Prince William's Beard Is Reminding Us of King Charles III's Drastic Hair Transformation

Until Prince William debuted his latest hair transformation, we would have thought the Spencer genes lived on through his uncanny resemblance to his mother, Princess Diana . However, William’s new beard made him look more like a young King Charles III than ever before.

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William, 42, set the internet ablaze when revealed his beard for the first time in a video message with Kate Middleton to congratulate Team Great Britain on their Olympics success. This isn’t William’s first time growing out his facial hair and every time he does, we’re reminded of just how much he looks like his father who also sported a beard back in the day.

William briefly sported a beard in 2008 when he stepped out with the rest of the royal family at a Christmas Day church surface. At that time, and again now, William was compared to Charles’ facial hair in the 1970s while he was in the Navy.

For several years, Charles sported a full beard and mustache joined together, a type of facial hair sometimes dubbed a “naval beard” because it is a style permitted in the Royal Navy.

Charles’ military career began in 1969 when he started his Royal Air Force training while he was studying at Cambridge University. He received his wings in 1971 before embarking on a naval career. He served in the Royal Navy until 1974.

After college, William also had a stint in the military, as is common for most males in the royal family. He served in the British Army and, later, the Royal Navy before leaving to focus on family life.

Ironically, as SheKnows reported on August 13, William allegedly wasn’t as open-minded when it came to his brother, Prince Harry, keeping his facial hair. In his memoir, Spare, Harry claimed his brother was not happy with his decision to keep his beard for his 2018 wedding to Meghan Markle , despite Queen Elizabeth II’s approval. Harry claimed William thought the facial hair defied military protocol.

“When I informed him that his opinion didn’t really matter since I’d already gone to Granny and got the green light, he became livid. He raised his voice,” Harry wrote. Harry claimed that William “hated the idea of me enjoying a perk he’d been denied.”

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