Kate Middleton Error Deleted From Government Website

Kate Middleton's return to work has been so hotly anticipated in Britain that it forced the country's army into an embarrassing climb down over a major date in the royal calendar.

The Princess of Wales has—since last year—been due for the first time to conduct the Colonel's Review on June 8, part of the build up to Trooping the Color, the birthday parade for King Charles III.

As Newsweek reported last week, she was still listed on the event page on the army website after stepping back from royal duties in the aftermath of abdominal surgery.

This week, however, they began advertising the tickets with Kate and the king's names still on the marketing material, appearing to confirm their return to work in June.

Aides said only Kensington Palace can actually confirm when Kate will be back on public duties, and the same applies to Buckingham Palace for Charles.

Such was the feverish speculation around Kate, however, that the British media began widely reporting the princess was due to return, prompting the army, which had not consulted with the palace, to change the listing on its website.

The event is about three months away and the palace is still operating on the basis that Kate will be out until at least the other side of Easter, with nothing definitively confirmed about when she will back.

It never required a huge leap of imagination to consider that the Ministry of Defence might simply not have thought to take Kate's name off the marketing material, but the fact the story spread so quickly shows the scale of demand for updates on Kate's recovery.

Speculation on social media has been feverish and often in terms the palace wouldn't welcome, with some jokes about her whereabouts lacking the sensitivity the royals may have hoped for.

The situation became more difficult still when a paparazzi photographer on Monday got a picture of Kate in the passenger seat of a car driven by her mother, Carole Middleton, near Windsor Castle and sold it to TMZ in America.

No British outlet has run the picture, but if an army of photographers were to descend on Windsor that would certainly be an unwelcome outcome for the palace.

On Tuesday, the army's original listing read: "Trooping the Colour reviewed by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales is identical to Trooping the Colour reviewed by His Majesty The King, with the exception that some additional mounted officers ride when His Majesty The King is present.

"Taking part will be over 1,400 soldiers of the Household Division and The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, including 400 musicians from the Massed Bands, all of whom will parade on Horse Guards for the second of two formal Reviews.

"Trooping the Colour reviewed by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales also includes 250 soldiers from the Foot Guards who will line the processional route along The Mall.

"The soldiers will be inspected by Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales, Colonel Irish Guards."

By Wednesday morning, this had changed to: "The Colonel's Review is identical to The King's Birthday Parade, with the exception that some additional mounted officers ride on the latter.

"Taking part will be over 1,400 soldiers of the Household Division and The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery, including 400 musicians from the Massed Bands, all of whom will parade on Horse Guards for the second of two formal Reviews.

"The Colonel's Review also includes 250 soldiers from the Foot Guards who will line the processional route along The Mall."

Jack Royston is Newsweek's chief royal correspondent based in London. You can find him on X, formerly Twitter, at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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