 1970, the Prince read archaeology and anthropology and, for his

last two years, history, at the University of Cambridge. He took an active part

In undergraduate life, appearing in several college revues and gaining his

University Colors ('half-Blue') 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 1 July 1969. He graduated from Cambridge with a

BA (Honours) degree in 1970. The Prince took his seat in the House of Lords in

The same year

Military career

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, in succession to The Duke of Edinburgh, and now holds a number

of Service appointments.

In 1971 he spent six months at the Royal Air Force College at Cranwell learning

To fly jet aircraft and obtaining his RAF wings.

In the autumn of 1971 the Prince entered the Royal Navy. Following service on a

Guided-missile destroyer and two frigates, he qualified as a helicopter pilot in

1974 at the Royal Naval Air Station at Yeovilton in Somerset. Subsequently, the

Prince joined 845 Naval Air Squadron on Commando flying duties, operating from

The aircraft carrier HMS HERMES.

In early 1976 he took command of the coastal mine hunter HMS BRONINGTON. The

Prince left the Royal Navy at the end of 1976.

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.

Marriage and family

On 29 July 1981 The Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in St Paul's

Cathedral. The marriage of The Prince and Princess of Wales was dissolved on 28

August 1996. The Princess of Wales was killed in a car crash on 31 August 1997

In Paris.

Their two children, Prince William and Prince Henry, are second and third in

Line of succession to the throne.

Prince William Arthur Philip Louis was born on 21 June 1982 at St Mary's

Hospital, Paddington, in London. He was christened by the Archbishop of

Canterbury at Buckingham Palace and he was confirmed by the Bishop of London at

St George's Chapel in 1997. Prince William is currently at Eton College,

Windsor. He undertakes no official engagements on his own, although he attended

the VE and VJ commemorations in 1995 in London with his family.

Prince Henry Charles Albert David was born on 15 September 1984 at St Mary's

Hospital, Paddington. He was christened by the Archbishop of Canterbury in

December 1984 in St George's Chapel, Windsor

Prince Harry also attended the VE and VJ commemorations, and in November 1997 he

accompanied the Prince of Wales to South Africa. In the summer of 1998, Prince

Harry accompanied his father to France to watch England play in a World Cup

match.

In September, Prince Harry started at Eton College, Windsor.

Activities and interests

The Prince of Wales takes a keen and, where possible, active interest in all

areas of public life. Each year he undertakes a large number of public

engagements both in Britain and overseas - some 290 in 1997. He is associated as

a patron or president with around 200 organisations, covering a wide range of

interests and activities - young people, the unemployed, the disabled, the

elderly, the problems of the inner cities, education, medicine, the arts,

conservation, national heritage, environment, architecture and sport. Not all of

The Prince of Wales' work is carried out in public. There are frequent private

meetings and discussions with Government Ministers, political figures,

academics, experts and the business community, through which he has access to a

wide range of opinion and thinking on national and international issues.

Education

As well as pursuing his concern for the standards and quality of education,

particularly for deprived young people, through the work of The Prince's Trust,

The Prince of Wales takes an active interest in educational projects: the

teaching of Shakespeare (he is President of the Royal Shakespeare Company and

has established a Shakespeare Summer School for teachers, run by the RSC), and

the provision of scholarships for students from overseas that might not be able

to afford to study in Britain. He is Chairman of the Cambridge Commonwealth

Trust, and Vice-Patron of the British Council

Architecture

The Prince of Wales's interest in the built environment and in the importance of

re-establishing an integrated approach to traditional building crafts and to the

involvement of the community in architecture, is well known. In 1988 he

presented a major television documentary on architecture in Britain, A Vision of

Britain. On

Duchy of Comwall land at Poundbury, Dorchester, he has developed an approach to

building which reflects many of his concerns for the quality of life in the

modern built environment. His work with the Urban Villages Forum is intended -

with his other initiatives - to help create in urban developments a sense of

identity and belonging among those who live in modern cities.

Health

Although best known for his advocacy of certain recognised complementary

therapies, The Prince of Wales is also a keen supporter of 'integrated' health

care, believing that patients should have available to them the best of both

orthodox and complementary medicine. The Prince is Patron of the Foundation for

Integrated Medicine and President of the King's Fund and has been President of

the Royal College of General Practitioners. As Patron of SANE, the mental health

charity, and Macmillan Cancer Relief and through his work with hospices, housing

and care for the elderly and the disabled, he has considerable experience across

the field of health care.

Overseas visits

The Prince of Wales undertakes a regular programme of official visits overseas,

in all parts of the world. His visits combine a number of functions. They enable

him to see for himself a wide range of international issues and to meet a great

variety of heads of state, senior official figures and people from all walks of

life who will become key figures in their own countries. He is able to use his

visits to promote Britain, British interests and British business in the widest

sense. His visits are also the means to pursue his working interests

internationally. The Prince also occasionally represents The Queen at overseas