The royal family spend their lives in the public eye, so it's oddly fitting that they make their debut on the world's stage when they are just a few hours old. A picture of the beaming and dazed parents posing with their brand-new baby on the hospital steps has become a rite of passage, but it's a relatively new practice, as the queen gave birth to each of her four children in royal residences so they were all primped, posed, and ready for their close-up by the time the cameras were allowed in.
Let's a look at some landmark moments . . .
Four years before she acceded the throne, the then-Princess Elizabeth gave birth to her first child, Prince Charles, in November 1948. It was a time when royal babies were born at home, and although Buckingham Palace was not yet Elizabeth's place of residence, it was deemed fitting that she deliver the next in line to the throne there. The young prince made his pictorial debut a few weeks later.
By the time her daughter Anne was born in 1950, the then-Princess Elizabeth was living in Clarence House (which is now home to Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall). In a matter of weeks, the baby princess was introduced to the world.
Prince Andrew was the first of the queen's children to be born after she had acceded the throne. Her home was now Buckingham Palace and so the little prince was born there in 1960.
The queen's fourth child, Edward, was also born at home in Buckingham Palace and made an early public appearance on board the royal train soon afterward in 1964.
Princess Anne turned her back on the tradition of giving birth at home by delivering both of her children in a hospital, starting a trend when she chose St. Mary's in Paddington. In 1977, her son, Peter Phillips, was carried down the steps to the waiting car by one of the nursing team.
In 1981, Princess Anne returned to St. Mary's Hospital, where she gave birth to her daughter, Zara.
Princess Diana followed in the footsteps of sister-in-law Princess Anne when she chose St. Mary's, where she gave birth to Prince William in 1982.
In 1984, Prince Harry came into the world in St. Mary's, just like his cousins Peter and Zara and big brother William.
In 1988, Andrew and Sarah decided on the Portland Hospital rather than following in the footsteps of Charles and Diana.
In 1990, Princess Eugenie came into the world in the Portland Hospital, as had big sister Beatrice two years earlier.
In 2003, Lady Louise Windsor was the first member of the royal family to be born in a publicly funded National Health Service hospital rather than a private facility. Her mother, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, went into labor a month early and was rushed to the nearest hospital — Frimley Park — where she had an emergency caesarean section.
Sophie and Edward returned to Frimley Park Hospital in 2007 for the birth of their son James, Viscount Severn.
When it came to choosing where deliver their first child, unsurprisingly, William and Kate chose the hospital where William and brother Harry were both born. Prince George came into the world at St. Mary's Hospital back in July 2013.
In 2015, Princess Charlotte followed in the bootie-clad footsteps of big brother George when she made her public debut at just a few hours old on the steps of St. Mary's Hospital.