When Prince Charles officially became King Charles III in September 2022 after the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, a Google image search of his new name would result in lots of snaps of adorable dogs.
That is because our monarch shares the name with a breed of dog known as the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and even now when you search "King Charles" and click on images, you'll see the pictures of the pooch. The breed has been around since before even the birth of King Charles, but people are still confused over the name's origin.
Many social media users made the connection as soon as the monarch's new name was announced. One person simply said: "My brain: King Charles Spaniel," while another added: "Gonna be impossible to say the words King Charles without adding the word Spaniel on the end I'm afraid."
A third added: "I mean, the dog came first," while another joked: "Can't believe we have a monarch named after a spaniel."
But it's not just a grandiose name, people are only just now realising that the breed actually does derive from royalty.
The King Charles Spaniel is a popular breed, known for its affectionate and intelligent personality – but it turns out not many people know where the name came from.
Many assume it has something to do with King Charles I. One person said: "I assume someone thought the dog's ears looked like Charles I's hair and the name just stuck."
Another asked: "Was there a unique lone spaniel that caught the eye of king Charles and he adopted it, hence it got named after him, or did he, like, commission a doggo with particular features to be named after him?"
However, that's not the case. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel actually got its name from King Charles II.
Another social media user explained: "The Cavalier King Charles spaniel was named after King Charles II would loved to keep them [sic]."
Both King Charles I and his son King Charles II loved the breed, but it was for the latter, who ruled from 1660 to 1685, that they eventually named the King Charles Spaniel.
The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel is a relatively new breed, but it has derived from the small Toy Spaniels which were popular in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.
It was eventually crossed with Pugs and the Japanese Chin, and became what we today know as King Charles Spaniels.
Charles I was so fond of the breed he was seldom seem without several at his heels. They would accompany him to court and in Parliament, even where dogs weren't normally permitted.
He even made a decree that King Charles Spaniels must be allowed in any public space, even the Houses of Parliament – which still exists today.
It took many years of breeding to reach what is today recognised as the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. It wasn't until 1945 when The Kennel Club felt there were sufficient numbers to recognise the breed.
Did you know who the King Charles Spaniel was named after? Let us know in the comment section below.
