On May 2, Princess Charlotte celebrated her fifth birthday. It seems like just yesterday that Queen Elizabeth's fifth great-grandchild was born. She's grown up before our very eyes. She's also captivated royal fans with her sweet but sassy personality.
To celebrate Charlotte's special day, new birthday photos of the little princess were released. The photos show Charlotte posed in a houndstooth-patterned black and white dress from Zara. In some of the photos, taken by Kate, Charlotte is delivering care packages to isolated senior citizens.
The sweet pictures sparked a number of responses from royal fans. As always, the birthday photos had royal watchers debating which member of her famous family Charlotte looks the most like.
Fans also questioned the decision to have Charlotte delivering packages. Some saw this as a fitting act of service from one of the littlest members of the royal family. Others believed it was unnecessarily putting Charlotte and anyone she came in contact with at risk. There were even a few who speculated she didn't come in contact with anyone and that it was all a PR stunt.
Princess Charlotte's photos were a delightful and welcome gift to royal fans all around the world. The second of the three Cambridge children celebrated her fifth birthday on May 2. Kensington Palace posted the first round of photos the evening before.
"The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very pleased to share four new photographs of Princess Charlotte ahead of her fifth birthday tomorrow," their team shared on all Kensington Palace social media accounts.
"The images were taken by The Duchess as the family helped to pack up and deliver food packages for isolated pensioners in the local area."
Other royal family accounts also shared warm wishes for Charlotte.
"Wishing Princess Charlotte a very Happy Birthday – five today!" shared Clarence House.
"The photo was taken by The Duchess of Cambridge in April. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have shared new photographs of Princess Charlotte to make her birthday – see @kensingtonroyal for more."
Queen Elizabeth's well-wishes were also shared on the Royal Family accounts. "Happy Birthday to Princess Charlotte who is celebrating her 5th birthday today! ," the photo was captioned.
"Princess Charlotte is The Queen’s fifth great-grandchild."
Royal fans totally loved the photos. As new images of the young royals often do, they started a conversation of which royal Charlotte most closely resembles. Many believe that she's the spitting image of a young Queen Elizabeth.
Others think that Charlotte more closely looks like her Middleton relatives. We recently got to see how much Kate looks like her mother, Carole Middleton. It's entirely possible that Charlotte's looks will match those of her mom and grandmother.
Of course, there have also been many comparisons to Princess Diana. Many people have already commented that Charlotte's magnetism is reminiscent of the late Princess of Wales. Some similarities are definitely there.
Don't count William out, however. Comparisons to young photos of the Duke of Cambridge show that he looked quite different as a tyke. There are certain aspects of William that Charlotte's features undoubtedly mirror.
There's one more royal whom the 5-year-old princess could be a doppelganger for. People have noted the similarities between Charlotte and Lady Sarah Chatto. Sarah is the only daughter of Princess Margaret.
Fans also had differing feelings on the photos of the princess helping pack and deliver food packages to local seniors. Some royal fans think the pictures were a sweet way of showing that the young royal is learning the spirit of giving back. They believed the photos to be genuine.
Some people were concerned about the fact that Charlotte wasn't wearing a mask or gloves. Seniors are a vulnerable population, so they believe the adults in Charlotte's life should have outfitted her accordingly. They also believe it puts the Cambridges at an unnecessary risk.
Some also pointed out the difference in how the pictures and those of Harry and Meghan volunteering were received. The photos of Charlotte were accompanied by news that the entire family helped out with a local initiative started by the Queen's staff to deliver meals for pensioners and the vulnerable in the area during the lockdown. Royal fans are debating which couple, if either, was genuine and benevolent in their service.
Some royal fans also noted that unlike Meghan and Harry's charity outing, no one who has interacted with the Cambridges in their volunteering has spoken out. To be fair, the answer to that could be as simple as the fact they're delivering to seniors. Still, many believe it was unfair to use the child's birthday for PR.
Regardless of the reasoning behind the photos, there's no denying that Charlotte is adorable. We're watching the Cambridge kids grow up before our very eyes,and it's truly a pleasure. We'll all be waiting eagerly to see if we're treated to a new photo of their cousin, Archie Harrison, for his first birthday on May 6.
