Princess Eugenie, 30, has announced she is expecting her first child with husband Jack Brooksbank, 34. Taking to her personal Instagram @PrincessEugenie, the Queen’s granddaughter shared a photo of baby slippers to her account, writing: “Jack and I are so excited for early 2021…”, adding a baby emoji at the end.
Commenting on the post, which has so far received more than 375,000 likes, were famous faces including Eugenie’s pal Ellie Goulding.
The singer and songwriter wrote: “So soooo happy for you both. Love you”.
Princess Eugenie’s brother-in-law Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi commented three pink heart emojis.
Buckingham Palace also announced the sweet baby news on Twitter.
READ MORE: Princess Eugenie spotted for the first time since her BIG announcement
The Palace wrote: “Her Royal Highness Princess Eugenie and Mr Jack Brooksbank are very pleased to announce that they are expecting a baby in early 2021.
“The Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York, Mr and Mrs George Brooksbank, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh are delighted with the news.”
The announcement of her baby comes late into Eugenie’s pregnancy, with the Princess saying the Palace revealing it’s due in 2021.
Although the exact due date has not been specific, Princess Eugenie’s baby can be expected in January, February or March the latest.
If that’s case, she might have taken her inspiration from her grandmother – the Queen.
The rule of not announcing big news while other royals have other events of interest to the public is one the Queen herself holds dear.
As portrayed in Netflix series The Crown, the Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret, was forced to delay her engagement announcement because the Queen had already shared some big news herself.
Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones likely became engaged shortly after October 1959, when the couple were invited to stay at Balmoral Castle with the Queen and Prince Philip.
However, they were asked to delay the official announcement until after the birth of the Queen’s second child.
The Queen was pregnant with Prince Andrew at the time, and gave birth on February 19, 1960.
Just one week later, on February 26, 1960, the engagement of Princess Margaret and Antony was announced from Clarence House.
The statement said: “It is with the greatest pleasure that Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother announces the betrothal of her beloved daughter, The Princess Margaret, to Mr. Antony Charles Robert Armstrong-Jones, son of Mr. R. O. L. Armstrong-Jones, Queen’s Counsel, and the Countess of Rosse, to which union the Queen has gladly given her consent.”
Although it’s never been confirmed the Queen asked Margaret to hold back her announcement, experts believe the timing is curious.
But Princess Eugenie, who is very close with her grandmother, could have decided to take inspiration from the Queen.
Princess Beatrice’s wedding dress went on display at Windsor Castle last week, and now, with all her wedding exposure out of the way, Eugenie may have felt it was safe to announce the news without taking the spotlight away from others.
This has happened before, when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle waited a few days after Eugenie’s wedding in October 2018 to announce their baby news.
Eugenie is currently 10th in line to the succession of the British throne and is not considered a senior royal.
Her baby will fall in 11th place in the line when born in 2021.
