Earlier this week, the very happy news was shared that Pippa Middleton, Kate Middleton's sister, had given birth to her second child, a daughter named Grace Elizabeth Jane. Pippa and her husband, James Matthews (who is Made In Chelsea's Spencer Matthews' brother), already share a son together named Arthur.
Royal correspondent Rebecca English shared the announcement on Twitter on Monday afternoon, writing: "I hear Pippa (Middleton) Matthews had her second baby this morning. Grace Elizabeth Jane was born at 4.22am weighing 6lbs 7oz. Mother and baby are doing well. A family source tells me: ‘She’s perfect, everyone is overjoyed at such a happy arrival.’ Sweet!"
Now, eagle-eyed royal fans have spotted that baby Grace's name pays a sweet tribute to her aunt, the Duchess of Cambridge, as Kate's full name is actually Catherine Elizabeth Middleton. That's right - the pair share a rather royal-sounding middle name!
However, while the moniker isn't thought to be paying homage to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, it does give a nod to another rather important matriarch – Pippa and Kate's great-grandmother, who was named Elizabeth 'Lily' Harrison (who gave birth to the sisters' grandmother, Dorothy, in 1935).
Pippa and Kate's mother, Carole, also shares the middle name 'Elizabeth' too, as does Kate's daughter, Princess Charlotte (whose full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana Mountbatten-Windsor), meaning it's well and truly one that runs in the family.
Speaking to the Daily Mail about the significance of the name following Charlotte's birth, Pippa and Kate's great-aunt, Ruth Pritchard, said, "I am thrilled that they have chosen Elizabeth as one of the names. The name has been in my family for generations and is very important to us. My mum was much loved by her family, was devoted to Dad and us children, and always did the best for us."
Everyone's clicking on...
Pippa and Kate have long shared a close relationship, with Pippa being assigned the important role of maid of honour at the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding (they will celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary next month).
After the grand affair, Pippa appeared on Today and said at the time, she had no idea how large a scale the wedding would be on: "It sounds funny to say but we as a family just saw it as a family wedding," she shared. "And perhaps actually I didn’t realise the scale of it until afterward. I had to make sure I helped my sister where I should and looked after the bridesmaids and pageboys, but we really saw it as a family getting together and doing their bit."
Congratulations to Pippa and James on their new addition!
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Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
