Kate Middleton shares unseen wedding photos that we were never meant to see

The Prince and Princess of Wales have shared a stunning previously unseen wedding photo from their private album.

Thrilling fans the couple marked their anniversary earlier by posting a never-before-seen black and white photo on their official social media pages from their wedding day back in 2011. It shows the newlyweds looking relaxed and smiling at Buckingham Palace after their ceremony, with Kate in her Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen bridal gown and veil and William standing with his hand on his wife’s waist.

The snap was taken by their personal photographer on the day, Millie Pilkington, who was hired to shoot more candid images of the couple during their wedding. Sharing the photo, it was captioned: “13 years today!” Millie also shared the image on her Instagram account and wrote: “Happy wedding anniversary! Can’t believe it’s been 13 years. Remember this moment so well. Sending you both much love in this special day.”

It comes as Kate, who dated William for eight years before they tied the knot, previously praised her husband for his support in an emotional message to the nation last month announcing her health news, saying it had been “an incredibly tough couple of months for our entire family”. She added: “Having William by my side is a great source of comfort and reassurance.” Kate told how her diagnosis had come as a huge shock and that she and William “have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family”.

Meanwhile, the prince returned to work following the Easter holidays when the Waleses spent quality time with their three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. Louis celebrated his sixth birthday on Tuesday and Charlotte turns nine on Thursday. William and Kate released an unedited new photo of Louis straight to social media to mark the youngster’s big day to thank well-wishers and avoid the uproar over the princess’s digitally altered Mother’s Day photo.

Life partners for more than 20 years, William and Kate met at the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, and became friends first before embarking on a romance. William said in their engagement interview: “Obviously we both have a very fun time together, both have a very good sense of humour about things.” The princess called him a ‘loving boyfriend’ who was “very supportive of me through the good times and also through the bad times”. They wed in a grand fairytale ceremony in Westminster Abbey on April 29 2011, with the aisle of the gothic church lined with trees.

The bride wore an intricate ivory gown with lace applique floral detail designed by Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen, while the groom was dressed in the red tunic of the Irish Guards. William and Kate welcomed their first child George in 2013, followed by Charlotte in 2015 and Louis in 2018. They have shared ups and downs, from the arrival of their children and the celebration of Jubilees to the late Queen’s death and more recently the King’s cancer diagnosis, and kept their counsel amid accusations levelled at them by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in the wake of Harry and Meghan’s split from the royal family.