The INSIDER Summary:
- Princess Diana once revealed in an interview that Prince William and Prince Harry were almost given different names.
- Princes Charles wanted to name them Albert and Arthur.
- Diana said she shut those names down because they sounded "too old."
Can you even imagine a world without Prince William and Prince Harry? It almost happened. Well, sort of. Prince William and Prince Harry the people were always going to exist, but it turns out that if their dad, Prince Charles, had had his way they both would have had different names.
It's not too surprising that Charles and Diana would have wanted to give their kids classically regal-sounding names, as is the tradition of the English royal family. But in a recorded interview, the late Diana revealed that she picked the first names for both their boys because Charles had names picked out that she thought sounded a little too dated for '80s babies.
When asked, "Who chose Harry's name?" Diana responded, "I did," and added, "I chose William and Harry, but Charles did the rest."
As fans of the royal family will know, it's common for members of the family to have a whole bunch of names — William is actually Prince William Arthur Philip Louis, and Harry's full name is Prince Henry Charles Albert David. Even though he got to pick everything but the boys' first names, Diana revealed that he had opinions about those too, but she shut him down.
"He wanted Albert and Arthur, and I said no," she explained. "Too old!"
Of course, should either of the boys become king, it's likely that he'll change his name. Even though there's some question whether Charles will actually take the throne or if he'll abdicate it to Prince William when his turn comes up, he's expected to be called King George VII, should he take his place as the next heir for the seat.
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