Mother’s Day may still be a few weeks away on this side of the pond, but in the UK, the celebration—known there as Mothering Sunday—was held this past weekend. Several of the royal family members took the opportunity to share motherly moments, including Kate Middleton, who focused an Instagram post on Mother Nature, and Meghan Markle, who gave a glimpse of a sweet family tradition in the form of a lemon tart. Not one to be left out, King Charles of course also shared a moment from his childhood featuring his iconic mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Posted on the official royal family Instagram page, the tribute included the bittersweet caption, “Wishing all mothers, and those who are missing theirs today, a peaceful Mothering Sunday.”
The first photo in the post features a young Charles with his mother and sister, Princess Anne, at one of Elizabeth’s favorite annual events, the Royal Windsor Horse Show, in 1956. In it, the famously horse-loving queen shares a small, private moment, showing Charles something in a booklet.
The second photo honored Queen Camilla’s late mother, Rosalind Shand, holding Camilla’s eldest child Tom Parker Bowles when he was a baby.
The poignant homage came after a week of health tribulations for the king, who was briefly hospitalized due to side effects from his ongoing cancer treatment. Charles, who, like his daughter-in-law Kate, was diagnosed with cancer last year, was forced to postpone some events on his calendar in light of the medical issues, but is expected to return to his public duties as usual this week.
Lauren Hubbard is a freelance writer and Town & Country contributor who covers beauty, shopping, entertainment, travel, home decor, wine, and cocktails.