Prince Charles shares sweet childhood photo of himself alongside the Queen Mother in touching tribute

The throwback photo shows a young Prince Charles with the late Queen mother and his younger siblings in the garden of Clarence House

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales attends a service for the Centenary of the Church in Wales at St David’s Cathedral on July 08, 2021 in St Davids, Wales
(Image credit: Photo by Chris Jackson - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles have released a rare photo of the Queen Mother with her grandchildren in celebration of the late monarch's birthday. 


With so much frenzy surrounding Meghan Markle's 40th birthday on Wednesday, it can easy to forget that the date marked a special occasion for another Royal Family member—Queen Elizabeth II's late mother. 

The Queen Mother, who died aged 101 in 2002, was coincidentally born exactly 81 years before the Duchess of Sussex. As the grandmother of Prince Charles, the former matriarch of the British Royal Family had always been an important person in the future King's life. He has spoken candidly about his fondness for his grandmother multiple times, even referring to her as "one of the most remarkable and wonderful people in the world" at one point. 

While the Queen celebrated Meghan Markle's birthday with a royal nod, the Prince of Wales took the opportunity to pay tribute to his beloved nana with a sweet childhood photo. 

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in the garden of Clarence House on the occasion of her 60th birthday, with her grandchildren Prince Charles, Princess Anne, and Prince Andrew, who is almost 6 months old. (Photo by © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)

(Image credit: (Photo by © Hulton-Deutsch Collection/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images))

In the throwback picture, which was taken on the Queen Mother's 60th birthday in the garden of Clarence House in 1960, the royal consort smiles widely while cradling a six-month-old Prince Andrew. A 12-year-old Prince Charles stands next to her and grins at the camera, while a 10-year-old Princess Anne affectionately rubs her baby brother's back. 

The sweet family portrait is made all the more adorable by the addition of their royal dog, who can be seen sitting obediently on their hindlegs in the bottom left-hand side of the shot. 

Camilla and Charles also shared an image of an ornately framed photo of the Queen Mother in her later years, as well as the silver vase with rosemary gifted to her for her 100th birthday. The Queen passed away the following year, just seven weeks after the death of her daughter, Princess Margaret. 

Emma Dooney
Lifestyle News Writer

Hailing from the lovely city of Dublin, Emma mainly covers the Royal Family and the entertainment world, as well as the occasional health and wellness feature. Always up for a good conversation, she has a passion for interviewing everyone from A-list celebrities to the local GP - or just about anyone who will chat to her, really.

Emma holds an MA in International Journalism from City, University of London, and a BA in English Literature from Trinity College Dublin.