AUGUST BROOKSBANK

The Queen was an honoured guest at the christening of August Brooksbank in November 2021. The monarch had been one of the first people Princess Eugenie confided in when Jack Brooksbank proposed to her in 2018, so it’s no surprise Eugenie wanted her to be a significant part of her son’s life.

August Philip Hawke Brooksbank is named after Queen Victoria’s consort Prince Albert, whose middle name was Augustus, while his own middle name Philip is a sweet nod to his great-grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh, who died less than two months after August’s birth at London’s Portland Hospital on 21 February 2021.

“We named [him] August Philip, because Grandpa has been such a huge, inspiring character in my life,” Eugenie explained.

MEETING GRANDPA

She also revealed that she was able to take baby August, who is now 12th in the line of succession, to meet his namesake before the Duke passed away.

“I brought little August to come and meet him,” Eugenie said. “I told him that we’d named him after him. It was such a lovely moment. We were very lucky to do that.”

Despite never being able to get to know his greatgrandfather, August was fortunate to have the Queen as a close neighbour while he was growing up at Frogmore Cottage, on the Windsor estate.

He was also able to join the monarch during her summer holiday at Balmoral in Scotland, where she always delighted in spending time with the younger members of her family.

At the time, Eugenie said: “I think Granny is the most happy there, I think she really, really loves the Highlands… Walks, picnics, dogs – a lot of dogs, there’s always dogs…

“Family-wise we’re all there, so it’s a lovely base for Granny and Grandpa to be – for us to come and see them up there.”

His first family holiday was to see the Queen at Balmoral

Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank introduce baby August Philip to the world in 2021 (above). Although doctors had advised the Queen to rest due to a sprained back, she made sure she attended the joint christening of August and his second cousin Lucas Tindall that November (left). August showed his patriotism as he sat on his mother’s knee at the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Pageant (right)