LONDON — Britain's Prince George, the country's future monarch, celebrated turning 7 Wednesday. To mark the event, the palace released pictures taken by his mother, Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, showing the young prince in a T-shirt and flashing a gap-toothed smile in the sunshine.
George is third in line to the throne after his grandfather Prince Charles and father, Prince William, and is the eldest of the Cambridges' three children — his sister Charlotte is 5 and his brother Louis is 2.
William and Kate's three children are rarely seen in public and few photographs of them are released, but it has become a tradition for snapshots taken by Kate to be published to mark special occasions.
George's birth in the private Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital in London in 2013 caused global headlines with international crowds of photographers and media vying for a glimpse of the future monarch.
In May, the Cambridges released images of their daughter delivering food packages to people during the coronavirus lockdown to mark her fifth birthday.
Her grandfather Prince Charles contracted COVID-19 but made a swift recovery in March and the royal family have been vocal in their support of health care workers and businesses during the pandemic.
Many of the lockdown measures are beginning to ease in England, with the young prince expected to celebrate his birthday at home. Last year, he spent his big day on vacation with his family on the Caribbean island of Mustique.
Earlier this month, Princess Beatrice, the eldest daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, married in a private ceremony due to the coronavirus restrictions. She donned a vintage dress and a diamond tiara that she borrowed from her grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, who attended the small wedding.
Reuters contributed to this report.
