On Christmas Day, the Princess of Wales made her last public appearance before it was announced that she had undergone a planned abdominal surgery on January 16 and would be taking a leave of absence from her official royal duties until after Easter.
While the beginning of the year would usually be one of the busiest periods in the working royals' diaries, 2024 has seen things take a dramatically altered course. Not only has Kate been out of action but her husband, Prince William, has also significantly reduced his schedule to support Kate and their three children: Prince George, 10; Princess Charlotte, 8; and Prince Louis, 5.
So far, details about the princess' condition and recovery have been sparse, with only two statements being issued from Kensington Palace on the subject.
Here, as Kate passes the halfway point in her projected Easter recovery timescale, Newsweek looks at everything we know so far about the princess' surgery and recuperation.
'Planned Abdominal Surgery'
After a public absence of 23 days following her Christmas Day appearance at the Sandringham estate royal walkabout, Kensington Palace released a statement notifying the press and public that Kate had undergone a "planned abdominal surgery" after being admitted to The London Clinic on January 16.
The cause of the surgery was not revealed, and the statement stressed that the princess wishes that her "personal medical information remains private."
In addition to this, the palace outlined that Kate wouldn't be expected to return to her public work until after Easter. This means her usual attendance at the royal family's Easter Sunday church service at Windsor Castle is not confirmed.
At the time the statement was made, it said that Kate was expected to remain in the hospital for up to 10 to 14 days.
Kensington Palace—January 17, 2024
"Her Royal Highness The Princess of Wales was admitted to The London Clinic yesterday for planned abdominal surgery. The surgery was successful and it is expected that she will remain in hospital for ten to fourteen days, before returning home to continue her recovery. Based on the current medical advice, she is unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter.
"The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate. She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; 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.
"The Princess of Wales wishes to apologise to all those concerned for the fact that she has to postpone her upcoming engagements. She looks forward to reinstating as many as possible, as soon as possible."
'Making Good Progress'
After 14 days, the palace once again released a statement, this time relaying that Kate had been discharged from The London Clinic. King Charles III had been admitted and discharged for treatment for an enlarged prostate at the same time.
The palace provided a brief update on the princess' condition, saying that she was "making good progress." However, unlike King Charles, Kate was not photographed leaving the hospital, instead having already been discharged and sent home by the time the statement was released.
At the time it was also reported that the princess would return to her official duties on the advice of her doctors when the time was right.
Kensington Palace—January 29, 2024
"The Princess of Wales has returned home to Windsor to continue her recovery from surgery. She is making good progress.
"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."
A Royal Thank You
Since Kate's return home to Adelaide Cottage, the Wales family home on the Windsor Castle estate, there have been no further updates on her condition or whether the Easter return date is still accurate.
On February 7, Prince William returned to public duties after canceling his engagements following Kate's surgery and thanked the public for their messages and support.
Newsweek reached out to Kensington Palace via email for comment.
Prince William—London Air Ambulance Charity Gala Dinner, February 7, 2024
"I'd like to take this opportunity to say thank you, also, for the kind messages of support for Catherine and for my father, especially in recent days. It means a great deal to us all.
"It's fair to say the past few weeks have had a rather 'medical' focus. So I thought I'd come to an air ambulance function to get away from it all!"
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
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About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more
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