Prince William appeared at Trooping the Colour on horseback after describing the last year as the most difficult of his life.

After arriving at Buckingham Palace by car, Kate and the children, Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, 7, traveled in a traditional horse-drawn carriage down The Mall. Charlotte sat beside her mother, while her brothers faced backward across from them.

The annual display of British military might serves as a seasonally tweaked birthday celebration for the sitting monarch.