Princess Charlotte is very 'protective' of mum Princess Kate amid cancer treatment
Standing on the balcony of Buckingham Palace for Trooping the Colour earlier this month, the Princess of Wales was every inch the doting mother as she gazed adoringly at her children.
But it was her tender moments with her only daughter Princess Charlotte and their public display of affection that touched those watching the royal family's traditional annual appearance for King Charles' official birthday.
Kate lovingly stroked Charlotte's long hair and arranged it down her back, giving an insight into their warm, tight-knit relationship.
And while the Princess, 42, has the best medical team caring for her, not to mention her strong support network of family and friends, it's her daughter Charlotte who is also looking out for her.
Ingrid Seward, author of My Mother and I: The Inside Story of the King and Our Late Queen, told HELLO! that she believes the nine-year-old is "protective" of her mother as she continues to undergo cancer treatment.
"I think that Charlotte is really taking care of her mum. It was quite sweet the way she stood in front of her and they kept chatting.
"Charlotte seems to be very full of admiration for her mother, which I think is a lovely thing, too."
Ingrid added: "Kate and Charlotte are great friends and I think to Kate, their bond is very precious. The mother-daughter relationship is obviously particularly important to Kate because she has such a close relationship with her own mother, Carole Middleton.
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"They are a very, very close family, which is something the late Queen really liked and thought would play into Kate's hands and the position that she was getting into.
"She had such a stable family and I think that's what Kate's trying to replicate."
Meanwhile, royal photographer Samir Hussein, who has captured Charlotte and Kate's relationship for the past nine years since the Princess' birth, and who was at Trooping the Colour, added: "Princess Charlotte is very like her mother in her mannerisms and you can see she looks up to her a lot.",
Deep dive
Charlotte is often seen as the one who instills royal protocol in her brothers Prince George, ten, and Prince Louis, six, during official outings.
"She's really taken on that role to help keep them in check a little bit," Samir told HELLO!. "She's definitely a little mini-mum taking on that responsibility as well, which is fun to see."
Robert Jobson, whose biography Catherine, the Princess of Wales is published this August, agreed, telling HELLO!: "She's aware of everything. She's obviously a very sharp cookie. You get the impression that she's sort of corralling them.
"Charlotte seems to be the alpha girl in the middle, making sure they follow protocol and follow what's expected of them. She is learning that from both her parents, but she does seem to be a little mother figure among her siblings."
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