Princess Charlotte's touching act during carriage ride to stop rain ruining Trooping parade

Princess Charlotte was ever the helpful royal as she got stuck into the Trooping the Colour parade.

The King's 75th birthday was celebrated today at Buckingham Palace, with Princess Kate, 42, announcing last minute that she would be attending the event alongside her three children, Prince George, Charlotte and Prince Louis. The four of them travelled in a carriage behind King Charles and Queen Camilla as the celebrations kicked off this morning.

Known for being the sensible and well-behaved older sister, Charlotte took it upon herself to make sure the crowds at The Mall could see her and her siblings smiling and waving. As the rain poured and the windows steamed up, she wiped the mist away with her bare hands while her mum Kate acknowledged onlookers and her little brother Louis excitedly waved.

Charlotte

Adorable Charlotte was dressed in a navy and white dress with a white bow on the front, and her hair was tied up away from her face. In addition to coordinating with her mum's outfit, the Princess, 10, was the spitting image of Kate in her actions and demeanour. Body language expert Judi James noted many similarities between the mother and daughter, such as her smile.

Speaking to the Mirror, Judi explained: "Sweetly and adorably it seemed to be Charlotte stepping up to delegate some of her mother's body language rituals. Her smile from the carriage was so like Kate's pitch-perfect royal smile and she used eye-engage on the crowds as she waved with enthusiasm."

Charlotte also appeared to remind Louis who was the boss on the balcony and instructed him to stand straight while the national anthem played. Judi said: "As Kate and her three children watched from the open window, it was Kate standing at the back of the group while Charlotte beamed down with an expression of pride, even appearing to mutter to Louis to ensure he stood to attention as she did while the National Anthem was being played."

Charlotte and Louis

It was the first time Kate had been pictured in public with her children since she was admitted to hospital for abdominal surgery in January. It was also her brood's first major royal appearance of the year and all three were in good spirits as George, 10, appeared on best behaviour, while his younger brother, Louis, six, was up to his usual cheeky tricks.

In a statement released by the Palace yesterday, Kate said she has "good days and bad days" amid her preventative chemotherapy treatment. The Princess added that she "hopes to join a few public engagements over the summer" as she continues treatment for cancer "for a few months".

Kate, who is the honorary Colonel of the Irish Guards, did not attend the Colonel's Review on June 8 - the traditional rehearsal for the birthday parade - but wrote to them to apologise for missing it and wished them luck. In her heartfelt letter, she said: "Being your Colonel remains a great honour, and I am very sorry that I am unable to take the salute at this year's Colonel Review."

Kate and kids

The Waleses have been keen to keep to their normal routine. in recent months, and eldest child George has been seen out with William several times, most notably at the FA Cup final last month. During his visit to see Gareth Southgate's men before they left for Germany, William also got the opportunity to give the players a pep talk and he shared Louis' words of wisdom.

He said: "Guys, while I was on the way here, I was thinking what shall I say. And I thought what can I offer as you are all an experienced team here with Gareth and I was thinking what could I say to help before you went away?

"And I was on the school run this morning with the children and I said, 'What shall I say to the England team today'. The best bit of advice I got was to eat twice the amount you would normally eat. And I now have visions of all of you running around with massive tummies and getting stitches on the pitch. So I think take my youngest's advice with a pinch of salt!"