7 Surprising Facts About Prince William You Probably Didn't Know

1. He Went by the Secret Alias "Steve" in College

To avoid relentless media attention and blend in with fellow undergraduates at the University of St Andrews, William used the alias "Steve". While officially enrolled under the name William Wales, his close circle of friends and university staff used the fake name so casual conversations in public wouldn't draw unwanted attention.

2. He Has a Real-Life "Harry Potter" Scar

William has a noticeable scar just above his left eye on his forehead, which he jokingly refers to as his "Harry Potter scar" because it occasionally turns red and glows under certain lighting. He got it at age eight after being accidentally struck in the head by a friend's seven-iron golf club on a putting green, requiring a trip to the hospital and stitches.

3. He Taught Himself Swahili

William holds a deep, lifelong passion for African wildlife conservation, but fewer people know that he spent years teaching himself Swahili. During a 2018 tour across East Africa, he surprised dignitaries by delivering formal greetings and holding conversations in fluent Swahili, along with speaking conversational French and Welsh.

4. His Left-Handedness Broke an Ancient Polo Rule

William is naturally left-handed, a trait shared by his son, Prince George. While this rarely impacts day-to-day life, it posed an unusual hurdle when he took up polo. Under the official rules of the sport, players are strictly forbidden from playing left-handed for safety and collision reasons, meaning William had to train himself to swing the mallet entirely with his right hand.

5. He Was an Active Search-and-Rescue Pilot Who Donated His Entire Salary

Rather than performing purely ceremonial roles, William served as a full-time operational pilot. He flew over 150 missions with the RAF Search and Rescue Force and later spent two years flying critical medical emergency missions for the East Anglian Air Ambulance—quietly donating 100% of his civilian pilot salary directly to charity.

6. He Is the First Future British Monarch Born in a Hospital

Throughout centuries of royal history, British heirs to the throne were traditionally delivered at home inside palaces or royal estates. Princess Diana broke with royal protocol in June 1982 by opting to give birth to William in the private Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in London, starting a modern precedent that Prince Harry, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis all followed.

7. He Was Distantly Related to Winston Churchill

Through his mother Princess Diana’s lineage—specifically the Spencer-Churchill bloodline descending from the first Duke and Duchess of Marlborough—William is a distant cousin of Britain's wartime prime minister, Sir Winston Churchill.