Prince Louis bears a remarkable likeness to his father, the Prince of Wales, in a throwback photo taken when Prince William would have been the same age as his youngest son.
Earlier this morning, the Princess of Wales shared an adorable photograph of Louis flashing a toothless grin to mark his seventh birthday.
The sweet snap, which was shared on her and Prince William’s Kensington Royal social media accounts, is captioned: ‘Wishing Prince Louis a very Happy 7th Birthday!’
The young royal’s latest birthday portrait has drawn comparisons to an earlier photograph of Prince William, now 42, taken during a polo match at Windsor in 1990.
The picture was taken days before Prince William’s eighth birthday and shows him clapping while watching the match at Guards Polo Club on June 16, 1990.
Britain’s future King was born on 21 June 1982, meaning Prince William would have been just shy of eight at the time.
Like Prince Louis in his latest birthday portrait, taken in Norfolk by Josh Shinner, William is also missing a few milk teeth in the photograph of him taken 35 years ago.
In the photos, both William and Louis are dressed in smart-casual outfits; the future King wore a blue and white striped shirt, khaki trousers, and black belt for his polo match outing at the age of seven.
Prince Louis bears a remarkable likeness to his father, the Prince of Wales, in a throwback photo taken when Prince William would have been the same age as his youngest son
The picture was taken days before Prince William’s eighth birthday and shows him clapping while watching the match at Guards Polo Club on June 16, 1990
Meanwhile, Prince Louis is wearing a white and blue checked shirt, with a green jumper layered over the top and paired with jeans.
This isn’t the first time royal fans have noticed the striking resemblance between Prince William and his mischievous son, who is a favourite of the British public for his cheeky attitude and hilarious expressions.
Expressions that Louis appears to have inherited from his father, as old photos of William showed him exhibiting nearly identical mannerisms during public appearances growing up in the Eighties and Nineties.
One of the most iconic photos of Louis was taken at the Trooping the Colour parade in 2022 and showed the royal covering his years after becoming overwhelmed by the proceedings.
A photo of William, then aged six, taken during the parade many years prior similarly showed him looking displeased by the buzz around him.
Like William, Louis also has a penchant for engaging with crowds – mimicking his father’s wave every time he’s out in public.
The Princes have on several occasions been snapped raising their hand in greeting, at times with a smile, and in other instances with a confused air.
While Louis has earned the crown of the cheekiest British royal, old photos of William that captured his sassier side prove the young prince has inherited the unofficial title from his father.
This isn’t the first time royal fans have noticed the striking resemblance between Prince William and his mischievous son, who is a favourite of the British public for his cheeky attitude and hilarious expressions.
On the left, Louis, then four, was snapped covering his ears at the Trooping the Colour parade, clearly overwhelmed by the buzz around him. On the right, a photo of William, then aged six, taken during the parade many years prior similarly showed him looking displeased by the buzz around him
In 1986, at his uncle Prince Andrew’s wedding, he was seen sticking his tongue out at his cousin.
And decades later, at the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, Louis was the spitting image of his father as he repeated the gesture at his mother, the Princess of Wales.
Finally, both William and Louis have previously displayed a habit they appear to have borrowed from King Charles: pointing at the crowds from Buckingham Palace’s balcony.
In 1985, a cheeky William – aged three – pointed to the crowds as he, his cousin Zara Phillips and Lady Davina Windsor stood on the Buckingham Palace balcony following that year’s Trooping the Colour.
Mirroring his father, Louis looked hyper-focused from the same exact place as he observed an RAF flypast following his grandfather’s Coronation in 2023.
Louis Arthur Charles Mountbatten-Windsor, the youngest of the Wales children, was born at St Mary’s hospital in London on 23 April 2018.
As fourth in line to the throne, he has not grown up in the same spotlight as his older brother, Prince George – however the public appearances he does make consistently delight royal fans as his colourful personality shines through.
Fans have come to eagerly anticipate Louis’s appearances on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, where his playful nature and comical facial expressions shine through as the family gathers to wave to the masses and watch special flypast demonstrations.
The Princes have on several occasions been snapped raising their hand in greeting, at times with a smile, and in other instances with a confused air
However, royal fans noticed Prince Louis looked more poised in his latest birthday portrait that was released by Kensington Palace on April 23, 2025.
The young royal is sitting among a stunning spring backdrop, surrounded by bluebells, in the garden at Anmer Hall in Norfolk, the Wales family’s residence on the Sandringham Estate.
After the photo was posted online, X users were struck by how ‘grown up’ Louis looked ‘all of a sudden’.
One comment read: ‘He looks so grown up.’
‘Oh my he’s really growing up. Happy Happy Birthday Prince Louis!’ another well-wisher said,
A third user wrote: ‘Happy birthday Lou Lou! Such a lovely and adorable photo, how grown does he suddenly look!?????
Another person added: ‘Happy Birthday Prince Louis. You’ve grown so quickly. We hope you have the best day.’
While birthday photos of the Wales children are typically released by Kensington Royal at midnight, Louis’ special day saw Kate break from tradition as she and William shared his portrait later in the morning on April 23.
In another twist, keen photographer Kate did not take the portrait of her youngest son. Instead it was taken Shinner, who is one of the family’s preferred photographers.