The Sweet Tribute To Queen Elizabeth II In Princess Charlotte’s Birthday Photo
Kate Middleton got behind the camera for Princess Charlotte’s new birthday photo, which features a nod to late matriarch Queen Elizabeth.
On May 2, Princess Kate and Prince William released a new photo of their daughter in honor of her 9th birthday. “Happy 9th Birthday, Princess Charlotte! 🎂 Thank you for all of the kind messages today,” read the caption of the snap shared across the coupe’s social media channels.
The picture taken by proud mom (and self-described “enthusiastic amateur photographer”) Kate showed Charlotte smiling and leaning on a garden fence with pink flowers blossoming beside her.
A close look reveals that the flowers are Clematis Elizabeth, which Gardens Illustrated reported is one of the first plants named after Queen Elizabeth. Known to bloom in late spring and early summer, it is a “strong climber with pale pink flowers and a delicate scent” and holds a Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Award of Garden Merit award.
A dedicated patron of the gardening charity, Queen Elizabeth became patron of the RHS upon her accession in 1952 and regularly attended the Chelsea Flower Show, the society’s flagship event, over 50 times during her historic reign. Her last visit was in May 2022, when she explored the event in a golf cart.
When their daughter was born in 2015, Prince William, 41, and Princess Kate, 42, honored the Queen by naming her Charlotte Elizabeth Diana. Her second middle name is a tribute to her late grandmother, Princess Diana.
Queen Elizabeth had a special bond with Princess Charlotte right away, Princess Kate revealed in the 2016 documentary The Queen at Ninety.
Recalling Charlotte’s birth in 2015, Kate said, “The Queen was really thrilled that it was a little girl, and I think as soon as we came back here to Kensington, she was one of our first visitors here.”
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Princess Charlotte inherited Queen Elizabeth’s love of horses, and the young royal sentimentally sported a horseshoe brooch gifted by her great-grandmother at the monarch’s funeral in September 2022.
he new image of Princess Charlotte was released a week after the Princess of Wales picked up the camera for another family celebration: Prince Louis’ 6th birthday. Like his big sister’s 9th birthday picture, Prince Louis’ special portrait was taken outdoors in Windsor by Kate and released on his birthday. The photo showed Louis smiling (revealing a lost tooth!) and lying on a blanket in the grass.