Oh, that Prince Louis. Over the years, he's proven to be quite the character. We still remember how it felt in the spring of 2018, when we were waiting for news about the newest royal baby — and somehow, here we are, watching him turn 6 years old. Kate Middleton and Prince William celebrate their youngest son's birthday on April 23 — he's growing up so fast!
We can't blame them for wanting to keep Louis mostly all to themselves when he was little, but now that he's getting older, we love that he's been making more public appearances. After all, his sassy personality — and hilarious facial expressions — absolutely stole the show at Queen Elizabeth's 2022 Platinum Jubilee, and we cannot get enough of his adorable little face.
We love watching Louis grow up alongside his older siblings, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, and we can't wait to see where the future takes him. Here are the cutest photos we have of young Louis so far.
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The First Look
Here's a throwback to the days when all that we knew about Prince Louis was that he was just a tiny bundle. He seemed to sleep through all the hubbub that surrounded his parents leaving the hospital after his 2018 birth. He was totally unbothered by the dozens of reporters and photographers. Just a perfect little babe with the sweetest button nose peeking out.
Going Home
Here's a better look at Louis as a newborn when his parents carried him out of the hospital. Boy, does he look cozy all snuggled in his car seat. Not even a week old, and Louis was already a well-behaved royal baby. Talk about doing the monarchy proud.
Big Sis
Everyone's hearts just about melted when the Prince and Princess of Wales shared this photo of Louis and Charlotte on their Instagram account. And to make it even better, Kate took the picture herself. Charlotte and Louis seem really close, so we wouldn't even be surprised if this was a candid moment of Charlotte just deciding to give her baby brother a kiss.
Tiny Tot
It's not even fair how cute this little guy is! Kate took this photo of Louis just three days after he was born. He looks so sweet in his all-white outfit, but that's a super bold choice for a newborn. We're betting that it was stained by something soon after this picture was taken. Babies and white clothing just don't go together.
Off To Be Baptized
Louis was completely unfazed by all of the hoopla surrounding his christening. He was just sleeping soundly in his mom's arms. You may notice that he's wearing the same baptism gown that Charlotte, George, and cousin Archie all wore. It's a replica of the gown commissioned by Queen Victoria in 1841 that all the royal babies have worn since.
The Most Stylish of the Bunch
Sorry, Meghan Markle, your olive green dress was so chic, but we think Louis' outfit won the day. You just can't beat that train. Also, did you notice that the Wales family is all coordinating in blue? It's subtle, but Kate loves a matching moment. We just know she laid out all their outfits for this — probably even William's.
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With the Family
Again, Louis did not care that he was having his picture taken. He just wanted to catch up on his sleep. Being a royal baby is exhausting! Also please note how enamored Charlotte is with her baby bro. We can't wait to see these two grow up — they're probably going to be super close. And George's "Just say cheese" smile is so cute.
Still Unbothered
Even adding more family members didn't disturb young Louis. This kid is clearly going to be the most calm of the whole crew. This photo features the Waleses and Sussexes of course, as well as Kate's side of the family. There's her mom, dad, sister Pippa, Pippa's husband, and Kate's hot brother, James. Louis has so much love around him.
Shining Star
George and Charlotte are doing their best to steal the show in this christening family photo, but sorry, kids — we're all looking at the adorable Louis. Even Kate couldn't tear her eyes away from her little one to smile into the camera lens. She's really such a good mom; we're so happy for her that she has three wonderful kids.
Finally Awake
At some point during the christening photo shoot, Louis woke up long enough for the photographer to capture this adorable moment between him and his mom. So cute! Catching him with his eyes open was pretty rare when he was just a baby. So seeing him gaze up lovingly at his mother was almost more than our hearts could handle.
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Now He's Really Awake
Now that is one happy little baby! Once the prince woke up for the cameras, he was alert and making the best facial expressions. Looks like he wasn't too upset about having to wear a lace gown for his baptism. He's just content to be chilling with his mom. We wonder what he's looking at that's making him laugh. Charlotte and George pulling funny faces, maybe?
Blink & You'll Miss Him
In his early days, Louis was quite elusive, but this video caught just the tiniest glimpse of him (behind the helicopter). He's being held by Kate as William comes to say hello to his young son. William's smile gets so big when he sees Louis, and then the happy family walks off together. So cute.
Quality Time With Grandpa
The next time we saw Louis was in the photos taken at King Charles' 70th birthday celebration. The littlest prince was about 7 months old at this point, and his personality was starting to really shine through. We knew Charles was a doting grandpa, but we can really see it in this picture. He looks so happy to be there with his grandson.
Winning Smile
OK, this kid is going to be a charmer. Just look at that chubby little smile! This is a photo that includes the Duchess of Sussex, Charlotte, and George, and yet Louis is the one totally stealing the show. He's such a happy baby in all the pictures we've seen. We wonder if he was as happy behind the scenes as well. For Kate and William's sake, we hope so.
Messing With Charles
If you had any doubt that Charles is a loving grandfather, this photo should clear it up. He seemed to have no problem with Louis digging his fingers into his eye. We can't wait to see how the relationship between Louis and Charles grows. They clearly already have such a great bond! Also we like that everyone is looking at Louis here except for George and Charlotte, who are off in their own little worlds.
More Proof
Yeah, they're going to be best buds. There's no denying that. We can totally picture Charles singing Louis a little nursery rhyme and playing with his hands. The prince is lucky to have such loving parents, siblings, and grandparents. Plus he has adoring fans, too. There's a lot of love around this little guy.
All the Great-Grandkids
The royals posted this throwback photo to honor Prince Philip after his death in 2021. It was originally taken in 2018, shortly after Louis was born. In the sweet picture, he's the one seated on great-grandma Queen Elizabeth's lap and surrounded by his siblings and cousins — he's even holding his big sister's hand. We can't handle the cuteness.
Baby's First Christmas Card
Louis made his official royal Christmas card debut in December 2018. Kate and William chose to go with a more casual portrait. The whole family is dressed in denim (including Louis with his jean shorts), and they're just enjoying some time outdoors together. If we didn't know they were royal, this could be any family holiday pic.
Turning 1
To celebrate Louis' first birthday, mom Kate shared this sweet photo she took of her young son. The red sweater he's wearing is actually a hand-me-down, because William and Kate are never ones to waste money — even though they've got buckets of it. It's a cute sweater, so we'd keep it around, too.
Little Fashion Icon
This is another photo from Louis' first birthday photo shoot. His blue dog sweater is too adorable. It reminds us somewhat of Princess Diana and how she was always wearing sweaters with fun patterns on them. (Who can forget the iconic "black sheep" sweater?) Is Louis a budding style icon like his grandma was?
Fascinated by Nature
Looks like Louis already has a passion for nature, like his mom. He went absolutely wild over this rock that Kate handed him while she was decorating her Chelsea Flower Show "Back to Nature" garden. How cute is he in his little striped shorts? These are also a hand-me-down. George wore them first.
First Balcony Appearance
Summer 2019 marked the first time Louis was old enough to attend the annual Trooping the Colour parade with his family. He had so much fun waving to his adoring fans from the Buckingham Palace balcony. Such a little royal already — and as we know, he'd go on to capture everyone's attention when he attended the event again in 2022.
Playing Around
When the family stopped by one of William's polo matches in the summer of 2019, Kate pulled out all the tricks to keep her little ones entertained. This included letting Louis borrow her (probably very expensive) sunglasses, which he immediately put on. We can't get over his cute little face. What a precious child.
Family Picnic
During that same summertime polo outing, Kate also set the kids up with an old-fashioned picnic out of the back of her car. Louis seemed to have a lot of fun just playing with what looks to be an ice pack as Kate fed the kids snacks out of plastic containers. Gasp! Such a normal family moment! Royals, they're just like us.
Father-Son Moment
The 2019 Christmas card from the family featured this cute black and white photo taken by Kate. Louis is totally the center of attention in this one. Not only is William planting a big kiss on his cheek (aw!), but big sister Charlotte has her hands on his shoulders. From all the photos we've seen, these two seem extremely close.
Clapping Away
Louis joined his family to clap for the frontline workers in early 2020. Kate dressed her whole family in coordinating shades of blue for the photo op. The littlest prince seemed to have a lot of fun practicing his clapping, even if his face makes it seem like he's annoyed. That's just what toddlers look like a lot of the time.
Turning 2
It can seem like the royals have to (and do) look prim and proper all the time, but they have their moments of messiness. For his second birthday, Louis' parents let him play around with some rainbow finger paints, which he got all over the place — and himself! It's so fun to see the young prince having a good time.
Wrestling
The 2020 lockdown gave William a lot of extra time with his children that he probably ordinarily would have spent working and traveling on behalf of the royal family. Kate captured some of their playtime to post for William's birthday. The kids are having such a blast here.
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He Speaks!
We finally got to hear Louis speak when he asked nature documentary narrator Sir David Attenborough what his favorite animal was. Well, actually, 2-year-old Louis specifically asked, "What amimal do you like?" Ugh, there's nothing so precious as the way a toddler speaks. (For the record, David's answer was a monkey.)
Red Carpet Ready
Ahead of Christmas 2020, the royals went to a pantomime performance that was held to thank essential workers. Louis walked the red carpet with his family, and he looked so dapper in his blue coat and shiny shoes. He also got to wear pants! Usually royal boys have to wear shorts until they're older, but this was a special occasion, it seems.
Happy Boy
Here is the family's official Christmas card for 2020. We can't get over the expression on Louis' face. He's so excited, it's adorable. Maybe he just found out that he'd been a good boy all year and Santa would be bringing him gifts in his stocking. We can practically hear him laughing through the screen.
So Grown-Up
Kensington Palace posted this photo to celebrate Louis turning 3. Where does the time go? He looks so grown-up in this photo, already riding a bike and everything (with no training wheels!). Kate took the pic as her littlest one headed off to his first day of nursery school. She must have been emotional seeing him reach such a big milestone.
Turning 4
As per royal tradition, Louis' fourth birthday came with new photos of the little prince that had been taken by his talented mom. Even in these pictures from April 2022, it was more than clear that he has a big, bright personality — probably why he's fit into his family so easily.
On Dad's Shoulders
If there was ever any doubt that these kids have a good time with their dad, this one should shut it down completely. In this photo, which was taken while the family was on vacation in 2021, Louis is having the time of his life sitting on his dad's shoulders as his brother and sister laugh alongside them. We just wish we knew what was happening when this photo was taken!
A Royal Nuisance
Louis really let the last of his toddler-years energy shine during the 2022 Platinum Jubilee, becoming a meme in the process. Seeing his goofy behavior in the stands might have made some critics wonder if Kate's doing her job raising him right, but as far as we can tell, this is a spirited kid who trusts his mom enough to be himself around her.
First Day of School
In September 2022, the kids all started at a new school, Lambrook, after the family moved to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor. For the first time, Louis was able to join his older siblings at school, and he was photographed going in for his first day holding hands with his mom. He's so grown-up!
His Christmas Debut
In December 2022, Louis made his Sandringham debut, joining his family for their Christmas Day tradition of greeting all of the people waiting to see the royals — something that must have cheered everyone up on their first Christmas after Queen Elizabeth's death.
Easter Scheming
Every single time we see Louis out and about with his family, he somehow looks like he's brewing some type of scheme. Not even Easter morning church service was safe from Louis' mischievous thoughts, as we can tell by his expression in this 2023 picture.
A Sweet Family Portrait
William and Kate shared this adorable family photo in honor of Mother's Day, taken from the same set of photos they used for their Christmas cards in 2022. Louis looks right at home in that tree — we don't doubt that he spends plenty of time climbing them when he plays outside.
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A Mischievous 6-Year-Old
Something about Prince Louis' mischievous little grin reminds us so much of a young Prince Harry. After seeing this photo his mom posted in honor of his sixth birthday, we can't help but wonder if he too will be the wild card of Will and Kate's kids. We're here for it.
