Video: Royal baby: gun salutes and peal of bells celebrate birth of new heir to the throne Official celebrations marking the birth began this morning with a musical tribute to the newborn prince at Buckingham Palace. The Band of the Scots Guards performed Congratulations following the Changing the Guard ceremony and they were joined by some of the hundreds of well-wishers lining the gates who sang along. Following tradition, gun salutes were also fired in the capital in honour of the new prince, who is the Queen's third great-grandchild. The King's Troop staged a 41 royal gun salute in Green Park watched by tourists. The Honourable Artillery Company, the City of London's Army Reserve Regiment, fired a 62-gun salvo from Gun Wharf at the Tower of London. Gun salutes are staged for the birth of every prince or princess, no matter where their place is in the line of succession, the Ministry of Defence said.