As Kate Middleton Celebrates Her Birthday This Week, Revisit Some of The Royals’ Fashion Moments from the Last Year

Kate Middleton, that’s Catherine, Princess of Wales to you, may be celebrating her 42nd birthday privately on Tuesday, but she received a public birthday message from the King and Queen.  

A tweet from the Royal Family’s X account reads “Wishing The Princess of Wales a very happy birthday today!” accompanied by two celebratory emojis – which makes us wonder if the choice of emoji (“Do we use a balloon, or a birthday cake?”) is decided via royal decree, or if the monarch has designated a Keeper of the King’s Emojis.

Regardless, the tweet also featured a previously unseen behind-the-scenes image of Catherine with the King and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh at Charles’ coronation last year. 

Over the last 12 months, the Princess of Wales has stayed the course for the Royal Family, a reliable hand when the winds of drama blow through the palace. She remains a crown jewel in the future of the monarchy, despite taking flack from some royal critics for not appearing enough in public. It’s an incorrect critique, however, as Catherine is dedicated to raising and rearing the future king, as well as delving into more serious projects like her Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, which she founded in 2021 to “drive awareness of and action on the extraordinary impact of the early years, in order to transform society for the future.” In 2023 the foundation launched a campaign aimed at highlighting the integral role a child’s first five years plays in their development. 

As well, the final season of The Crown, released at the end of last year, depicted a young William and Catherine kicking off their courtship, leading to a renewed interest in their relationship (not to mention her now-famous university catwalk appearance).

Of course when the real-life Catherine did appear in public in the last year, she sported a mix of princess core fashion favourites, historic regalia and a  business-suited approach – which symbolized her leaning into her aforementioned initiatives.

And while we expect more picture-perfect poised appearances in the next year, we’re taking a glance back at our favourite Princess of Wales looks from the past year.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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