The Princess of Wales is recovering from major abdominal surgery, and after 13 days in hospital, Kate has returned home to Windsor to continue her recovery surrounded by family.
Kensington Palace announced the news in a rare and unprecedented statement, confirming that "the surgery was successful" and that based on the current medical advice, the Princess of Wales "is unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter."
"[The Princess of Wales] hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible," the statement from Kensington Palace continued. "And her wish that her personal medical information remains private. Kensington Palace will, therefore, only provide updates on Her Royal Highness’ progress when there is significant new information to share".
Amid Kate's health issues, her strong home support system has stepped up, most notably Prince William, who visited his wife in hospital every day during her stay. And in the initial phase of Kate's return home, Prince William is reportedly pausing his royal duties to focus on looking after his family.
This, royal experts have explained, is second nature to the 41-year-old, with commentators describing Prince William as a "confident" and "hands-on" dad, and a "modern husband".
"William is incredibly supportive as a husband," explained Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine, via HELLO!. "It's pretty unusual for the Prince of Wales to cancel engagements because his wife isn't well - that certainly wouldn’t have happened in the past - but he's a modern man whose family is more important to him than anything else."
"The Princess of Wales has returned home to Windsor to continue her recovery from surgery. She is making good progress," read the most recent statement from Kensington Palace.
"The Prince and Princess wish to say a huge thank you to the entire team at The London Clinic, especially the dedicated nursing staff, for the care they have provided.
"The Wales family continues to be grateful for the well wishes they have received from around the world."
We will continue to update this story.
