Happy 5th Birthday Princess Charlotte

 The 2nd of May sees Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge celebrate her 5th birthday. Charlotte is the middle child and only daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.


Like her siblings George and Louis and father William, the young princess was born in the Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital in Paddington, not far from the family's London home-Apartment 1A, Kensington Palace. A few days after her birth, the Cambridges travelled to their country abode Anmer Hall in Norfolk where the family based themselves until mid 2017. 

Charlotte and George were brought up in the relaxed atmosphere of the countryside, with Marvin the guinea pig and Lupo the black cocker spaniel. Nanny Maria Teresa helped Catherine and William balance growing royal duties and the Duke's job as helicopter pilot with East Anglia Air Ambulance, based in nearby Norwich airport. Anmer Hall is located on the Queen's Sandringham Estate and features a vegetable garden, tennis court and swimming pool. It offers the family much needed privacy.

In the late summer of 2017, the Cambridges changed their main residence to Kensington Palace due to a number of factors. William's grandfather Prince Philip retired from royal duties and the Queen was also stopping overseas royal tours and slowly handing down more responsibilities to her four children and the next generation - William and Catherine and Prince Harry. 

William left his role as helicopter pilot and took up more royal commitments. Prince George was starting school in the September and so London became the natural move but the family goes back to Anmer for holidays, half term and some weekends. It is also where the COVID-19 lockdown is being spent. 

Charlotte was baptised at St Mary Magdalene church on the Sandringham Estate on 5th July 2015 at just two months old. This is the same place that her late paternal grandmother Diana, Princess of Wales was baptised in 1961. Diana's family were also living on the Sandringham Estate at Park House.

The young princess started at Willcocks Nursery School in Kensington in January 2018 and then formal schooling at Thomas's Battersea from September 2019, joining brother George.

Charlotte loves dancing, pony riding and tennis. She is also very girly- liking pink, accessorises with little purses and is very fussy about her hair being braided. 

Charlotte excels at her royal wave- enthusiastically waving to crowds from a young age and is very well behaved in public, aside from a few tongue-poking moments and a toddler tantrum on the tarmac in 2017.

The princess has been on royal tours to Canada in 2016 and Germany and Poland the following year.
Each year we have seen her on the balcony at Buckingham Palace for the Trooping the Colour flypast and she is a very popular flowergirl at family weddings.