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Happy birthday<\/a> to Queen Camilla!<\/strong>King Charles\u2019<\/strong> wife turned 79 on July 17, celebrating her big day with a royal portrait.\u00a0<\/p>\n The royals recently posted the photo on their official Instagram<\/a> page along with a special message reading, \u201cHappy Birthday to The Queen!\u201d The birthday wish also included an unexpected gift. But this one isn\u2019t for the Queen.\u00a0<\/p>\n Instead, it\u2019s for the children of the UK: \u201cHer Majesty has marked her birthday with a renewed commitment to supporting children\u2019s literacy, with the announcement that every Year 6 and P6 child across the UK will be gifted a special edition of the bestselling book \u2018Impossible Creatures\u2019 by award-winning author Katherine Rundell<\/strong>, this Christmas<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Fans flocked to the post, sending their birthday love to Camilla. And of course, her family also honored the Queen on this special day. Prince William<\/a><\/strong> and Kate Middleton<\/a><\/strong> shared the portrait of Camilla on their Instagram Stories<\/a>, adding the title, \u201cWishing Her Majesty The Queen a very Happy Birthday!\u201d<\/p>\n Camilla posed in a classic royal blue dress, accented with a sapphire butterfly<\/a> pin. Eagle-eyed royal watchers might remember this look (by designer Fiona Clare<\/strong>) from a 2024 meeting the Queen and her husband had with the Emperor and Empress of Japan at Buckingham Palace in June of 2024. According to recent reports<\/a>, the new portrait was taken in the State Drawing Room at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland last month.\u00a0<\/p>\n As it turns out, the brooch is more than just another fancy piece of jewelry. The butterfly was presented to Queen Elizabeth<\/a><\/strong> I<\/strong>I at the Birmingham Spring Fair almost half a century ago, in 1977.\u00a0<\/p>\n As her birthday post says, \u201cLed by the National Literacy Trust, of which the Queen is Patron, the programme celebrates the National Year of Reading 2026.\u201d<\/p>\n Camilla is a deeply involved children\u2019s literacy advocate who has championed the cause through the National Literacy Trust, The Queen\u2019s Commonwealth Essay Competition, The Queen\u2019s Reading Room, and other charities\/organizations.\u00a0<\/p>\n She explained her love for books on the Queen\u2019s Reading Room<\/a> website, writing, \u201cWith their extraordinary power to educate and inspire, books\u2014from authors around the globe\u2014have enriched my life since I was a child. It has therefore been such a joy to watch my Reading Room grow over the years into a thriving book community.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The Duchess of Cornwall continued her literacy quest on the royal couple\u2019s recent trip to the United States. Queen Camilla visited the New York Public Library, reading \u2018Winnie the Pooh<\/a>\u2019 to schoolchildren and gifting the library a \u2018Roo\u2019 doll.<\/p>\n This story was originally published by <\/em>Parade<\/a><\/em> on Jul 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the <\/em>News<\/a><\/em> section. Add Parade as a <\/em>Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\nWhat did Queen Camilla wear in her birthday portrait?\u00a0<\/h2>\n
Why is Queen Camilla marking her birthday with a gift for children?<\/h2>\n