The Prince and Princess of Wales have marked their son Prince Louis‘s eighth birthday with a brand new photograph this morning.

The previously unseen portrait of Louis was captured by Prince William and Kate’s trusted photographer Matt Porteous during the family’s low-key Easter break in Cornwall earlier this month.

Set against the backdrop of the Cornish coast, the image showed Louis wearing a £42 blue half-zip jumper from Boden and posing with his arms crossed.

It was shared on Kensington Palace’s social accounts with the message: ‘Happy birthday, Louis! Eight today!’

As soon as the picture was posted, hundreds of well-wishers left heartfelt messages for the royal while describing him as a ‘true precious legend’.

‘He looks so mature,’ one fan commented, while another said Louis was his mother Kate’s ‘mini me’ in the ‘lovely’ photo.

Ahead of his birthday, fans remarked the playful prince looked ‘so grown up’ when he joined his family for Easter Service at St George’s Chapel earlier this month.

While the youngest Wales child has won over royal fans with his cheeky antics during official engagements, Louis was on his best behaviour as he walked alongside his parents and waved bashfully at fans gathered outside the church in Windsor.

‘Young HRH Prince Louis is learning very well,’ one supporter praised his behaviour on X/Twitter at the time.

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The Prince and Princess of Wales have marked their son Prince Louis’s eighth birthday with a new photograph of the young royal this morning

Prince Louis Arthur Charles was born at 11.01am on April 23, 2018, at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London, and was first photographed with William and Kate outside the Lindo Wing.

The new photo by Mr Porteus is a delightful addition to the collection of Prince Louis’s official portraits released over the years.

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On the occasion of his first birthday, Kensington Palace released three images of the rosy-cheeked toddler gleefully exploring the great outdoors.

Kate, an avid photographer, turned her lens on her youngest as she snapped Louis playing in their garden at home in Norfolk, as fans remarked he was beginning to look a lot like his older brother, Prince George.

He even had an outfit change for the photoshoot as Louis was pictured wearing a red jumper over one of George’s Peter Pan-collared romper suits, as well as a blue, puppy print cashmere jumper from Trotters.

At the time, the future Queen described Louis as an active child who enjoys ‘bombing around’ on his baby walker.

‘He just wants to pull himself up all the time. He’s got these little walkers and is bombing around on them’, she said.

The following year, the then-Duke and Duchess of Cambridge released a new set of pictures of Louis, also taken by Kate at Anmer Hall, as he tried his hand at painting.

Dressed in a blue checked shirt, Louis looked positively ecstatic to be creating rainbow-coloured handprints as his parents tried to keep him busy after the world went into lockdown.

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On the occasion of his first birthday, Kensington Palace released three images of the rosy-cheeked toddler gleefully exploring the great outdoors

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Kate, an avid photographer, turned her lens on her youngest as she snapped Louis playing in their garden at home in Norfolk, as fans remarked he was beginning to look a lot like his older brother, Prince George

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He even had an outfit change for the photoshoot as Louis was pictured wearing a red jumper over one of George’s Peter Pan-collared romper suits, as well as a blue, puppy print cashmere jumper from Trotters

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The following year, the then-Duke and Duchess of Cambridge released a new set of pictures of Louis, also taken by Kate at Anmer Hall, as he tried his hand at painting

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Dressed in a blue checked shirt, Louis looked positively ecstatic to be creating rainbow-coloured handprints as his parents tried to keep him busy after the world went into lockdown

By the time he turned three, Louis was big enough to be zipping around on his bicycle as he officially started nursery school.

Proud mother Kate snapped the portrait, which showed Louis flashing his trademark cheeky smile, before he left for his first day at the Willcocks Nursery School.

Beaming at the camera, Louis looked ready for his big day, sporting a smart blue and white striped shirt, navy blue sweater and sky blue shorts.

In keeping with what was becoming a tradition, Kate was behind the camera for Louis’ fourth birthday pictures that were taken on the beach in Norfolk during a family outing.

In one photo, Louis can be seen charging towards the camera. Two others showed the prince, dressed in a star print jumper, blue check shirt and teal shorts, holding a cricket ball.

The fourth and final photo shows Louis giving another gap-toothed grin as he looks up at the sky – the picture of a happy and healthy little boy.

By the time he turned five, fans couldn’t believe how quickly he was growing up after a new portrait showed Kate sweetly pushing him around in a wheelbarrow.

 One fan commented: ‘Our baby isn’t a baby anymore! Happy 5th Birthday to our Prince Louis! The best not-so-little boy!’

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By the time he turned three, Louis was big enough to be zipping around on his bicycle as he officially started nursery school

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In keeping with what was becoming a tradition, Kate was behind the camera for Louis’ fourth birthday pictures that were taken on the beach in Norfolk during a family outing

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In one photo, Louis can be seen charging towards the camera

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By the time he turned five, fans couldn’t believe how quickly he was growing up after a new portrait showed Kate sweetly pushing him around in a wheelbarrow.

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Instead of releasing Louis’ birthday portrait in the morning, Kensington Palace held off until the afternoon on April 23, 2024, to share a new photo for his sixth birthday

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Louis was the spitting image of his William in last year’s portrait, which was also accompanied by sweet behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot at Anmer Hall

The charming family moment was captured by Millie Pilkington, who was previously trusted by Kate and William to privately photograph their wedding reception in 2011.

Instead of releasing Louis’ birthday portrait in the morning, Kensington Palace held off until the afternoon on April 23, 2024, to share a new photo for his sixth birthday.

But the happy photo was clearly worth the wait when it was finally posted, as Louis was pictured grinning from ear to ear while posing in the grounds of Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.

Royal fans even noted a telling gap in his lower teeth, revealing that the tooth fairy has been.

Louis was dressed in a smart-casual shirt with blue and brown checkering – sweetly echoing his father, Prince William’s wardrobe.

And Louis was the spitting image of his William in last year’s portrait, which was also accompanied by sweet behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot at Anmer Hall.

The sweet snap, which was shared on Kate and Prince William’s Kensington Royal social media accounts, was captioned: ‘Wishing Prince Louis a very Happy 7th Birthday!’