For months, nearly all eyes have been fixated on the ebbs and flows of the British royal family, with King Charles III and Catherine, the Princess of Wales, in the spotlight because of health matters.
But the extended absence of Kate from the public eye and her slow re-emergence propelled a tidal wave of rumors over her whereabouts,. On Friday, she revealed in a video message that she has been diagnosed with cancer and is receiving chemotherapy.
Here is a quick timeline to help you catch up.
Dec. 25, 2023
Kate attends her last public event for a while.
Kate’s last official public appearance was on Christmas Day, when she attended a church service at St. Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, Norfolk, England.
She was photographed wearing head-to-toe royal blue while walking to the church alongside her husband, Prince William, and their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, as they routinely do each Christmas. The entire family coordinated in blue and green.
Jan. 17, 2024
Kate undergoes surgery.
A little more than three weeks later, on Jan. 17, Kensington Palace announced that Kate had been admitted to the London Clinic to have abdominal surgery. Officials gave few details about her health but said the surgery was successful, and that her condition was “not cancerous.” She was expected to remain hospitalized for up to two weeks.
Hours later, Buckingham Palace announced that King Charles III would be treated for an enlarged prostate.
Jan. 18, 2024
William visits Kate at the London Clinic.
The next day, William was photographed driving himself away from the hospital, where Kate was recovering from abdominal surgery.
Jan. 29, 2024
Kate is released from the hospital.
Almost two weeks later, Kate returned home to Windsor, just outside London. Kensington Palace officials said that she would convalesce at home for two to three months and would not resume her public duties until after Easter, at the end of March.
Unlike her father-in-law, King Charles III, who was photographed exiting the London Clinic after his procedure, there were no photographs of Kate leaving the clinic.
Feb. 5, 2024
King Charles is diagnosed with cancer.
Buckingham Palace officials announced in early February, just days after Charles had undergone treatment for an enlarged prostate, that the king had been diagnosed with cancer.
The palace did not share what form of cancer Charles has, but a palace official said it was not prostate cancer. Doctors had discovered the cancer during the earlier procedure.
March 4, 2024
Kate is spotted for the first time in months.
The public’s incessant thirst for information about Kate’s whereabouts and recovery reached a fever pitch in the first week of March. And around that time, TMZ published a grainy paparazzi shot of Kate riding in a car driven by her mother.
It was the first time Kate had been seen since her hospitalization. Despite the photograph circulating on the internet, British newspapers and broadcasters did not republish it, citing Kate’s request for privacy during her convalescence — though they did report on the sighting.
March 10, 2024
Kate and her children appear in a Mother’s Day photograph.
To mark Mother’s Day in Britain, nearly two months after her abdominal surgery, Kensington Palace released an official photograph of a smiling Kate surrounded by her three children, George, Charlotte and Louis. The palace did not give many details about the picture except that it was taken by William last week in Windsor, where the family lives in Adelaide Cottage, on the grounds of Windsor Castle.
While the picture was meant to highlight a happy family on the holiday and quell rumors, it became a subject of intense scrutiny after The Associated Press, and several other photo agencies, issued a “kill order,” asking its clients to remove it from all platforms over concerns that it had been manipulated. The New York Times, which had initially used the picture in a story, also removed it.
March 11, 2024
Kate apologizes for the altered family photo.
Kate took the blame and apologized for the Mother’s Day photo fiasco.
“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” she said on social media. “I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused.”
Kate is known as a photography enthusiast, and the palace often distributes her photos of the family. Palace officials stressed that Kate made minor adjustments for what was intended to be an informal family picture that was taken by William.
March 11 and March 18, 2024
Kate is spotted twice more.
Hours after Kate apologized for the photo edit, she was photographed alongside William leaving Windsor Castle.
The grainy photo that was widely published across the internet, showed Kate gazing away from the camera out of the window.
The next week, the couple was spotted again. This time in an unauthenticated video, walking outside a food shop near their home in Windsor. The video, captured by an onlooker, showed the couple carrying bags and wearing comfortable, dark clothing, blending into the crowd.
March 18, 2024
Another royal photo is flagged.
Getty Images placed an editorial advisory on a second royal family photo, this time an image of Queen Elizabeth II, flanked by her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The photo — taken by Kate at Balmoral Castle in Scotland in August 2022 and released in 2023 on what would have been the queen’s 97th birthday — had been “digitally enhanced” before it was released by the palace, the photo agency said.
March 22, 2024
Kate reveals her diagnosis.
In a pre-recorded video broadcast on the BBC, Kate said she had been diagnosed with cancer and had begun chemotherapy. She described the past two months as “incredibly tough for our entire family.”
Like the king, the 42-year-old princess did not specify the type of cancer, but she asked the public and media to respect her desire for privacy, describing her illness as “a huge shock.”
She also asked for “time, space and privacy while I complete my treatment.” She said that she and William had needed time to explain everything to their children and “reassure them that I am going to be OK.”