Royal baby: Messages of congratulations flood in after birth

A formal bulletin confirming the birth was displayed at Buckingham Palace

Congratulatory messages are flooding in from around the world to mark the birth of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's son, the third in line to the throne.

Prince William said the couple "could not be happier" following the birth of the boy, who weighed 8lb 6oz and is yet to be named, at 16:24 BST on Monday.

Thousands of well-wishers descended on Buckingham Palace after the news broke.
The royal birth will be marked later with gun salutes and the ringing of Westminster Abbey's bells.
The duke was at the private Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital, west London, for the birth - and stayed with Catherine and the baby overnight.
A Kensington Palace spokesman said it was "too early" to say whether they would leave hospital on Tuesday. The couple are expected to talk to their medical team before a decision is made.
BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt said it was unlikely the Queen would visit her great-grandchild in hospital, adding - "she can of course see him privately once he leaves".

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were married in April 2011 and Catherine's pregnancy was announced in December 2012

After the new arrival was announced in a statement issued by Kensington Palace, a large cheer went up from well-wishers and journalists outside the hospital.

A bulletin announcing the birth was taken by a royal aide from St Mary's to Buckingham Palace and displayed on an ornate easel.
The world now awaits the couple's choice of names for their son, with George the bookmakers' favourite, followed by James and Alexander.
The birth of the prince means the monarchy has three generations of heirs to the throne for the first time since 1894.
BBC royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell said the scale of the international interest was "pretty awesome", and "quite threatening in a sense". He said the couple would be "knocked back" when they step out of the hospital.
The arrival generated headlines and celebrations around the world, and prompted messages of goodwill to flood in:

• New Yorkers were informed of the news when it was tickered in lights at Times Square
• In London, Trafalgar Square was lit blue for a boy, while the BT Tower delivered the message: "It's a boy!"
• US president Barack Obama said: "We wish them all the happiness and blessings parenthood brings" while Australian PM Kevin Rudd said Australians wished "the royal bub all the best"
• The Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Reverend Justin Welby, greeted the news by saying: "Along with millions here and around the world, I share in their joy at this special time"
• The village of Bucklebury in Berkshire - Catherine's childhood home - was "intensely delighted at the birth", said the BBC's Ben Moore

At 14:00 BST, the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery will stage a 41-gun salute in Green Park, after riding past Buckingham Palace.
At the same time, the Honourable Artillery Company - the City of London's army reserve regiment - will fire a 62-gun salute from Gun Wharf at the Tower of London.
And the church bells of Westminster Abbey, where William and Catherine were married in April 2011, are expected to ring out for three hours from 14:00.
'Doing well' Following the announcement, a statement from Kensington Palace said: "The Queen, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Harry and members of both families have been informed and are delighted with the news."

William and Catherine - said by officials to be "so, so happy" - spent the night, a thundery and wet one, with their newborn son in their private maternity suite.
After a labour which had lasted at least 10 hours - and despite the clamour for information from an expectant world - the couple did what most new parents do. They spent time alone bonding with their son.
Soon, they will have to leave their cocoon and present their prince to those eager for a glimpse of the baby.
When they leave, they will be photographed on the steps of the Lindo Wing, just as baby William was back in 1982.

His son's birth will be marked with gun salutes and the peeling of church bells.
It is a celebratory reception the one-day-old royal will have to get used to.
He is a prince who one day, as things stand, will be a king.

It added that mother and baby were "doing well".

The Prince of Wales, in a separate statement, said he and the Duchess of Cornwall were "overjoyed at the arrival of my first grandchild".
"It is an incredibly special moment for William and Catherine and we are so thrilled for them on the birth of their baby boy," he added.
"Grandparenthood is a unique moment in anyone's life, as countless kind people have told me in recent months, so I am enormously proud and happy to be a grandfather for the first time and we are eagerly looking forward to seeing the baby in the near future."
Royal doctor Mr Setchell described the new arrival as a "wonderful baby, beautiful baby".
Prime Minister David Cameron, speaking outside Downing Street, hailed the "wonderful news".
Nicholas Witchell said the third in line to the throne could expect to be brought up in a "secure and loving environment", shielded from many of the pressures of ordinary life but facing the specific challenges his position will bring.

The baby's future, he said, will be "a lifetime of public curiosity and, in due course, the responsibility of refreshing and taking forward the ancient institution that is the world's best-known hereditary monarchy".