LONDON  - Prince William's wife Kate gave birth to their first child, to be third in line for the throne. Here are some highlights of their lives and of the royal pregnancy:

-September 2001: Prince William and Kate Middleton meet at St Andrews University in Scotland where they are both studying art history.

-Christmas 2003: The pair reportedly become a couple after sharing a house together with two friends. In March they are pictured together on a skiing holiday in Switzerland.

-November 16, 2010: William and Kate's engagement is announced by Clarence House officials. The prince proposed to Kate while on a private holiday to Kenya the previous month.

-April 29, 2011: The pair wed in a lavish ceremony at London's Westminster Abbey. William is made the Duke of Cambridge by his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and Kate becomes the Duchess of Cambridge.

-December 3, 2012:  The palace announces that Kate is pregnant and being treated in the hospital for acute morning sickness. Kate is discharged from the hospital after three nights, telling reporters she is feeling "much better." The palace later announces that the baby is due in July.

-February 5: The couple holiday on the Caribbean island of Mustique with Kate's parents.

-March 5: Kate apparently lets slip that she is expecting a daughter on a solo visit to Grimsby. Accepting a teddy bear from a member of he public, she apparently replies: "Oh, is this for our d...? Thank you so much." The possible slip of the tongue prompts a wave of betting on a royal daughter.

-March 17: Kate tells a soldier at a St Patrick's Day parade that they do not know the sex of the child, but says she would like a boy and William a girl.

-March 20: Kate given a "Baby on board" badge when she joins the Queen and Prince Philip at Baker Street underground station to mark the 150th anniversary of the Tube.

-May 11: Kate and William attend William van Cutsem and Rosie Ruck Keene's wedding in Oxfordshire, England. The pair reportedly take to the dance floor despite Kate being seven months pregnant.

-June 4: William and Kate return to their wedding venue at Westminster Abbey when they join the royal family for a service marking the 60th anniversary of the Queen's Coronation at Westminster Abbey.

-June 13: Kate carries out her final solo engagement before going on maternity leave when she names a new cruise liner - the Royal Princess - in Southampton.

-June 15: The Duchess makes her last scheduled public appearance before the birth at the Trooping the Color parade.

-June 19: It is confirmed Kate is planning to give birth at the private Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital in Paddington in central London, where Princess Diana gave birth to William and Prince Harry. It is reported Kate is hoping for a natural birth.

-July 22: Kate gives birth to a baby boy, weighing 8lbs 6 oz, with William by her side.