Princess Eugenie baby: The royal traditions the Queen might miss this time

Watch: Royal family's delight as Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank welcome their first child

The Queen has become a great-grandmother for the ninth time as her granddaughter Princess Eugenie had her first baby, a boy, on 9 February 2021.

In the coming months, she can expect to hit double digits of great-grandchildren, with Zara Tindall also pregnant. The Queen’s granddaughter has suffered two miscarriages but is expecting her third child later this year.

The Tindalls have not given a timeframe, but it’s possible they were announcing their news after the 12-week scan, which is usually when couples share news of a new pregnancy.

So that would mean the baby is due in early summer.

Birth announcements

For most royal babies there is a protocol around their birth.

However, when the babies are this far down the line of succession, things might be a bit different.

When Zara had her daughters, the official announcements of their arrival came via the palace, despite her not having a royal title or a full-time royal role.

So it’s likely that Buckingham Palace could announce the birth of their third child in the same way.

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But Mike Tindall confirmed she was pregnant on his podcast, so there could be a more informal update via his social media channels.

He also confirmed Mia’s name via Twitter, so could do the same this time.

Eugenie opted for a more formal announcement, with Buckingham Palace sharing the news on its official channels on Tuesday, 9 February.

Soon after the palace shared their posts, the princess added her own more personal message - a picture of the baby's hand, holding hers and Brooksbank's, captioned with three blue heart emojis.

Lockdown visits

Like many grandparents and extended family across the UK, the Queen and Prince Philip will probably have to wait some time before they can meet the new arrivals.

If lockdown restrictions ease, they might get to see the new babies outside, but could still have to keep their distance. Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank were previously thought to have been moving into Frogmore Cottage, close to the Queen’s home in Windsor.

That would make facilitating an outdoor visit easier, and the new family could also pop in on Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, who live in the Royal Lodge in Windsor.

For Zara and Mike, that may be a bit trickier as they live slightly further away, in Gloucestershire. But they are on the same estate as Zara’s mother, Princess Anne, and her brother, Peter Phillips.

Read more: Everything you need to know about the Queen's grandchildren

Her later due date will give them hope there may be some more normality by the time she has her child.

Whether a photograph of the Queen meeting her new great-grandchildren will be released is not clear as there is no set format.

Harry and Meghan opted to release pictures of the Queen and Philip meeting Archie, but this is not something William and Kate had done in the same way.

Instead, they had family photos taken at the christenings.

William and Kate also released pictures of Charlotte, their daughter cuddling Louis, which gave a glimpse of the baby prince.

Ultimately, Zara and Eugenie’s further distance from the throne gives them a bit more flexibility, though they will be keen to honour their grandmother with anything they do publically.

Royal Christenings

Another royal tradition that could be disrupted are the christenings.

William and Kate’s youngest child, Prince Louis, was christened in July 2018, at just three-months-old.

But with current restrictions on the number of people who can be at funerals, let alone at christenings, it will be hard for Eugenie and Jack to plan the ceremony for their baby.

While the Cambridges children were christened as small babies, the Church of England says there is technically no limit on the age a child can be christened, so Eugenie could wait until a bigger service is permitted.

Watch: Have Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank moved out of Frogmore Cottage?