Who Is the Queen’s Youngest Granddaughter, Lady Louise Windsor?

Lady Louise Windsor is the oldest of Sophie (Duchess of Edinburgh) and Prince Edward (the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip). She is also the youngest niece of King Charles and cousin to Prince William, Prince Harry, Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice, Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall.

Additionally, Lady Louise is the older sister of James, Earl of Wessex—the youngest grandchild of Queen Elizabeth.

Lady Louise was born at Frimley Park Hospital in Surrey, England, on November 8, 2003. And according to BBC, she was born prematurely through an emergency Caesarean section after her mother, formerly the Countess of Wessex, gave birth one month early. 

After being delivered by Royal Surgeon and Gynecologist Marcus Setchell, her name was announced on November 27. In the following year, she was baptized at Windsor Castle.

Lady Louise had difficulty seeing while growing up because she was born with esotropia—an eye condition where one or both eyes are turned inward. Following multiple operations, she was given a clean bill of health, and she can now see clearly.

In 2015, her mom sat down for an interview with The Sunday Express and explained the circumstances. “Premature babies can often have squints because the eyes are the last thing in the baby package to really be finalized," she said. "Her squint was quite profound when she was tiny, and it takes time to correct it.”

She continued, "You've got to make sure one eye doesn't become more dominant than the other but she's fine now—her eyesight is perfect."

As the queen’s youngest granddaughter, Louise is currently 16th in line to the British throne, right before her brother, James, Earl of Wessex.

She also stands behind Prince William, his three children with Middleton, Prince Harry, his two children with Meghan Markle, Prince Andrew, Princess Beatrice, her daughter Sienna, Princess Eugenie and her two sons.

It was as normal as you’d expect. In 2016, her mother revealed that it took some time for Louise to realize that not everyone has a queen for a grandmother.

“For Louise, actually, it was much more of a shock to the system. It was only when she was coming home from school and saying, ‘Mummy, people keep on telling me that grandma is the queen,’” the duchess told BBC. “I don’t think she had grasped that perhaps there was only one queen.”

She sure does. When her dad visited Winnipeg in 2008 to honor Canadian soldiers who served in Afghanistan, he was gifted with a pair of framed notices that named two Northwestern Manitoba lakes after his each of his two children. At the time, Louise was 4 years old while James was just five months old, according to The Vancouver Sun.

Similar to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Lady Louise thoroughly enjoys equestrian activities. Not only does she regularly go horseback riding with her grandparents, but she’s also competed as a carriage driver in the British Driving Society Championship for Young Drivers.

In May 2022, the young royal led a tribute to her late grandfather, Prince Philip, by driving his carriage at the Platinum Jubilee Royal Windsor Horse Show. It's also worth noting that Lady Louise is a regular at the Royal Windsor Horse Show.

While speaking with Hello! magazine in 2020, the Duchess of Edinburgh said, "I trail in her wake frankly. No, she is naturally so good at it, she really is. It's something that she has taken to very well."

Lady Louise Windsor is now attending Princess Catherine and Prince William's alma mater, St. Andrews University in Scotland. A spokesman from Buckingham Palace said in a statement, “Having received her A-level results today, Lady Louise will start at St. Andrews University in September to study English.” The royal started her first semester just two days before her grandmother passed away.

Absolutely, and she's been actively involved since she was 7 years old. In 2011, she served as a bridesmaid at Prince William and Princess Catherine's wedding. And in 2015, she did her first overseas engagement when she joined her parents on a trip to South Africa to visit the Ubunye Foundation.

Since then, she has joined her parents for several other royal events, including Trooping the Colour, the Platinum Jubilee and the coronation of King Charles.