Kate Middleton and Prince William release new photo of Prince Louis for his 6th birthday

Prince Louis turns six today and his parents have released an adorable new image to mark the occasion. Posted on the Prince and Princess of Wales’ social media channels at 12.15pm in the UK, the image shows the Prince lying on his stomach and smiling for the camera.

“Happy Birthday Prince Louis!” the legend says. “Thank you for all the wishes today.”

The picture was taken in recent days by Kate in Windsor, where the family lives in Adelaide Cottage, on the grounds of Windsor Castle. Following the controversy surrounding the edited image released by Palat on Mother’s Day, this picture is understood to be unedited.

The decision to release an image via social media on Louis’ birthday marks a change from Kensington Palace’s usual process. William and Kate established a convention of releasing their children’s birthday pictures to the embargoed news media the day before, which meant British newspapers could publish the picture on the day of the birthday itself. However, this is an unprecedented time for the family as Kate is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer while still fully recovering from major abdominal surgery in January.

In a totally unexpected and heartbreaking video message released a month ago, the Princess of Wales said she has cancer and has started chemotherapy. She made a plea for “space and privacy” as she completes her treatment.

The Welsh family spent Easter away from the limelight and it is not known when Kate is expected to step out in public again. Prince William made his first public visit since his wife announced her diagnosis last week. He highlighted the work of a food distribution charity in the South East of England.

Princess Charlotte’s 9th birthday is on May 2 and it is expected that a picture will be released in the same way as today to mark the occasion.

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