Kate Middleton Posts Prince Louis Birthday Photo After Scandal

Princess Kate has released a new photo of Prince Louis to mark his sixth birthday on Tuesday.

The portrait was shared by Kensington Palace on social media and is the first she has released since becoming engulfed in a Photoshop controversy over a Mother's Day portrait in March.

The Context

Prince William and Princess Kate's youngest son, Prince Louis, is celebrating his sixth birthday on April 23, the occasion being marked on the royal couple's social media with a new photograph.

The image, which was taken in Windsor earlier this week, shows the prince dressed in a check shirt smiling broadly at the camera and is captioned: "Happy 6th Birthday, Prince Louis! 🎂 Thank you for all the kind wishes today. 📸 The Princess of Wales."

It comes after royal fans, news outlets and commentators speculated that no image would be released after Kate faced backlash last month over photo editing.

What We Know

The photograph of Louis is the first taken by Kate to be released since she was criticized for editing a portrait of herself and her three children taken to mark Mother's Day in Britain last month.

The princess faced widespread backlash and subsequently issued an apology, saying: "Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused."

No reason for the edits, which were quickly identified online, was given.

The backlash came as Kate took time out of the public eye to recover from abdominal surgery and was followed by the announcement that she had been diagnosed with cancer.

Views

The princess has won praise for her family photography over the years, with intimate portraits taken to mark her three children's life milestones seen as a way to balance public interest and family privacy.

After Kate was criticized for her Mother's Day photo editing, which led picture agencies to issue "kill" notices warning news outlets to no longer publish the portrait, speculation circulated as to whether it would bring an end to her days as a family photographer.

Speaking to Sky News in March, Newsweek's chief royal correspondent, Jack Royston, said that it shouldn't.

"They should just do it and take whatever comes," he said at the time of Kate potentially releasing an image to mark Louis birthday. "Because it's a really wonderful thing that Kate's been doing in recent years, where she photographs her own children and puts the pictures out, and it will be an opportunity to try to restore trust."

What's Next?

Kensington Palace's release of an image taken by Kate to mark Prince Louis' birthday suggests they will continue to do so as they have in the past, to mark the Wales children's milestones.

However, the palace broke with tradition this time by not releasing the image to media outlets under an embargo prior to its publication on social media.

Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Louis have not been seen attending a royal event since December. They have remained mainly out of the public eye while Kate has continued her ongoing treatment for cancer.

Kate is expected to remain absent from royal duties until after her treatment has finished and she has made progress in her recovery, upon the advice of her medical team.

Princess Charlotte will celebrate her ninth birthday on May 2, shortly after Kate and Prince William will mark their 13th wedding anniversary on April 29.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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