Princess Charlotte Turns 9 with New Photo Taken By Her Mom, Princess Catherine

Princess Charlotte turned nine years old today – an occasion that Kensington Palace celebrated by sharing an image of the young royal taken by her mother, Princess Catherine.  

The photo, seen above and featuring a smiling Charlotte sitting amongst flowers and garden greenery, was shared on the social media accounts of the Prince and Princess of Wales with the caption, “Happy 9th Birthday, Princess Charlotte! Thank you for all of the kind messages today.”

Charlotte – the only daughter of Prince William and Princess Catherine – is third in line for the British throne behind her father and older brother, Prince George, who turns 11 in July. 

Meanwhile, Charlotte’s younger brother, Prince Louis, celebrated his sixth birthday last week, for which his mother also snapped a new pic.   

Of course, none of Princess Catherine’s images of her children are getting by these days without an asterisk in the form of a mention of the photo scandal that occurred in March, when Kensington Palace released an image of the Princess of Wales with her children to commemorate the U.K.’s Mother’s Day. 

When it became apparent that the photo had been heavily edited, multiple news agencies pulled it – eventually prompting an apology from Princess Catherine herself for the editing blunder. 

“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” Catherine’s statement, posted to social media, noted. “I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.”   

The photos of her children, however, are the extent of Princess Catherine’s public outreach at the moment, as she undergoes preventative chemotherapy following the discovery of cancer after abdominal surgery in January. Her absence from the public prior to her statement had caused a flood of theories in media and on social media as to the reasons for her disappearance. 

 

“It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment. But, most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be ok,” Catherine added in a March statement in which she revealed her medical situation. “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.”

King Charles III – father-in-law of Princess Catherine and grandfather of Princess Charlotte – is also undergoing treatment for an unspecified cancer that was discovered during treatment on his prostate. The monarch, 75, returned to public duties earlier this week while still taking treatment, visiting London’s University College Hospital Macmillan Cancer Centre with Queen Camilla, 76, on Tuesday. 

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