Prince Louis, the youngest child of Kate Middleton and Prince William is believed to be named after Lord Louis Mountbatten. The young prince was born on April 23, 2018, and when his name was released, it was likely in tribute to the late Lord. So who is Lord Louis Mountbatten and why did Prince William choose to honour his great-great uncle with his third child’s name?

Lord Louis Mountbatten was born on June 25, 1900 and was a British Royal Navy officer and statesman.

In 1979, he was killed by a bomb set by members of the Privisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) hidden aboard his fishing boat in Mullaghmore, County Sligo, Ireland.

Louis was related to both Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip.

Being the great-grandson of Queen Victoria, he was Philip’s uncle and the current monarch’s second cousin once removed.

Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, was Lord Louis’ sister.

During the Second World War, Lord Mountbatten was Supreme Allied Commander in the South East Asia Command from 1943 to 1946.

He was also the last Viceroy of India in 1947 and the first Governor-General of independent India from 1947 to 1948.

From 1954 to 1959, he was First Sea Lord, a position that had been held by his father, Prince Louis of Battenberg.

The lord also served as Chief of the Defence Staff until 1965, making him the longest-serving professional head of the British Armed Forces to date.

During this period Louis also served as Chairman of the NATO Military Committee for a year.

On July 18, 1922, Lord Louis Mountbatten married Edwina Cynthia Annette Ashley.

The two had a controversial marriage, with Louis admitting “Edwina and I spent all our married lives getting into other people’s beds.”

According to the Washington Post, the couple “cut a deal” in 1931: “They would stay together with separate beds and, to some extent, separate lives.

“But they would remain loving, mutually supportive chums. Above all, they would be discreet.”

Edwina and Louis still had two children together, both daughters.

Patricia Knatchbull, 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma was born on February 14, 1924 and Lady Pamela Hicks was born on April 19, 1929.

On August 27, 1979, Lord Mountbatten was killed at age 79 in a terrorist attack by the IRA.

His fishing boat, named Shadow V, was blown up off the coast of the Republic of Ireland by a bomb that had been smuggled aboard.

The IRA took responsibility for the explosion calling it “an execution” and published a statement promising to continue the “noble struggle to drive the British intruders out of our native land.”

Why did Prince William and Kate Middleton name their third child Louis?

While Prince Philip is the main connection to the Mountbatten family, William’s decision to call his child Prince Louis may have been more to do with his father.

Prince Charles was known to have a close bond with his great uncle Lord Mountbatten, seeing him as a second father figure at times he and his real father, the Duke of Edinburgh, failed to see eye to eye.

Mountbatten counselled Charles throughout his childhood, most famously his love life – suggesting the young prince should be “sowing some wild oats” before settling down.

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