LONDON (AP) — Britain showcased a grand display of birthday pageantry on Saturday for King Charles III, marking the Princess of Wales’ first public appearance since her cancer diagnosis earlier this year. The annual event, known as Trooping the Colour, also served as a demonstration of the monarchy’s resilience after a challenging period where both the king and Princess Kate have been undergoing cancer treatment.
In a powerful display of unity, King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William, Princess Kate, and their children appeared on the Buckingham Palace balcony at the conclusion of the King’s Birthday Parade. The royal family waved to the enthusiastic crowd as they watched a flyby of military aircraft, capping off the ceremonies celebrating the monarch’s official birthday.
This event marked Kate’s first public appearance since December. In March, she revealed she was undergoing chemotherapy for an unspecified type of cancer. “I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days,” Kate said in a statement released on Friday. She added that she still faces “a few more months” of treatment and is “not out of the woods yet.” Officials emphasized that her participation in Saturday’s event does not signal a full return to public life.
The streets were lined with huge crowds, as they do every June, to witness the birthday parade. The procession, known as Trooping the Colour, began with a grand display involving horses, musicians, and hundreds of soldiers in ceremonial uniforms from Buckingham Palace.
The 42-year-old princess traveled in a horse-drawn carriage from the palace down the grand avenue known as the Mall, accompanied by her children George, 10, Charlotte, 9, and Louis, 6. Bystanders cheered as they caught sight of Kate, elegantly dressed in a white dress by designer Jenny Packham and a wide-brimmed Philip Treacy hat. She watched the ceremony with her children from a window overlooking Horse Guards Parade, a ceremonial parade ground in central London. At one point, young Louis yawned broadly but mostly watched the proceedings intently, even dancing along to the military music.
Prince William, dressed in military uniform, rode on horseback for the ceremony. Troops paraded past the king with their regimental flag, or “colour,” in a display of precision marching and martial music. This tradition harks back to the days when a regiment’s flag was a crucial rallying point in the chaos of battle.
King Charles, who is also undergoing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer, traveled in a carriage with Queen Camilla, rather than on horseback as he did last year. The king inspected the troops from a dais on the parade ground, saluting as elite regiments of Foot Guards marched past. This year, it was the turn of a company of the Irish Guards, with Kate as its honorary colonel, to parade their colour. The troops, dressed in scarlet tunics and bearskin hats, were led onto the parade ground by their mascot, an Irish wolfhound named Seamus.
Charles, 75, disclosed his cancer diagnosis in February and has recently begun to resume public duties. He attended commemorations last week for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe on June 6, 1944.
In a unique British royal tradition, Saturday is not the king’s actual birthday, which is in November. Like his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, before him, Charles has an official birthday on the second Saturday in June, chosen for its generally favorable weather. However, early sunshine on Saturday gave way to a blustery, rainy day in London. The rain held off for most of the ceremony but began to pour as the massed troops escorted the royal carriages back to Buckingham Palace, to cheers from the soggy but enthusiastic crowds. Blue skies briefly returned as the family emerged onto the balcony to watch a flyby that included the Royal Air Force aerobatic team, the Red Arrows, trailing red, white, and blue plumes of vapor.
Thousands of royal fans, clad in raincoats and holding umbrellas, had gathered along the route hours before the start time. Among them were a few anti-monarchist protesters chanting “Not my king.” Spectator Joseph Afrane, 60, expressed his joy at seeing Kate return, saying, “It was fantastic when I heard it on the news yesterday. I thought, ‘God, I thank you for bringing Kate back,’ because she’s very hardworking.”
The spectators were treated to a display of pomp and precision involving 1,400 soldiers, 250 military musicians, and more than 200 horses. The equine participants included Trojan, Tennyson, and Vanquish, three of the five military horses that caused mayhem in April when they bolted and ran loose through central London, crashing into vehicles and causing chaos during the morning rush hour. The army reported that the other two horses are recovering well and are also expected to return to duty.
Kate Middleton waved to the crowd from Buckingham Palace’s balcony, marking her first public appearance since her cancer diagnosis earlier this year. She announced on Friday that she would attend the King’s Birthday Parade after making progress in her treatment. “I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days,” she said in a statement, adding that she faced “a few more months” of treatment. Kate has not made any public appearances since December.
The 42-year-old princess traveled in a horse-drawn carriage from Buckingham Palace down the grand avenue known as the Mall with her three children. Bystanders cheered as they caught a glimpse of Kate, dressed in a white dress and wide-brimmed hat. She then watched the ceremony from a building overlooking Horse Guards Parade, a ceremonial parade ground in central London.
Prince William rode on horseback for the ceremony, in which troops in full dress uniform paraded past the king with their regimental flag. Charles, who is also being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer, traveled in a carriage with Queen Camilla, rather than on horseback. The king, 75, disclosed his cancer in February and has recently eased back into public duties. He attended commemorations last week for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe on June 6, 1944.
Kate said in her statement that she is “not out of the woods yet,” and officials stress that Saturday’s engagement does not herald a full return to public life. Royal fans in raincoats and umbrellas had already gathered along the route several hours before start time, along with a smattering of anti-monarchist protesters chanting “not my king.”
Spectators were treated to a display of pomp and precision involving more than 1,000 soldiers, 250 military musicians, and more than 200 horses. The equine participants included Trojan, Tennyson, and Vanquish, three of the five military horses that caused mayhem in April when they bolted and ran loose through central London.
