Select five named as Charlotte's godparents

Princess Charlotte. Photo / AP

Five relatives and close friends of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were named late last night as godparents of Princess Charlotte, who was to be christened overnight in Norfolk.

Adam Middleton, a business adviser, is Catherine's first cousin, and the Hon Laura Fellowes is William's. She is the daughter of Lady Jane Fellowes, sister of the late Diana, Princess of Wales.

Tom van Straubenzee and James Meade are close mates of William's, and Sophie Carter is a friend of the royal couple.

The baptism was to take place in the 16th-century Church of St Mary Magdalene on the royal estate at Sandringham, where Diana, William's mother, was also christened and where the royal family worship every Christmas Day.

Kensington Palace said that William and Catherine were to walk from Sandringham House to the church with Charlotte and her brother, Prince George.

The only other guests were to be the Queen, Prince Philip, Prince Charles, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Catherine's parents Michael and Carole, her siblings Pippa and James, and the godparents' partners.

Prince Harry is on a three-month visit to Africa and was therefore missing from the guest list.

Yesterday, two precious items from the Crown Jewels were taken from the Tower of London to Norfolk in great secrecy to play a central role in the christening.

The 175-year-old Lily Font was to hold water from the River Jordan - where Jesus Christ was baptised - for the baptism, and the water was to be poured from a solid silver ewer.

So tight is the security around all the Crown Jewels that the exact timing and manner of their arrival in Norfolk was known to only a handful of people, and the man responsible for their upkeep takes great care never to be photographed.

Martin Swift, the Crown Jeweller since 2012, will allow only his gloved hands to appear in pictures with any of the items in the Tower.

"To my knowledge it will be the first time the Lily Font has left London," he said, "and hopefully it will come back in one piece. We have had a travelling case constructed for it, to keep things rock-solid when it is moved."

The Lily Font has been used for the baptisms of almost every royal baby since it was commissioned by Queen Victoria in 1840.

Thousands of members of the public were expected to turn out to see Princess Charlotte, after her parents arranged for a paddock next to the church to be opened for the occasion. Their chance to swamp the royal family with goodwill messages was to be a rare departure from royal christening events, which are almost always held in a palace away from public view.

The young Princess was to wear the same robe used for her brother's christening - a replica of a Victorian gown made by the Queen's dressmaker, Angela Kelly, in 2004. Made of silk and Honiton lace, the original was used at every royal christening from 1841 to 2004.

After the service the guests were to retire to Sandringham House for an afternoon tea, at which they were to be served slices of christening cake taken from William and Catherine's wedding cake.

Tradition was to loom large over the christening, conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.