In 1995, after spells at Wetherby prep school in Kensington and Ludgrove, he became the first future monarch to attend Eton College, one of Britain's most prestigious secondary schools. There he excelled at sports - particularly swimming - and settled down to become a serious student.

His parents divorced in 1996, and the following year he showed great strength in coping with the devastating news of his mother's death in a car crash in Paris. With immense courage he insisted on walking behind Princess Diana's hearse in the funeral procession. A year later, William issued a joint statement with his younger brother, Prince Harry, asking both press and public to let the two of them get on with their lives in peace. It was a tactic which proved largely successful, and the Prince voiced his appreciation at the tenth anniversary of the Press Complaints Commission in February 2001, his first official engagement.

After graduating from Eton with 12 GCSEs and three A-levels, William decided to study art history at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. Adopting a modern approach to the monarchy, he asked to be enrolled simply as "William Wales".

Before embarking upon his studies in the autumn of 2001, William opted to take a gap year in order to travel. This included a ten-week stint doing community work in Chile, and 15 weeks studying conservation in Africa. Meanwhile, student applications skyrocketed at St Andrews, with British applications rising by 44 per cent and the number of overseas applicants doubling.

In an interview marking the start of his four years at the venerable institution, Wills insisted he planned to continue as normal a life as possible. "I just want to go to university and have fun – I want to be an ordinary student," he said, adding: "I'm only going to university. It's not like I'm getting married – though that's what it feels like sometimes."

And entering the next stage in his education wasn't all smooth sailing, with reports of the Prince changing courses or even dropping out entirely appearing in the press. Eighteen months into his studies, the Prince admitted his adjustment at St Andrews had been quite a rocky path. "It's new surroundings, new scenery and I wasn't quite sure what to expect," he said in the run-up to his 21st birthday. Feeling "a little uneasy", and unsure about whether to continue, he went home during the holidays to get some solid advice from dad. "My father was very understanding about it and realised I had the same problems he probably had... In the end we both realised – I definitely realised – that I had to come back."

Friends say he was also helped greatly by fellow-student Kate Middleton, who has since become his girlfriend. The pretty brunette has accompanied Wills and his family on several skiing holidays and, according to sources close to Clarence House, their romance is going from strength to strength.

Despite his academic commitments, the hunky royal spends a good deal of time at Windsor Castle with the Queen, who is very concerned with his upbringing and career development. Although on the whole he appears not to relish the limelight, William has acquired worldwide status as a heart-throb, vividly demonstrated during a 1998 visit to Canada when he was mobbed by hordes of teenage girls. His extraordinary appeal lies not just in his tall, elegant physique and good looks, however. He is also a well-mannered, responsible and mature young man with an acute awareness of his role as the future King.

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