Princess Madeleine of Sweden gave birth to a baby girl in the early hours of this morning, it has been announced.
Madeleine, 35, gave birth at 12.41 am at the Danderyd Hospital near Stockholm, and both mother and baby are well.
The Swedish Court made this announcement: “The Office of The Marshal of the Realm is delighted to announce that HRH Princess Madeleine gave birth to a healthy child on Friday 9 March 2018 at 00:41 at Danderyd Hospital.
“Both mother and child are in good health.”
Husband Chris O’Neil was present for the duration of the birth.
The youngest daughter of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia is now a mother of three, with two daughters and a son: Leonore, 4, Nicolas, 2, and the newborn.
Madeleine, who is Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland, flew back to Sweden recently to have her third child in her home country instead of London; the family live there as Chris, 45, works in finance and declined a royal title.
The baby weighed 3.46 kg (7lbs 4 oz) and, as tradition, the palace released the length of the baby – 50cm.
Chris said: “We are very pleased about the addition in our family and that Leonore and Nicolas have had their long-awaited siblings. They look forward to meeting their new little sister.”
We expect the announcement of a name and title, as is tradition, on Monday, which also happens to be Crown Princess Name Day in Sweden. A Te Deum (thanksgiving service) will also be held, which Chris will attend along with the Swedish Royal Family.