Kate Middleton apologises for missing out on key rehearsal for Trooping The Colour – as she tells the Irish Guards ‘I hope I am able to represent you all very soon’

Kate Middleton has apologised for missing out on a key rehearsal for Trooping The Colour.

The Princess of Wales has written a letter to the Irish Guards, who are presenting their colours to the King this year, saying: ‘I hope I am able to represent you all very soon’.

Insiders have long emphasised that every cancer ‘journey’ is individual and believe speculation over whether Kate will attend key events such a trooping create unnecessary pressure at a time when she has asked for space and privacy.

It means the Princess of Wales will miss what would have been her first Colonel’s Review, which had been due to take place today. 

The event is a dress rehearsal for Trooping The Colour and would have seen her take the salute as the new Colonel-in-Chief of the Irish Guards. 

Kate has said ‘please pass my apologies to the whole regiment’ for missing the Colonel’s Review

The Royal Family takes part in the Trooping the Colour on June 17, 2023

The Irish Guards (pictured) have responded to the Princess’s letter on Twitter saying they were ‘deeply touched’ to receive it and ‘wish her well in her recovery and send her our very best wishes’

The Colonel’s Review comes before the King’s official birthday celebrations on Saturday June 15, including their traditional Buckingham Palace ­balcony appearance. 

The Colonel’s Review is identical to The King’s Birthday Parade, with the exception that some additional mounted officers ride on the latter.

Taking part will be over 1400 soldiers of the Household Division and The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, including 400 musicians from the Massed Bands, all of whom will parade on Horse Guards for the second of two formal Reviews.

The Colonel’s Review also includes 250 soldiers from the Foot Guards who will line the processional route along The Mall.

The Irish Guards have responded to the Princess’s letter on Twitter, writing: ‘The Irish Guards were deeply touched to receive a letter from our Colonel, Her Royal Highness, The Princess of Wales this morning. 

‘We continue to wish Her Royal Highness well in her recovery and send her our very best wishes.’

Meanwhile Buckingham Palace did confirm last week the Daily Mail’s exclusive story in March that King Charles planned to attend Trooping and review the soldiers from a ­carriage, on doctor’s advice, with Queen Camilla. 

He has previously taken part on horseback but it has been deemed prudent, given the length of the ceremony and the unpredictable weather, for him to be seated in an Ascot landau.

His Majesty is still undergoing treatment for his own unspecified ­cancer diagnosis.

He has now been given permission by his doctors to undertake more forward-facing public duties, although officials have stressed they need to carefully review each potential engagement, with adaptations made where necessary to prioritise his recovery.

Members of the Household Cavalry ride on horses as they take part in the Colonel’s review rehearsal for Trooping the Colour, in honour of the official birthday of Britain’s King Charles, in London today

Members of the Grenadier Guards take part in the Colonel’s review rehearsal for Trooping the Colour today

Irish Guards mascot Turlough Mor (Seamus) takes part in the Colonel’s review rehearsal for Trooping the Colour

The band of the Irish Guards play during the Colonel’s Review today

The band of the Grenadier Guards play during the Colonel’s Review on Horse Guards Parade

Members of the Grenadier Guards take part in the parade

Members of the Household Cavalry ride on horses during the parade today

The Colonel’s Review comes before the King’s official birthday celebrations on Saturday June 15, including their traditional Buckingham Palace ­balcony appearance 

Members of the Household Cavalry, with Irish Guards mascot Turlough Mor (Seamus) in front, take part in the parade

Taking part will be over 1400 soldiers of the Household Division and The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery, including 400 musicians from the Massed Bands, all of whom will parade on Horse Guards

Members of the Grenadier Guards (top) take part in the Colonel’s Review on Horse Guards Parade

Members of the Household Cavalry ride on horses during the Colonel’s review today

While palace officials have been forced to cancel a number of public engagements in light of the General Election, key national and ceremonial events such as Trooping are not affected

While palace officials have been forced to cancel a number of public engagements in light of the General Election, key national and ceremonial events such as Trooping are not affected.

Earlier this year on March 5, the Ministry of Defence removed a claim made on its website that Kate would attend events to mark Trooping the Colour.

Details of her cancer have not been disclosed but she has said that she was having ‘preventative chemotherapy’.

Kensington Palace said it is confident the princess will make a full recovery.

Trooping the Colour traditionally involves the royal family gathering on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after a display of pomp and military pageantry.

Usually the monarch rides down from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade via The Mall to inspect the troops. He then rides back to the palace for the traditional balcony appearance with the wider Royal Family and flypast by the RAF.

2023 — Glorious scenes down the Mall during Trooping the Colour in London on June 17, 2023

2022 — William, Kate and their children attend Trooping the Colour in London on June 2, 2022

2021 — Trooping the Colour was held at Windsor Castle in front of the Queen on June 12, 2021 

2019 — William and Kate at Trooping the Colour with their children in London on June 8, 2019

2017 — Philip speaks to William and Kate at Trooping The Colour in London on June 17, 2017

Earlier this year on March 5, the Ministry of Defence removed a claim made on its website that Kate would attend events to mark Trooping the Colour. Tickets had gone on sale via the Army website in March advertising Kate reviewing a ‘practice’ parade for the first time on June 8 in her role as honorary colonel of the Irish Guards

But within minutes of the tickets going on sale, there were warnings that the MoD may have ‘jumped the gun’ on Kate’s attendance 

Earlier this year on March 5, the Ministry of Defence removed a claim made on its website that Kate would attend events to mark Trooping the Colour. 

Tickets had gone on sale via the Army website advertising Kate reviewing a ‘practice’ parade for the first time on June 8 in her role as honorary colonel of the Irish Guards.

It also announced that Charles would be reviewing his own official birthday parade on June 15 at Horse Guards.

But within minutes of the tickets going on sale, there were warnings that the MoD may have ‘jumped the gun’.

Kensington Palace sources made clear that they were ‘not consulted’ on the MoD announcement and said that any confirmed attendance by the Princess would be made ‘only’ by themselves.

Buckingham Palace also confirmed at the time that planning for future engagements was continuing despite the King’s cancer treatment, yet stressed that changes could be made nearer the time depending on his health.

The confusion added to a sense of unease around the Royal Family at that point, over fears that two of its most senior members would be largely out of action for substantial periods.

Pictured: Kate on her last public appearance with her family on Christmas day 2023 at church in Sandringham

In March, Kensington Palace released the first picture of the Princess of Wales since surgery 

The London clinic, where Catherine had treatment after her diagnosis earlier this year

Kate with Louis and Charlotte in May 2023 as they helped renovate and improve the 3rd Upton Scouts Hut in Slough

The mother-of-three (pictured in June 2023) has apologised for not attending the Colonel’s Review today – which is the traditional rehearsal for Trooping the Colour, held on June 15

This also came before Kate revealed in an emotional video on March 23 that she was undergoing treatment for cancer. 

At that point, Kate was recuperating from what was described as ‘planned abdominal surgery’ and it was seen as unlikely that she would return to duties until after Easter.

Until her cancer announcement, her absence from public events and the scant detail given about her condition and recuperation had led to wild social media conspiracy theories about what might be wrong with her. 

She made clear that she needed to focus on both her recovery but also supporting her young children at a difficult time, asking for her family to be given time and space while she completed her treatment.

Although there has been no official update on her health since, The Mail understands that the princess has been seen out and about more with her family in recent weeks, which will be taken as a positive sign by many.

However earlier this week Kensington Palace stressed that she very much still needs time and space to recover.

The regiment previously said it was is ‘so proud’ to have the Princess of Wales (pictured visiting the 1st Battalion Irish Guards on March 2023) as Colonel of the Irish Guards and sent their ‘best wishes’ to Kate

Lieutenant Colonel James Shaw (pictured), Brigade Major of the Household Division, designed this year’s Trooping spectacle

Troops of the Household Division take part in the Brigade Major’s Review in London on May 30

Queen Elizabeth II attended Trooping the Colour in a carriage after 1987.

The Royal Family postponed engagements ‘which may appear to divert attention or distract from the election campaign’ after Rishi Sunak last week called a surprise summer General Election for July 4. 

But they have continued with garden parties at Buckingham Palace and the King and Queen’s D-Day 80th anniversary appearances in Portsmouth and Normandy in June are expected to go ahead as scheduled. 

The Army said the Number 9 Company, Irish Guards, has been chosen to troop their colour, which means the regiment will march its ceremonial flag through the ranks at the King’s official birthday event. 

The Band of the Irish Guards with the Pipes and Drums will march the troops onto the parade ground, led by regimental mascot Turlough Mor, an Irish Wolfhound also known as Seamus.

The music is set to have a ‘distinctly Irish theme’, including Celtic folk tunes and new music composed for the parade.

The annual Trooping the Colour has marked the official birthday of the British sovereign for more than 260 years.

Charles marked his first Trooping as King last year, riding onto Horse Guards in Whitehall as the nation’s head of state six weeks after his coronation.

During the celebrations, Charles and Camilla waved from the Buckingham Palace balcony as thousands of well-wishers in The Mall sang the National Anthem and gave three cheers.

The King and Queen were surrounded in 2023 by the family’s core group of working royals, including the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children.

Also on the balcony were the Princess Royal and her husband Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and the Duke of Kent.

Trooping changed when the Covid pandemic hit in the spring of 2020. National lockdowns were enforced, and Queen Elizabeth took part in drastically scaled-down ceremonies, alone. Trooping was temporarily moved from Horse Guards Parade to Windsor Castle.

When Trooping the Colour returned in 2022, it was a double celebration as the nation also marked the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee – 70 years of her record-breaking reign.

Although all members of her family were invited to join the party, including Prince Harry and Meghan, as well as Prince Andrew, only ‘working royals’ were invited to appear on the balcony.

This meant that the Queen avoided offending either the Sussexes, who had quit royal duties, or Andrew, who had been stripped of them.

But some argued it also ended decades of tradition, with the minor royals now banished from view.