The royal family have wished the Duchess of Cambridge a happy birthday on their social media accounts – highlighting the strong bond Kate Middleton shares with the Queen and Prince Charles in a series of touching photographs.
The birthday posts to mark the Duchess of Cambridge celebrating turning 40 today even carried some emojis – with balloons and cake featuring in the messages from on @theroyalfamily and @clarencehouse accounts.
Images shared on the Royal Family’s Instagram early this morning focused on Kate’s warm relationship with the Queen and senior royals – showing a collection of photos from public engagements over the last decade.
Two of the three images taken by photographer Paolo Roversi to mark the Duchess’ 40th also made it to the @theroyalfamily’s Instagram stories.
Kate responded to a nation’s well wishes this afternoon, writing on Twitter: ‘Thank you for all of your very kind birthday wishes, and to Paolo and the National Portrait Gallery for these three special portraits. C.’
Scroll down for video
Close: Buckingham Palace have released sweet pictures of the Queen and Kate Middleton to mark the Duchess of Cambridge’s 40th birthday today – alongside a birthday greeting featuring a balloon emoji
Clarence House also posted a birthday greeting, highlighting the bond between the Duchess of Cambridge and her father-in-law the Prince of Wales
Kate Middleton’s big day also made it to the @theroyalfamily’s Instagram stories – with Buckingham Palace sharing two of the three images taken by photographer Paolo Roversi to mark the Duchess’ 40th
Over on the Clarence House Instagram account, there were three images offering snapshots of Kate in recent years.
One sees the Duchess sharing a friendly smile with her father-in-law, the Prince of Wales, during last year’s Festival of Remembrance Service at the Royal Albert Hall.
Another snap, taken at the G7 Summit last year shows Camilla, shows Kate and the Queen smiling, looking over a miniature replica of a model city as the Duchess of Cornwall looks on.
A third image shared by Clarence House is a close-up portrait of the Duchess smiling directly at the camera.
In the four images shared by the royal family’s Instagram account, Kate is seen beaming by the Queen’s side at several events, including in a photo taken early into Kate Middleton’s marriage to Prince William in 2012.
Sitting next to the Queen at a fashion show in Leicester, Kate, wearing a stylish all-black ensemble leans towards the monarch, smiling. The Queen, wearing a vibrant pink and black number, listens to her grandson’s wife attentively.
Another picture, also taken during 2012, shows the Queen and the Duchess sporting similar blue outfits and sharing a joke.
Among the other images shared by @theroyalfamily on Instagram was a photo of Kate and the Queen, both wearing blue, and smiling broadly at an event in 2012 in Nottingham
Happy days: The Duchess of Cambridge with Princess Charlotte, Prince George, Prince William and the Queen at Trooping the Colour in 2016
Kate sharing a joke with the Duchess of Cornwall and the Queen, while cutting a cake with a ceremonial saber during last year’s G7 Summit in Cornwall
Clarence House’s social media account shared a glamourous picture of Kate to mark her special day
Another picture showed the Queen, the Duchess of Cornwall and Kate during this year’s G7 Summit
In a third picture, taken during Trooping the Colour in 2016, Kate, holding a then two-year-old Princess Charlotte, looks entirely comfortable with the regal occasion, standing next to Prince William and the Queen, who is wearing a vibrant lime green ensemble.
A fourth snap highlights the strong bond uniting the monarch, Kate and the Duchess of Cornwall, with a picture taken at last year’s G7 Summit in Cornwall, showing the Queen cutting a cake with a ceremonial saber.
Charities who have worked with the Duchess of Cambridge over the years also shared well wishes on the occasion of her birthday.
Action for Children praised her as ‘an inspiring champion of children and young people,’ while Taking Action on Addiction thanked her for her ‘vital work to support those struggling with addiction.’
The Foundling Museum also thanked the Duchess for the work she did with them as their patron.
And the Victoria and Albert Museum called her a champion of ‘youth creativity and early years development’ and praised her ‘celebration of art and design.’
And the All Onboard campaign, which is behind the uplifting messages commuters can find on the London Tube’s information board had a special message for Kate this morning.
The All Onboard campaign had a special message for her on her birthday, saying she does not look a day over 22
They wished the Duchess a happy birthday and said she ‘didn’t look a day over 22.’
Royal photographer Chris Jackson, who is married to Kate stylist and friend Natasha Archer and just welcomed his second child, also sent his good wishes on Kate’s birthday.
In a tweet yesterday he said: ‘It’s been a joy to photograph the Duchess of Cambridge for the last decade. Ahead of her 40th birthday I thought I would share my best photos. From official duties to family life, tours and portraits I’ve been lucky enough to capture so any facets of her life.’
Yesterday, the royal family released three stunning pictures of Kate taken by Italian fashion photographer Paolo Roversi.
Charities who have worked with Kate over the years have also shared their good wishes on her birthday
The new portraits show sides of the Duchess of Cambridge usually hidden from the public and mark a dramatic departure from images we are more used to seeing of the Duchess in formal poses or surrounded by her family.
A Palace source said: ‘From the three photographs, you can see the three aspects of Kate’s personality.
‘There is the regal side to her – as you can see in the classic shot where she is looking off into the distance; there is the more informal image in the red dress as a modern woman at 40; and then there is the close-up, which offers a more intimate perspective.’
How Kate Middleton will celebrate her big birthday: Duchess of Cambridge is spending her 40th enjoying a small gathering at Anmer Hall in Norfolk – as it’s revealed the bells of Westminster Abbey WON’T ring because of Covid
Today marks a landmark birthday for the Duchess of Cambridge, who turns 40 – but she’ll be enjoying it in the Norfolk countryside, as the ongoing pandemic keeps a bigger bash off the cards.
The Duchess is reportedly have a more intimate affair with just friends and family at the Cambridges’ home, Amner Hall, due to the ongoing risk from the Omicron variant.
However, Kate is unlikely to be upset about the smaller celebrations this year, according to a source, who claimed the Duchess is not ‘flashy’.
They said: ‘There are likely to be low-key celebrations for the Duchess. She didn’t want anything flashy anyway – that’s not exactly her thing – but particularly given the current climate anything is likely to be scaled down.’
Kensington Palace has released three striking new portraits of Kate to celebrate her landmark birthday, taken by Italian fashion photographer Paolo Roversi in Kew Gardens. In the images, she wears dresses by Alexander McQueen
Kate Middleton, who turns 40 today, is reportedly set to mark the occasion with a small party attended by friends and family. She is pictured here with husband Prince William, and their three children Charlotte, Louis, and George
The Cambridge family residence, Anmer Hall in King’s Lynn, Norfolk, will reportedly host Kate’s birthday bash
In addition to the smaller gathering, the Duchess is set to miss out on a royal birthday tradition.
Birthdays of senior royals used to be marked by the ringing of the bells at Westminster Abbey, but the practice was stopped in April 2020 due to the pandemic, and changes implemented when the bells restarted last September.
In a bid to save money, the bells will now only ring on the birthdays of the Queen and the Prince of Wales.
After the decision was made, a Westminster Abbey spokesperson told Hello: ‘The Abbey bells can be heard ringing out before services and in celebration of church festivals. The bells have also traditionally been rung to mark the birthdays of senior members of the Royal Family.
‘Due to the financial challenges posed to the Abbey by the Covid-19 pandemic, and in consultation with Buckingham Palace, the bells will now ring only for the birthdays of HM The Queen and HRH The Prince of Wales.’
However, the Duchess’ birthday has been celebrated in style by Kensington Palace, which has released three striking new portraits of Kate, taken by Italian fashion photographer Paolo Roversi in Kew Gardens.
The images are to be added to the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery of which the Duchess – a keen photographer herself – is patron
The black and white images of Kate show the Duchess wearing white gowns by Alexander McQueen, accessorised with Princess Diana’s Collingwood pearl and diamond earrings, and in this shot, she also displays her famous sapphire and diamond engagement ring
The set features two shots in black and white, and one colour photo. In all the images, Kate wears dresses by Alexander McQueen, the same design house that created her wedding dress in 2011.
The colour photo shows her posing in a one-shoulder red gown, wearing diamond earrings borrowed from the Queen’s private collection.
In the black and white snaps, she wears white dresses, accessorised with Princess Diana’s Collingwood pearl and diamond earrings.
Speaking about the images, a Palace source said: ‘From the three photographs, you can see the three aspects of personality.
‘There is the regal side to her – as you can see in the classic shot where she is looking off into the distance; there is the more informal image in the red dress as a modern woman at 40; and then there is the close-up, which offers a more intimate perspective.’
The images are to be added to the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery of which the Duchess – a keen photographer herself – is patron.