Princess Charlotte turned nine on Thursday, and the Prince and Princess of Wales celebrated by sharing a brand-new photo of her.
The child is seen in the picture, which was taken by her mother Catherine in Windsor a few days ago, grinning at the camera and idly posing outside next to a pink-petalled clematis plant.
Photo: © The Princess of Wales
Charlotte is wearing a denim skirt, a navy knit, a floral shirt, and a burgundy cardigan. Her long hair is draped loosely over her shoulders.
“Happy 9th Birthday, Princess Charlotte!” was the caption. I appreciate all of your kind messages today.
Rather than posting the photo under a press embargo on Charlotte’s special day, May 2, Prince William and Catherine followed the new precedent they set for Prince Louis’ sixth birthday last month and shared it straight on social media.
It steered clear of the controversy caused by the Princess’s altered Mother’s Day photo.
Photo: © Getty Images
Charlotte turns nine on her ninth birthday at a momentous time for the Wales family as Catherine continues her cancer treatment and requests privacy, time, and space.
In an emotional video message to the camera on March 22, the Princess revealed her diagnosis, saying, “It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment.” Primarily, though, it has taken us some time to reassure George, Charlotte, and Louis that everything will be alright and to explain everything to them in a way that suits them.
“As I have said to them; I am well and getting stronger every day by focusing on the things that will help me heal; in my mind, body and spirits.”
On Christmas Day, Charlotte was last sighted in public as she strolled to church at Sandringham alongside her relatives and second cousin Mia Tindall.
Photo: © Getty Images
Princess Charlotte’s early life, education and more
On May 2, 2015, at 8:34 a.m., Charlotte Elizabeth Diana was born in the Lindo Wing of St. Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London, weighing 8 pounds, 3 ounces.
A month after Charlotte’s birth, mother Catherine took the first official picture of her newborn daughter with her older brother, Prince George.
The toddler was baptized at Sandringham’s St. Mary Magdalene Church, where the Cambridges lived at the time at Anmer Hall.
When Charlotte’s younger brother Prince Louis arrived in April 2018, she maintained her place in the line of succession, making history at the age of two. Charlotte was the first female royal to benefit from The Succession to the Crown Act (2013), which stipulates that girls will not be overtaken by any future younger brothers.
Photo: © Getty Images
At the age of sixteen months, the princess accompanied her parents on their first royal tour of Canada.
In July 2017, George and Charlotte, who were two and three years old, respectively, accompanied their parents on a royal tour of Germany and Poland.
After the family moved to London in January, she started school at Willcocks Nursery School in Kensington and later enrolled in Thomas’s Battersea School to study with George.
After William and Catherine moved to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor in September 2022, George, Charlotte, and Louis started school at Lambrook School in Berkshire.
Dance enthusiast Charlotte has escorted her parents to several important royal occasions over the years, such as the King’s coronation at Westminster Abbey in May 2023.
She wore an ivory McQueen gown with a cape, and a miniature replica of Catherine’s Jess Collett x Alexander McQueen headpiece made of silver bullion, crystal, and silver thread.
Photo: © Getty Images
What lies ahead for Princess Charlotte?
Charlotte, who is third in line for the throne, is gradually being acclimated to public life thanks to her parents. Last year, she worked with her brothers and mother at a baby bank in Maidenhead, volunteered with the Scouts during the Big Help Out following the King’s coronation, and went solo to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
In this week’s newsletter for HELLO!’s Royal Club, Emily Nash, the Royal Editor, writes, “Hopefully all three of the Wales children will have a chance to explore adult life beyond the strictures of royal duty, just as their father Prince William did, serving in the RAF Search and Rescue and again for East Anglian Air Ambulance.”
However, Emily asserts that the “Princess Royal takes some beating” in terms of setting the standard for the upcoming royal generation.
Photo: © Getty Images
“Princess Anne is one of the most popular members of the royal family and is hugely admired for her work ethic and dedication to her charities, all while being a devoted supporter of her brother King Charles,” according to her.
“If Princess Charlotte does embrace full time royal life as expected, she can thank other family members for paving the way for her generation to take on even more fulfilling and impactful public work.”
