The King is celebrating his 77th birthday with a trip to his beloved Wales.
A new photograph showing the monarch holding a shepherd’s crook at his Sandringham estate has been released by Buckingham Palace to mark the occasion.
It was published on social media alongside a balloon emoji and the message: ’77 today! Thank you for the kind words and well wishes on His Majesty’s Birthday.’
Charles will be accompanied by Queen Camilla during his visit to South Wales today, where he will celebrate at the historic Cyfarthfa Castle near Merthyr Tydfil.
The visit will coincide with Storm Claudia, which is forecast to bring heavy rain and gusts of up to 70mph to Britain.
A slew of famous Welsh stars including Gavin and Stacey co-creator Ruth Jones, fashion designer Julien Macdonald, TikTok creator Lewis Leigh, and representatives from the Laura Ashley Foundation will be among the guests.
Representatives from the couple’s patronages, including The King’s Trust and the Royal Osteoporosis Society, and local businesses will also attend the community reception.
Cyfarthfa Castle, built as the residence of ironmaster William Crawshay II, is also celebrating its 200th anniversary.
While the King was born on November 14, his official birthday will be celebrated on June 13 in a Trooping the Colour Parade at The Horse Guards Parade.
A new photograph of the King has been released to mark his 77th birthday
The King’s birthday this year comes after a number of high-profile personal and public events that were both difficult and historic.
Charles was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer early last year and is continuing his regular treatment programme, believed to be a weekly session.
At the opening of a new hospital in Birmingham in September, the King met with fellow cancer patients and, in one touching encounter, told a patient asking about his recovery that he wasn’t ‘too bad’ and said ‘there’s always hope down the road’.
He has also faced the ongoing scandal over his disgraced brother, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, the former Duke of York.
Andrew’s links to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein eventually led to Charles stripping him of his titles on October 30, putting an end to his public life as a royal.
The King stripped his younger brother Andrew, 65, of his titles the Duke of York, Earl of Inverness and Baron Killyleagh, and he will have to move out of the Royal Lodge.
Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson also lost her title, but the King protected his nieces, princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, from the fallout, with both keeping their titles and honours.
King Charles will celebrate his 77th birthday at Cyfarthfa Castle in Wales. Pictured here attending the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall on November 8
Charles also paid a historic visit to the Vatican last month, where he became the first monarch since the Reformation to pray alongside the Pope in a public service.
Charles and Pope Leo XIV made history in what was seen as a symbolic moment of unity for Anglicans and Roman Catholics across the globe.
He became the first British sovereign – and Supreme Governor of the Church of England – in half a century to publicly pray with the leader of the Catholic Church during an ecumenical service in the Sistine Chapel.
It was seen as a particularly important message of religious tolerance in an increasingly fractured world, and paid testimony to his lifetime of campaigning for better inter-faith harmony.
He also hosted Donald Trump at Windsor Castle, Berkshire, for a second state visit in September.
The US President said it was ‘one of the highest honours of my life’ as Charles welcomed him to Windsor Castle.
