This sweet, colorized photo of an adoring mother and her beautiful newborn may look like many other images from the 1960s except that this mother is Queen Elizabeth II and the babe in her arms is her third child, Prince Andrew.
Queen Elizabeth with her newborn son, Prince Andrew. (Colorizer: Duriez Image: https://www.flickr.com/photos/105862585@N04/37517474571/)
This week, the world learned of the birth of a new member of the British royal family, Lilibet Diana, the daughter of Harry and Meghan. On this occasion, let’s look back at the birth of Harry’s controversial uncle, Prince Andrew, the first of Elizabeth’s children to be born after she was crowned queen.
The Third of Four Children
Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip, and their four children, Princess Anne, and the princes, Charles, Edward, and Andrew. (closerweekly.com)
Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, the late Prince Philip, have four children. Prince Charles was born in 1948 and Princess Anne was born in 1950. Elizabeth was crowned in 1952 and, for a time, her royal duties took over her life. Ten years after Anne was born, the Queen gave birth to her third child, Andrew, who was named after his paternal grandfather, Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark. The Queen’s last child, Prince Edward, was born in 1964.
Different Childbirth Experiences Each Time
It's true ... Prince Philip was playing polo while Queen Elizabeth gave birth to their first child without him. (bbc.com)
Each time that Queen Elizabeth gave birth, the experience was different. But her deliveries mirrored the childbirth trends of the day. For example, it was not customary for fathers to be in the delivery room until the 1970s and 1980s. When Prince Charles was born, Prince Philip was playing polo with friends. Charles’s birth also marked the first time in the history of the British monarchy that a royal heir was born without the event being witnessed by the Home Secretary, as was customary. The only time Prince Philip was present at the birth of one of his children was when Prince Edward was born.
Prince Andrew and the Twilight Sleep
Princess Anne is 10 years older than Prince Andrew. Prince Charles is 12 years older. (britannica.com)
When Queen Elizabeth went into labor with Prince Andrew, she followed the advice of her doctors and underwent a process known as the “twilight sleep”. Basically, the doctors will give a laboring woman enough drugs, usually morphine, to knock her out during the entirety of her labor and delivery. She will simply drift off the sleep and wake up with a newborn baby and no recollection of the pain or miracle of childbirth. Since the mother is unconscious throughout the process, the doctors are much more likely to have to assist in the delivery of the child using forceps. This form of childbirth was controversial even when Prince Andrew was born, therefore Queen Elizabeth did not use it again when her last child was born.
A February Baby
Prince Andrew with his mother, the Queen. (cheatsheet.com)
Prince Andrew came into the world on February 19, 1960, just in time of Tea Time. He weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces, and was delivered in the Belgian Suite in Buckingham Palace. Andrew’s birth marked the first time that a reigning monarch has given birth since 1857 when Queen Victoria delivered her youngest child, Princess Beatrice. On April 8, 1960, Prince Andrew was baptized by the Archbishop of Canterbury in an event that garnered much fanfare.
The Spare Heir
Royal brothers, Andrew, Charles, and Edward. (pinterest.com)
Andrew’s birth fulfilled the wishes of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip to have an “heir and a spare”, a traditional family planning move among royals. Today, royal succession does not differentiate between genders, but it did in 1960 when Andrew was born. As the firstborn, Prince Charles would be heir to the British throne, but if something were to happen to him, the family would need another male to take the crown. Andrew fulfilled that role, even though Prince Charles, at age 72, is still waiting for his shot to be king.
An Inactive Prince
Prince Andrew is currently facing some shocking allegations. (forbes.com)
As for Prince Andrew, although he still retains the title of prince, he has taken a step back from all his royal duties. He is currently embroiled in the Jeffery Epstein sex trafficking allegations and is being investigated by both British and American authorities. The sweet baby shown in this colorized photograph from 1960 was once his mother’s pride and joy and even a military hero, but has fallen from grace.
