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Queen Elizabeth II is addressed formally by mostly everyone in the world. Same goes for Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall (opens in new tab). But at just 5 and 3, Prince George and Princess Charlotte don't use such grand titles when they're getting into hijinks at family gatherings (opens in new tab).
So what do they (and Prince Louis, once he starts talking!) call the Queen and potential future queen (opens in new tab) behind closed doors? Apparently both of these royals eschew the traditional "grandma" and "granny."
"My own grandchildren call me GaGa," Camilla told the Daily Mail (opens in new tab), shortly after Prince George's birth. "I don’t know if it’s because they think I am! It is funny but is still very sweet."
Before the littlest Cambridges arrived, Camilla already had five grandchildren of her own via her first marriage to Andrew Parker Bowles. Her son Tom Parker Bowles has two kids while his sister Laura Lopes has three. In fact, Laura's daughter Eliza served as a bridesmaid at the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding!
Michael and Carole Middleton (the Duchess of Cambridge’s parents) stand next to Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall on their children’s wedding day in 2011. Prince Charles is holding up Eliza Lopes, Camilla’s granddaughter and a bridesmaid.
While it's unclear whether George and Charlotte adopted the same nickname, Prince William did let a little info slip. In last year's ITV documentary (opens in new tab) Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy, the Duke of Cambridge stated that he regularly reminds his children of "two grandmothers in their lives:" Carole Middleton and the late Diana, Princess of Wales. It makes sense that they use another familiarity to describe Prince Charles's second wife.
Whatever name they picked, the new biography The Duchess: Camilla Parker Bowles and the Love Affair That Rocked the Crown (opens in new tab) paints a picture of a totally doting matriarch. Every June, Camilla hosts a massive party for both her grandchildren and the grandchildren of friends, and it sounds like a toddler's dream come true.
"In 2016 there were about 90 children tucking into sandwiches, cakes, and jellies and roaring around the garden at Clarence House, having tugs of war and watching spellbound as magicians did tricks and entertainers made them laugh," author Penny Junor (opens in new tab) wrote.
As for the Queen, the Duchess of Cambridge spilled the beans on Prince George's informal name for the sovereign in another ITV documentary, Our Queen at Ninety. "He calls her ‘Gan-Gan,’” Kate said (opens in new tab), adding that the Queen totally dotes on her youngest descendents. “She always leaves a little gift or something in their room when we go and stay, and that just shows her love for the family.”
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip, Princess Charlotte, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Prince George, and Prince William, look out from the balcony of Buckingham Palace during the Trooping the Color parade on June 17, 2017 in London, England.
How sweet is that?! Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis must love visiting Gan-Gan's house, or as the rest of us know it, Buckingham Palace.
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