Hugh Grosvenor, Duke of Westminster, just became a first-time father when his wife Olivia, Duchess of Westminster, gave birth to their first child, Cosima, last month. This is no doubt the happiest time in Hugh’s life, but he’s also faced with a dilemma, as he is friends with both Prince William and Prince Harry, brothers who remain estranged.
The dilemma boils down to the issue of godparents—will Hugh choose William to be Cosima’s godfather? Or Harry? Or both? It’s an issue The Times tackled on August 16, with the outlet reporting that the birth of his daughter “could provide a chance for rapprochement.”
Hugh Grosvenor, Duke of Westminster.
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Calling the situation “a particularly delicate dilemma,” friends of the Duke and Duchess of Westminster say that the couple haven’t yet made a final decision on godparents, but it appears that the Prince of Wales will, indeed, become a godfather. Hugh—called “Hughie” by his friends and worth a fortune of more than 9 billion pounds—for example, is King Charles’s godson, and is so close to William and Harry that he “is thought to be the only of their friends chosen as a godparent by both,” The Times reported. Hugh is godfather to both men’s eldest children—Prince George (William) and Prince Archie (Harry).
By choosing Hugh, “Harry might hope the gesture would be returned,” The Times reported.
Prince William and Prince Harry on July 1, 2021.
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When Hugh and Olivia married in June 2024, William served as an usher, but Harry skipped the festivities—likely to avoid overshadowing the wedding with brotherly friction. “It’s incredibly sad it has come to this,” a friend of William and Harry said at the time.
“Hugh is one of very few close friends of William and Harry’s who has maintained strong bonds and a line of communication with both,” the friend added. “He wishes they could put their heads together and patch things up, but realizes it’s unlikely to happen before the wedding.”
The Duke and Duchess of Westminster on their wedding day.
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As for Hugh’s decisionmaking process, “He wanted to avoid anything overshadowing the day, especially for Olivia, and doesn’t want any awkwardness.”
Sources close to Harry suggested he had received a “save the date” card, but opted against flying over to the U.K. and attending because it would prove “too awkward.”
The Duke and Duchess of Westminster on June 7, 2024.
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Cosima was born in London on July 27, and both William and Harry have sent congratulations to the Duke and Duchess of Westminster upon her arrival. No date has been set yet for Cosima’s christening, where the godparents would likely be revealed.
Hugh Grosvenor, Duke of Westminster.
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“Selecting both brothers as godfathers to his firstborn would be seen by many in royal circles as an attempt by Grosvenor to thaw the princes’ frosty relationship,” The Times reported, adding that William and Harry are not thought to have spoken since the period following Queen Elizabeth’s death in September 2022—nearly three years ago.