LONDON – Dressed in a lace and satin baptismal gown designed in the 1840s, Britain's 3-month-old future monarch, Prince George, was christened Wednesday with water from the River Jordan at a rare gathering of four generations of the royal family.

Queen Elizabeth quietly ceded the spotlight to her rosy-cheeked great-grandson. The private affair at the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace was also attended by grandfather Prince Charles and the queen's 92-year-old husband, Prince Philip, who has been recuperating ­following serious abdominal surgery.

George, who was born on July 22, wore a replica of a christening gown made with exquisite antique lace for Queen Victoria's eldest daughter, and first used in 1841. When his father, Prince William, was christened in 1982, he wore the original gown — by then well over a century old — but the garment has become so fragile that a replica was made.

The infant, who will head the Church of England when he becomes king, was baptized with water from the River Jordan by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. As trumpets blared, baby George arrived at the chapel in his father's arms with his mother by their side.

Duchess Kate, smiling broadly on her way into the chapel, wore a cream-colored Alexander McQueen dress and a hat by milliner Jane Taylor, with her long hair brushed to the side. Kate's parents, Michael and Carole Middleton, and her sister, Pippa, and brother, James, were also at the ceremony. Pippa Middleton read from the Gospel of St. Luke and Prince Harry from the Gospel of St. John.

Afterward, Charles and his wife, Camilla, hosted a tea for the royal party at their Clarence House residence, where desserts included a "christening cake" with a tier taken from William and Kate's wedding cake.

George

associated Press

Pink's pipes are pooped; show is pushed back

Pop-rock diva Pink has postponed her Nov. 2 concert at Target Center, her tour's promoter announced Wednesday, citing her overworked vocal chords. The show is now scheduled for Jan. 7, a Tuesday. After four days of vocal rest, the 34-year-old Pink performed on Sunday in Seattle and Monday in Vancouver, but "it became clear, after further consultation with her doctors today, that more rest is required for her to fully recover from inflamed vocal chords and laryngitis," according to promoter Live Nation. All tickets for the Nov. 2 will be honored on the new date. Pink last played the Twin Cities market on March 19 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.

Paul Walsh