Prince Louis is only 2 months old, but he's about to appear at his first big engagement!
The christening will mark the beginning of the prince's life in the Church of England,
which is governed by his great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth II.
Here's everything we know about this important moment for the royal family.
Prince Louis was born on April 23, 2018, meaning
he'll be 11 weeks old at the time. His siblings Prince George and Princess Charlotte were
christened at similar ages.
Royal christenings have taken place at several different locations. For many years, the family
favored Buckingham Palace, including for Prince William's 1982 ceremony. However, the Duke
and Duchess of Cambridge chose a more intimate venue for Prince George and Louis's christenings
by selecting the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace in London.
They're not the only ones. Meghan Markle also underwent the rite there before her wedding,
and Kate Middleton took communion in the space ahead of her own nuptials. The Chapel Royal
is also where the coffin of Princess Diana was laid before her funeral in 1997.
Today, St. James's Palace remains a busy working palace, even though the monarch does not live
there. Built in the 16th century by King Henry VIII, it now hosts some 100 official receptions
each year as well as many Court offices. Clarence House – the home of Prince Charles and Camilla,
the Duchess of Cornwall — stands adjacent to it.
Princess Charlotte's baptism took place in a different location, however. St. Mary Magdalene
Church in Norfolk hosted both her July 2015 christening as well as her late grandmother's
in 1961.
As the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby is the most senior bishop in the church of
England and the symbolic head of the Anglican faith. Installed in 2013, he has also baptized
Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Meghan Markle.
For both of Prince Louis's siblings, he used water from the River Jordan, the believed
location of Jesus's baptism by Saint John.
Queen Victoria commissioned the original garment
for her oldest daughter, and 62 different royal babies then wore it from 1841 until
2004. Made of Honiton lace, the gown borrowed stylistic elements from the Queen's white
wedding dress. But after more than 160 years of use, the
royal family made the decision to retire the historic and fragile fabric. The Queen's personal
assistant and dresser Angela Kelly commissioned an exact replica of the original, which debuted
in 2008 at the christening of the Queen's youngest grandchild James Viscount Severn.
His older brother has seven and his sister
has five, so more than two isn't out of the norm. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have
previously chosen close friends, cousins, and other relatives to fill the role.
A 2-year-old Prince George stole the show at his younger sister's christening, so expect
to see more royal cuteness in July. Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Camilla,
the Duchess of Cornwall, and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will also probably fill
out the audience of about 20 to 30 guests that day. Prince Philip may or may not attend
based on his health; he has skipped several recent high-profile events including the Royal
Ascot and the Trooping the Colour following his recent hip surgery.