Britain's Prince Charles has wished his son Prince William a happy 39th birthday, with Clarence House sharing an archive photo of Charles cradling William as a baby.
The black and white image features Charles in December 1982 gazing down at his six-month-old son as he holds him on his lap at Kensington Palace.
The message on the prince’s official social media accounts wished William “a very Happy Birthday”.
A very Happy Birthday to The Duke of Cambridge! 🎂 pic.twitter.com/H4xdjYKcLE
— The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) June 21, 2021
Advertisement
The pair were also pictured with Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall at the opening of Prince Harry's first ever Invictus Games in 2014, but Harry did not feature in the image.
Harry has a fractured relationship with his brother and has also spoken of how he felt “really let down” by his father, adding “there’s a lot of hurt that’s happened”.
Harry, who accused the royal family of racism in his Oprah Winfrey tell-all, later appeared to suggest in a podcast interview that Charles, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip had failed as parents.
The royal family also sent William their congratulations as he celebrated the final birthday of his 30s, with Kensington Palace later thanking well-wishers for their “kind messages”.
The message on the monarchy’s official Twitter account read: “Wishing The Duke of Cambridge a very Happy Birthday today! #HappyBirthdayHRH.”
Shared photographs included the duke with Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge and their children on the Buckingham Palace balcony, and also William – a future king – in military uniform.
🎈Wishing The Duke of Cambridge a very Happy Birthday today! #HappyBirthdayHRH pic.twitter.com/9NB5klLpqN
Advertisement— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) June 21, 2021
William appeared at a local running event on the Sandringham estate with his two eldest children on Father’s Day.
Pictures showed the duke, Prince George and Princess Charlotte gathering around a microphone to count down the start of the race, and waving at the runners.
George and Charlotte were photographed wearing shorts and trainers, while the duke was dressed in a blue shirt and a pair of navy chinos.
Fantastic day for @RunSandringham - well done to everyone for taking part.
HRH Duke of Cambridge, Prince George and Princess Charlotte starting the races.
Image by Ian Burt pic.twitter.com/ddRsqDaQfj— Sandringham (@sandringham1870) June 20, 2021
Run Sandringham welcomed hundreds of runners who were competing in either a half-marathon, a 5K or a community mile to raise money for charity.
Prince William Arthur Philip Louis of Wales was born second in line to the throne at St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, at 9.03pm on June 21st 1982.
He weighed 7lb one 1/2 oz and was the firstborn son of Prince Charles and the Princess of Wales, Diana.
Thank you for all the birthday wishes and kind messages 🎂 pic.twitter.com/3FcvQoFtD6
— The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@KensingtonRoyal) June 21, 2021
At just nine months old, he accompanied his parents on their six-week official visit to Australia and New Zealand, which was a break from royal tradition.
His mother Diana, who separated from Charles in 1992, died in a car crash in 1997.
He was just 15 and Harry 12, and the brothers walked behind the princess’s coffin during a funeral procession through London.
William met Kate Middleton at St Andrews University in Fife, Scotland, and the pair wed in 2011 after dating for more than eight years.
He was made the Duke of Cambridge by his grandmother the Queen on the morning of his wedding.
The couple welcomed their first child George – also a future king – in 2013, followed by Charlotte in 2015 and Louis in 2018.
