Royal Family: The tragic story of the other Prince William who died in a plane crash aged 30

Prince William is probably the most famous person in the UK who lives with that name, especially now he is the newly appointed Prince of Wales by his father, King Charles III.

However, long before Wills captured our hearts, there was another Prince William who once existed in the royal family: Prince William of Gloucester.

Grandson of King George V, William was born in 1941 in Hertfordshire and was the paternal cousin of the late Queen Elizabeth II.

At the time of his birth, he was fourth in line to the British throne. Over the course of his very active and busy life, he studied at Cambridge University and Stanford University.

He also served in the civil service in Tokyo, Lagos and Nigeria, and worked for the British Embassy. He even embarked on a scandalous relationship with former Hungarian model and stewardess Zsuzsi Starkloff.

William was also a licensed pilot, which ultimately led to the tragic end of his life. On 28 August 1972, he was competing in the Goodyear International Air Trophy in Dudley when he was involved in a plane crash.

Prince William and his co-pilot were killed instantly. The aircraft caught fire when it crashed and took two hours to control before both the bodies were recovered.

He was laid to rest in the Royal Burial Ground at Frogmore in Windsor, which is where Queen Victoria and Prince Albert are buried.

It is rumoured that the Prince of Wales was named after William of Gloucester, since Prince Charles reportedly looked up to him. 

Reference: My London: Alexandra Bullard