Prince William

---
name: 'Prince William'
relatedPeople:
  - 'prince-harry-of-wales'
  - 'roger-waters'
  - 'ed-westwick'
  - 'wayne-rooney'
date: '2012-08-23'
sources:
  - sourceTitle: 'Royal Faith: A Reflection on the Confirmation of Catherine Middleton'
    sourceUrl: 'http://www.unofficialroyalty.com/the-laird-othistle/1004-royal-faith-a-reflection-on-the-confirmation-of-catherine-middleton'
  - sourceTitle: 'Kate Middleton Confirmed In Church Of England'
    sourceUrl: 'http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/13/kate-middleton-confirmed-church_n_848720.html'
  - sourceTitle: 'Centuries-old ties are fraying between English church, state'
    sourceUrl: 'http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2011-04-26-Wedding_England_church__25_ST_N.htm'
  - sourceTitle: "Prince William: 'we must balance conservation with growing needs of human race.'"
    sourceUrl: 'http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/6948578/Prince-William-we-must-balance-conservation-with-growing-needs-of-human-race.html'
  - sourceTitle: 'The Prince William and Kate MIddleton Wedding: An Eco-Friendly Wedding or an Environmental Disaster?'
    sourceUrl: 'http://www.cereplast.com/the-prince-william-and-kate-middleton-wedding-an-eco-friendly-wedding-or-an-environmental-disaster/'
  - sourceTitle: "Prince William and Kate Middleton to build eco-friendly 'starter home.'"
    sourceUrl: 'http://planetforward.ca/blog/prince-william-and-kate-middleton-to-build-eco-friendly-starter-home/'
summaries:
  religion: 'Prince William is officially an Anglican, but his real religious sentiments will likely always be a mystery.'
  politicalViews: 'William, like all British royals, is forbidden to take any political positions. But his commitment to environmentalism pits him against western conservatism.'
---

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, was born in London, England.

William is, by law, an Anglican Christian. All royals in England are required to be members of the Church of England and when William eventually ascends to the throne, becoming the King of England, he will assume such religious titles as "Supreme Governor" and "Defender of the Faith."<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.unofficialroyalty.com%2Fthe-laird-othistle%2F1004-royal-faith-a-reflection-on-the-confirmation-of-catherine-middleton" title="Royal Faith: A Reflection on the Confirmation of Catherine Middleton">[1]</a>

This unique marriage of church and state in England is the source of quite a bit of controversy. And while the law requiring that royals can only marry Anglicans in England has been effectively repealed, William's new wife, Kate Middleton still officially converted to the Church of England before their wedding.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffingtonpost.com%2F2011%2F04%2F13%2Fkate-middleton-confirmed-church_n_848720.html" title="Kate Middleton Confirmed In Church Of England">[2]</a>

The question still remains as to Prince William's true religious beliefs. Of course, he would never say if he doesn't buy what the Anglicans are selling. But there is a lot of speculation that William and Kate reflect the sentiments of their increasingly non-religious fellow Brits. As one journalist put it:

> For his part, William has expressed little concern about or commitment to either the Church of England or Christianity. Those close to the couple say they are, like their peers, quietly indifferent about religion.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.usatoday.com%2Fnews%2Freligion%2F2011-04-26-Wedding_England_church__25_ST_N.htm" title="Centuries-old ties are fraying between English church, state">[3]</a>

It would appear that William is just keeping up appearances. But that's nothing new for royalty.

## The most non-political political position in the world

British royals are not allowed to take political positions, make political statements, endorse political candidates, join any political party, or even vote.

They are, however, obligated to support charity organizations, both with their names and their money. With the debate in the West raging over the validity of claims that humans are causing climate change and are, with their greed, destroying the natural world. Liberals take the position that these claims are true while conservatives remain skeptical. In this debate, Prince William, much like his father, sides with the liberals.

One of the good Duke's pet charities is an organization called Tusk, which tasks itself with helping undeveloped communities thrive sustainably. Prince William said of his decision to bequeath his royal charity money to Tusk:

> The imperative of balancing conservation of wildlife and natural resources with the ever growing needs of the human race is at the heart of the great challenge facing mankind today.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegraph.co.uk%2Fnews%2Fuknews%2Ftheroyalfamily%2F6948578%2FPrince-William-we-must-balance-conservation-with-growing-needs-of-human-race.html" title="Prince William: &apos;we must balance conservation with growing needs of human race.&apos;">[4]</a>

Plus, William and Kate's wedding was a consciously eco-friendly affair<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cereplast.com%2Fthe-prince-william-and-kate-middleton-wedding-an-eco-friendly-wedding-or-an-environmental-disaster%2F" title="The Prince William and Kate MIddleton Wedding: An Eco-Friendly Wedding or an Environmental Disaster?">[5]</a> and the first home that they built together is up to top-notch green standards.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fplanetforward.ca%2Fblog%2Fprince-william-and-kate-middleton-to-build-eco-friendly-starter-home%2F" title="Prince William and Kate Middleton to build eco-friendly &apos;starter home.&apos;">[6]</a>

While many think this is common-sense responsibility, it still puts William on the liberal side.


What are the views of Prince William on Vaccines?