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The Duchess of Cambridge has taken to Instagram to thank followers for their “lovely” birthday wishes.
The beautiful mother-of-three celebrated her 38th birthday on January 9th and treated followers to a stunning, never-before-seen portrait taken by royal photographer Matt Porteous to mark the special day.
“Thank you everyone for your lovely messages on The Duchess of Cambridge’s birthday!” Kensington Palace shared alongside the image, which shows Catherine perched casually on a fence in the grounds of the Cambridges’ country home Anmer Hall.
The duchess looks radiant in her relaxed attire – a beige sweater worn over a blue and white checked shirt and jeans – the same outfit she was wearing in the Cambridge family’s 2018 Christmas card, so it’s likely this photograph was taken at the same time.
Over the weekend the duchess celebrated her birthday week with close friends, who she hosted at her country home in Norfolk.
She, Prince William and her pals were also seen accompanying the Queen to church at Sandringham.
Catherine was spotted with the Queen, Prince William and close friends in Sandringham the weekend. (Image: Getty)
Her birthday comes just a day after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex shocked the world with the announcement they will be stepping back as senior members of the royal family, however, they were sure to wish their sister-in-law a happy birthday, commenting under the photograph: “Wishing a very happy birthday to The Duchess of Cambridge today! 🎂❤”
Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla also wished Catherine a happy birthday on social media, sharing a carousel of images which featured images of her, Prince Charles, Duchess Camilla and Prince William.
“Wishing The Duchess of Cambridge a very Happy Birthday 🎈” Clarence House wrote.
And of course, the Queen’s official Instagram account @theroyalfamily were there to wish the future Queen a happy birthday.
The social media account shared several images of the Queen and Catherine together over the years, including an image from Kate’s first solo engagement with the Queen last year as well as a photo of Catherine giving the monarch a tour of her ‘Back to Nature’ garden which she helped design as part of the Chelsea Flower Show last year.
Earlier this week Duchess Catherine and Prince William announced their first engagements of the new year, revealing they will travel to Bradford on Wednesday next week to visit a number of community projects in one of the UK’s most diverse cities.
The royal couple are also set to host a reception on behalf of the Queen at Buckingham Palace to mark the UK-Africa Investment Summit on Monday, January 20.
The summit will bring together representatives from a number of African countries to showcase the quality of investment opportunities in the continent as well as highlighting the UK’s commitment to supporting economic development in Africa.
