By Molly Claire Goddard
2:53pm PST, Nov 19, 2025
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Although King Charles III was born on November 14, 1948, His Majesty also
celebrates his birthday in June with the annual Trooping the Colour military parade. The event is held to mark the occasion of the monarch's official birthday.
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The tradition of ringing in the reigning monarch's birthday in June began in 1748 with King George II, who was also born in November. The late king didn't think the cold winter months would be suitable for a public gathering, so he moved his official birthday celebration to late spring.
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The celebration was held on the second Thursday of June until Queen Elizabeth II moved the annual event to Saturday so her subjects would be able to attend. The exact date changes each year.
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The royal family's official
Instagram account shared a new photo of King Charles III in honor of his actual birthday. "77 years old today! Thank you for your kind words and good wishes on the occasion of His Majesty's birthday," the palace captioned a shot of the monarch lounging in the garden at his Sandringham Estate.
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King Charles III — who is still undergoing cancer treatment — hasn't let his age negatively affect his sense of humor. During a trip to Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, the father of two joked with an 85-year-old patient,
Jacqueline Page, about "wearing out" as you get
older. "This is the terrible thing, as I'm discovering already — the bits don't work so well after you get past 70, do they?" the monarch said.
