Princess Charlotte, 10, Dresses in Matching Blue with Princess of Wales for Trooping the Colour Celebrations

The Princess of Wales was the image of elegance as she attended Trooping the Colour today.

Arriving at the King’s birthday celebrations, Kate, aged 43, wore a radiant smile as she rode in a carriage with her children – Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. Together, they participated in the traditional procession through London.

The Prince of Wales was reminiscent of his father, King Charles, as he rode on horseback to Trooping the Colour from Buckingham Palace. 

Taking on her role as Colonel of the Irish Guards, Kate partook in the King’s Birthday Parade. During the carriage ride, she sat next to her daughter Charlotte, who is 10 years old, while Louis and his elder brother George sat across from them.

Matching her daughter, Charlotte, Kate wore a blue coat dress from Catherine Walker. Her ensemble was complemented with a wide-brimmed hat by Juliette Botterill, adding elegance to the day’s event.

Kate accessorised with the Irish Guards regimental brooch as well as the Bahrain Pearl Drop earrings in a sweet tribute to the late Queen Elizabeth II. They were  crafted from pearls gifted to the Queen and Philip from the ruler of Bahrain at the time of their wedding in 1947.

She is also expected to gather with Charles and Queen Camilla, her husband Prince William and other royals on Buckingham Palace’s balcony for the Royal Air Force flypast. 

Last year’s celebrations served as the mother-of-three’s first public appearance of 2024, following treatment after she was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer. 

Crowds of well-wishers and royal fans lined the Mall ahead of this morning’s ceremony and, if the cardboard cutouts they carried were any indication, the Princess of Wales’s arrival was most eagerly anticipated. 

Photos showed a group of Britons holding up a life-sized picture of the Princess of Wales, wearing the red, long-sleeved Alexander McQueen dress she famously donned for the Diamond Jubilee pageant in 2012. 

Another person was carting around a cut-out of King Charles, dressed in full military regalia, in a show of support for the monarch as he continues to receive treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer. 

Other images show The Mall decorated with Union flags – with one group of women also wearing themed outfits for today’s event that marks the monarch’s official birthday in a tradition dating back to the 17th century. 

The King’s actual birthday is November 14, but is officially celebrated at Trooping the Colour, which is – like this year – traditionally held on the second Saturday in June.

The unpredictable British weather is the main reason that Trooping the Colour is always held in the summer months rather than on the monarch’s actual birthday.

It means that the sovereign has two birthdays, an official one and an actual one.

Today’s proceedings mark Charles’s third Trooping the Colour during his reign. 

The Princess confirmed she had completed a preventative course of chemotherapy last September as she began a ‘measured’ return to public life that has now seen the mother-of-three make a number of appearances so far this year.

Last June, Kate proved to the epitome of sophistication as she donned a crisp white structured pencil dress which had a bow along the neckline. 

Designed by Jenny Packham, it is thought Kate first wore the dress on the eve of the King’s coronation last year. It has been updated with a new neckline and waist detailing added. 

The Princess opted for a simple black clutch bag and classy pointed white heels, which tied the chic look together.

She wore her glossy brunette tresses in a stylish braided low-bun and completed the look with a coordinating hat by Philip Treacy, and her Cassandra Goad Cavolfiore pearl earrings, which retail for £5,620. 

The royal completed the look with her Irish Guards Regimental Brooch – a nod to her role as the regiment’s honorary colonel.

Kate gradually continued her comeback to public duties through last year and recent months. 

She finished chemotherapy in September and said that she would focus on staying ‘cancer-free’.

Since then she has met families of the girls killed in the Southport knife attack, marked Remembrance Sunday and led her annual carol service at Westminster Abbey.

Just this week, the Princess of Wales cut a very trendy figure as she visited the new V&A East Storehouse in London.

The royal stepped out for her first engagement of the month – and her first since returning from the half-term break – in a chic trouser suit by designer Alexander McQueen for the event, along with a white scoop-neck top. 

For her accessories, the princess opted for a stylish belt, Laura Lombardi chain necklace, and a pair of sleek navy heels from Prada. 

But while Kate looked incredibly elegant, technically speaking, she did break a little-known style rule during her visit with her choice of footwear.

‘We recommend wearing practical clothing and flat shoes,’ the V&A East Storehouse’s website reads. ‘The metal grid flooring is not suitable for stilettos or kitten heels.’ 

However, the princess appeared completely at ease and masterfully managed the uneven floors, even while wearing a pair of challenging heels.

When asked about Kate’s choice of footwear, Tristram Hunt, the director of the V&A, told PEOPLE magazine: ‘She is a pro! She dealt with that!’

He added: ‘She had a super energy. She was very energetic and focused. We last saw her about two years ago.

‘She retains this great passion and interest in creativity and making and design. It was wonderful to be able to host her.’

Today’s celebrations come following reports that the King will no longer ride in the Trooping the Colour due to his ongoing cancer treatments.

As a former polo player and one of the Royal Family’s most accomplished equestrians, the monarch rode for years in the parade – both for his mother’s official birthday celebrations and then for his own.

But he will not appear on horseback at the event this weekend and will instead travel in a carriage for the procession from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade and back, according to The Sunday Times. 

It is understood that he will not ride at the parade again.

His illness is said to have curtailed the ‘monarch in the saddle’ tradition that he briefly revived in 2023, the first time the monarch had ridden in the parade since Queen Elizabeth did in 1986.

The late Queen rode her trusty mare Burmese until the horse was retired when she began travelling in a carriage until her final appearance in 2022, where she took the salute from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

The King, 76, was admitted to hospital for treatment to an enlarged prostate in January 2024 and shortly after was diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer.

It meant that he travelled with Queen Camilla in a carriage at last year’s parade to be safer and more comfortable.

This came a year after what is now known to be his last appearance on horseback for the celebration, which did not go particularly smoothly for Charles.

He was riding Noble, a black mare which appeared unsettled throughout – at one point even breaking into a canter in the Mall.

One television commentator described Noble’s behaviour as ‘if it was going into the starting stalls at Newmarket’.

And while Charles is not expected to ride at the parade again, this weekend’s event will be the first time that the Princess Royal has ridden in public since she was hospitalised following a suspected horse injury last year.

Anne, 74, plans to ride in the parade this year in her role as gold stick, the colonel of the Blues and Royals, alongside the Prince of Wales as colonel of the Welsh Guards and the Duke of Edinburgh as colonel of the Scots Guards and London Guards.