It was a family affair at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in Home Park, Windsor Castle over the weekend.
Duchess Sophie and her husband, Prince Edward, beamed as they greeted their daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, at the event on Saturday, May 4. Sophie, 59, hugged Louise, 20, while watching the International Carriage Driving Grand Prix on day 4 of the 2024 show.
Louise also caught up with her 16-year-old brother James, Earl of Wessex, at the horse show as he accompanied their parents. She wore a fedora-style hat and branded blue vest, which included a red “official” badge. Louise volunteered during the days-long event — walking the grounds with a pen and paper and riding an e-bike — although she got to enjoy the festivities as a spectator on Sunday, May 5.
Louise is currently studying English at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland but adopted an adoration for horses from her late grandparents Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II. According to Hello! Magazine, Philip also reportedly left Louise his dark green four-wheeled carriage and two of his Fell ponies, Balmoral Nevis and Notlaw Storm, after his death.
Louise paid tribute to their shared love of the equestrian sport at Philip’s funeral in April 2021 by wearing a brooch featuring a horse’s head and a whip. (After Elizabeth’s memorial service one year later, Louise again wore jewelry that had an equestrian charm.)
Sophie, a horseback rider herself, has spoken about her daughter’s carriage-driving career, telling Hello! in 2020, “I trail in her wake frankly. No, she is naturally so good at it, she really is. It’s something that she has taken to very well.”
Louise’s cousin Zara Tindall is also a renowned equestrian and has even competed in the Olympics. In a break of royal protocol on Friday, May 3, King Charles III was seen embracing Zara, the daughter of Princess Anne and Mark Phillips, on day 3 of the Royal Windsor Horse Show.
“Ah, Uncle Charles,” she allegedly said as they hugged.
Charles’ appearance at the event was his third public-facing engagement in four days since his return to royal duties this week. The king’s schedule has been lightened while he undergoes treatment for an unspecified form of cancer, a diagnosis he shared in early February.
Charles, 75, offered a brief health update during his return to public duties on April 30 when he and wife Queen Camilla visited a cancer treatment center and met with patients.
Discussing his own diagnosis, the king said the news was a “bit of a shock” at first, according to multiple U.K. outlets. When a patient asked how he’s been doing, Charles replied, “Not too bad,” revealing that he was set to undergo “treatment this afternoon as well.”
His daughter-in-law, Princess Kate Middleton, is also battling an undisclosed form of cancer — news she confirmed in March. According to a recent report from The Times of London, the Princess of Wales, 42, will “be away from public duties for some time” amid her treatment.
