Princess Charlotte turned 11 on Saturday, and Kensington Palace marked the princess charlotte birthday with a new picture of the young royal smiling in a sunny field. She was dressed in a black and red striped jumper and blue jeans as the image was released to celebrate the occasion.
The photograph was taken by Matt Porteous during the family’s Easter break in Cornwall, the same photographer who has been given royal commissions before by Prince William and Princess Catherine. Kensington Palace posted the image on social media with the message, “Wishing Charlotte a very happy 11th birthday!”
Charlotte, the only daughter of the Prince and Princess of Wales, was born at 08:43 on 2 May 2015 at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington. She is third in line to the throne and has two brothers, Prince George, 12, and Prince Louis, 8.
The birthday image came days after William and Catherine shared a new family portrait on Wednesday to mark 15 years of marriage. That photograph, also taken by Porteous during the family’s time in Cornwall, showed the couple lying in the grass with Charlotte, George, Louis and their two dogs, Orla and Otto.
Charlotte was last seen in public at the Royal Family’s annual Easter Sunday church service in Windsor, where she was smiling and waving at crowds. The two springtime releases offer a rare view of the family together, while also showing how tightly managed each new image remains.
For now, the birthday portrait does what these pictures are meant to do: it lets the public see Charlotte at 11, and it reminds them that every glimpse of the Wales family still arrives on the palace’s terms.
