Royal fans left delighted at Prince Louis's birthday photo

• Kensington Palace has released a beaming snap of Louis on his 6th birthday 
• READ MORE: Inside Kate’s sweet midnight tradition on her children’s birthdays  

Royal fans were left delighted by a photo of Prince Louis taken by the Princess of Wales for his sixth birthday.

The special image was released to mark the youngest child of Prince William and Kate Middleton turning six, and shows him beaming from ear to ear.

Fans were initially left disappointed as traditionally the Wales family releases photos early in the morning to mark their children’s birthdays.

But the happy photo was clearly worth the wait when it was finally posted this afternoon, as cheeky Louis was pictured grinning in the grounds of Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.

Royal fans all over the country were quick to note how grown up the prince was looking and even spotted a telling gap in his lower teeth revealing that the tooth fairy has been.

Prince Louis pictured by the Princess of Wales for his sixth birthday. The image shows the royal lying on a picnic blanket in the grounds of the Windsor estate

The snap was posted on the Prince and Princess of Wales’s social media accounts thanking royal fans for all the kind wishes they had sent to the young prince

They said: ‘Happy birthday boss, baby! You are getting so big’;

‘Happy birthday Prince Louis, have a wonderful day. Thank you so much for sharing this delightful picture. I see the tooth fairy has been visiting – goodness time flies so fast’;

‘I can’t believe how big he is!’; ‘He’s getting a big boy face’;

‘He’s growing up so fast!’

Louis was dressed in a smart-casual shirt with blue and brown checkering – sweetly echoing his dad Prince William’s wardrobe.

But others pointed out that he also looked a lot like his grandfather, Michael Middleton – Kate’s father.

Many royal fans were quick to praise the Princess of Wales for getting behind the camera once again for her children’s birthday.

Hopeful supporters took it as a positive sign amid recent news of her cancer diagnosis and recovery from chemotherapy, saying: ‘Well done HRH Princess of Wales’ and ‘Should we be excited that she can take photographs?’

Fans said Louis is ‘growing up fast’. Pictured in his fifth birthday photo last year; this year, the royal has a gap in his lower teeth

Royal fans all over the country were quick to spot how grown up the prince was looking

The caption of the photo read: ‘Happy 6th Birthday, Prince Louis! Thank you for all the kind wishes today.’

As the beaming prince looks into the camera, he is lying on his front and looks all grown up with his brunette hair swept to the side, and a smart checked shirt.

He appears to be wearing dark shorts with bare feet and is lying on a fleeced blanket.

The picture is understood to have been unedited, following the furore that resulted over the Princess’ photoshopped Mother’s Day picture, which saw it withdrawn by international picture agencies. She later apologised for the confusion.

Normally the couple issue a photograph of each of their children to mark their birthdays in advance for use on the day itself.

This year the Wales’ had originally decided not to do so given that it is such an ‘unprecedented’ time for their family.

As he flashes his biggest smile, the young prince also appears to have lost a couple of his baby teeth since his last official appearance on Christmas Day 2023.

The Princess of Wales announced in an emotive video message last month that she is undergoing a course of preventative chemotherapy

Louis’s sixth birthday comes as the Wales family takes time away from the spotlight while the Princess, 42, recovers from abdominal surgery and subsequent cancer treatment.

Mother-of-three Kate revealed in March that she was undergoing a course of preventative chemotherapy for a type of cancer that remains undisclosed.

In a heartbreaking video the Princess of Wales detailed how the cancerous cells were discovered, while she was undergoing surgery for a different condition in January.

She explained that she had not spoken out about it earlier because she wanted to have time to ‘explain everything’ to George, Charlotte and Louis and assure them ‘I’m going to be ok’.

At Trooping the Colour last year, Louis got into the spirit of the Red Arrows as he appeared to impersonate a pilot

As Louis travelled in a carriage with his siblings at Trooping the Colour, Princess Charlotte, eight and Prince George, 10, he looked put off by an unpleasant smell in Horse Guards Parade

Kensington Palace released snaps of Prince Louis playing on the beach in Norfolk to mark his fourth birthday

This was also the reason the William was forced to pull out of a memorial service for his late godfather, King Constantine of Greece, as it is understood that this was when the family first found out about Kate’s condition.

In her emotive statement, Kate said: ‘The surgery was successful, however, tests after the operation found that cancer had been present.

‘As you can imagine, this has taken time. It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment.’

The last time royal fans were given a glimpse of Prince Louis, he appeared alongside his mother and his siblings in a Mother’s Day photo which was later withdrawn by picture agencies around the world

The last time royal fans were given a glimpse of Prince Louis, the young prince appeared with his siblings, Prince George, 10, and Princess Charlotte, eight, as they smiled alongside their mother Kate on Mother’s Day.

The snap released by Kensington Palace, generated controversy when picture agencies around the world issued ‘kill notices’, over concerns it had been ‘manipulated’.

Both the agencies and eagle-eyed internet sleuths noticed several inconsistencies in the photo, including in the alignment of Princess Charlotte’s skirt, her hair, and the zip on Kate’s khaki jacket.

Following the social media storm, the Princess of Wales was forced to issue a statement admitting she had ‘edited’ the image – which had initially been hoped would quell wild conspiracy theories that had circulated about her health.

Prince Louis sweetly held hands with his second cousin Mia Tindall as he joined the rest of the royal family at Sandringham on Christmas Day

Louis held hands with his cousin, who has two younger siblings herself, as they walked into the church service

In a post on Instagram and X/Twitter, the Princess said: ‘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. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.’

Prince Louis was born on April 23, 2018 in the Lindo Wing of St Mary’s Hospital, like his older siblings Charlotte and George.

A statement from Kensington Palace at the time read: ‘Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge was safely delivered of a son at 1101hrs.

‘The baby weighs 8lbs 7oz. The Duke of Cambridge was present for the birth. Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well.’

Since thenm he’s become known for his flair in front of the camera and has previously delighted royal fans with his expressive performances at royal events.

At Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, the young royal, then four-years-old, took centre stage as the royal family appeared on the balcony.

Alarmed by the noise caused by the Red Arrows circling overhead, he covered his ears and winced.

Similarly, the youngster charmed audiences around the world with his antics at the concert held in honour of his ‘Gan Gan’ and her 70-year reign.

Prince Louis delighted fans with his expressive antics during the various Platinum Jubilee celebrations

The most stylish royal! Prince Louis, then four, left royal fans in stitches as he danced to the music at the concert

The young prince’s cheeky antics went viral as royal fans were left in hysterics at his funny behaviour

During the concert, Louis was seen larking about as he played with his mother and sat on his grandfather King Charles’s lap.

Last year at Trooping the Colour, he once again stole the show with his funny antics, and delighted fans once again on the balcony of Buckingham Palace as he got into the spirit of the Red Arrows and pretended to be a pilot.

He also made viewers chuckle as he arrived in a carriage with his siblings at Horse Guards Parade – and seemed put off by an unpleasant smell.

The prince scrunched up his face and held his nose as the carriage moved along, while his older siblings seemed unfazed by the smell.

As Kensington Palace celebrated Louis’s fifth birthday last year, Kate and William released a snap showing their youngest son’s playful side and his strong bond with his mother, as the Princess of Wales was seen pushing him in a wheelbarrow while he gleefully beamed.

The previous year, another photo of the Prince, taken by Kate, was shared by Kensington Palace which showed him playing on the beach in Norfolk.’

During Louis’s last public appearance on Christmas Day 2023 at Sandringham, he put on another heart-warming display as he held hands with his second cousin, Mia Tindall, on the way to St Mary Magdalene Church.

Mia, nine, is the eldest daughter of Zara and Mike Tindall, and has two younger siblings herself, Lena and Lucas.

Christmas 2023 was Louis’s second time joining his family for the annual trip to St Mary Magdalene Church as he is now deemed old enough to attend.

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