Kate attends King’s birthday parade in first public appearance since cancer diagnosis

Alll eyes were on Kate Middleton on Saturday (June 15) as she made her first public appearance since her cancer diagnosis early this year.

It was a poignant moment as 42-year-old Kate rode in a carriage with her children at the "Trooping the Colour", an annual military parade held in central London to mark the official birthday of the British monarch, King Charles.

She could be seen through the vehicle's window wearing a white ensemble edged in black, complete with a hat, and her hair pulled back. The dress is by one of the Princess of Wales' go-to designers, Jenny Packham, and the hat is designed by another royal favorite, Philip Treacy.

Boisterous ovation

Middleton received a boisterous ovation from thousands of royal fans who lined the Mall route as she and her three children travelled in a carriage.

King Charles and Queen Camilla led the procession while William rode on horseback.

Middleton and her children peaked from a window to watch the ceremony at Horse Guards Parade, where she stood for roughly five minutes before she was brought a chair.

The last time the mother of three appeared in public was on Christmas Day — shortly before a doctor discovered cancer during a planned abdominal surgery in January.

In an emotional letter, she admitted she has good and bad days and is not out of the woods with the illness.

Show of stability

Britain is putting on a massive show this time for the annual military parade for King Charles III. 

The annual event is also a show of stability by the monarchy after months in which both the King and Kate, wife of heir to the throne Prince William, have been sidelined by cancer treatment.

Kate announced Friday that she would attend the King's Birthday Parade after making progress in her treatment. She disclosed in March that she was undergoing chemotherapy for an unspecified form of cancer.

“I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days,” Kate said in a statement, adding that she faces “a few more months” of treatment.

Earlier, reports said that the princess was expected to travel by horse-drawn carriage from Buckingham Palace with her children George, 10, Charlotte, 9, and 6-year-old Louis. She will watch the ceremony from a building overlooking Horse Guards Parade, a ceremonial parade ground in central London.

Prince William will be on horseback for the ceremony, also known as Trooping the Colour, in which troops in full dress uniform parade past the king with their regimental flag, or “colour.” Charles, who also is being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer, is due to inspect the troops alongside Queen Camilla from a carriage.

Charles, 75, disclosed his cancer in February, and has recently eased back into public duties. He attended commemorations last week for the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe on June 6, 1944.

Kate is likely to join other members of the family on a Buckingham Palace balcony to watch a flypast of military aircraft and delight the crowds below.

Official birthday not real birthday

In one of the many quirks of British royal convention, Saturday is not the king's real birthday, that's in November. Like his mother Queen Elizabeth II before him, Charles has an official birthday on the second Saturday in June.

The date was chosen because the weather is generally good, though early sunshine on Saturday gave way to a blustery, rainy day in London.

Royal fans in raincoats and umbrellas had already gathered along the route several hours before start time, along with a smattering of anti-monarchist protesters chanting “Not my king.”

Pomp and Precision

Spectators will be treated to a display of pomp and precision involving more than 1,000 soldiers, 250 military musicians and more than 200 horses. The equine participants will include Trojan, Tennyson, and Vanquish, three of the five military horses who sparked mayhem in April when they bolted and ran loose through central London.

The horses were performing routine exercises near Buckingham Palace on April 24 when they became spooked by noise from a nearby building site and galloped loose through the capital's streets, crashing into vehicles and causing chaos during the morning rush hour.

The army says the other two horses are recovering well and are expected to return to duty.

(With inputs from agencies)