Kate Middleton’s Trooping the Color Outfit Carried a Hidden Message — It Was All in the Color
Kate Middleton looked nothing short of a future Queen in her elegant turquoise coat dress on Trooping the Color. The Princess of Wales complemented her aqua-blue ensemble with a matching floral hat by Juliette Botterill. The dress, designed by her favorite designer Catherine Walker, also had white collar and lapels. In her prominent role as Colonel of the Irish Guards, her outfit carried a subtle tribute — the aqua shade matched the teal plumes worn in the bearskin caps of the Irish Guards. Meanwhile, her daughter, Princess Charlotte, wore a matching outfit, also paying a sweet tribute to her mother’s role.
As reported by People magazine, the Princess of Wales represents one of the seven regiments in the Household Division that participate in Trooping the Color, and so she chose to wear aqua as a gesture of solidarity with her regiment. The shade name of the Irish Guards' plume is technically St. Patrick's blue, the color of the mantle and sash of the Order of St. Patrick. She was named as the Colonel of the Irish Guards by King Charles in 2022. Middleton was also seen wearing the Irish Guards Regiment Brooch.
This, however, isn't the first time the Princess has shown support for her unit through her fashion choices. During her first St. Patrick’s Day Parade with the Guards as their honorary colonel in 2023, she stood out in a striking teal coat dress by Walker, once again echoing the blue plumes. During the military pageantry at the Horse Guards Parade this year, she watched from the dais with the King and Queen Camilla. Interestingly, Middleton also honored her late grand mother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth, by wearing her famous Bahrain Pearl Drop earrings.
Additionally, Middleton's Trooping the Color dress also honored the legacy of her late mother-in-law, Princess Diana. According to Hello! magazine, Diana had worn a similar aqua dress with white lapels for the 1988 Queen's birthday parade. Middleton's outfit also echoed the late Princess' February 1992 trip to India. She had also donned a similar ensemble in August 1986, when she visited the Royal Hampshire Regiment, wearing a cream jacket with a turquoise pencil skirt and a matching hat.
PrincessKate honoured #PrincessDiana at the 2025 Trooping the Colour by recreating her iconic aquamarine outfit. She also wore the late Queen Elizabeth’s pearl drop earrings. pic.twitter.com/Iyo6oe3P4N
— HELLO! Canada (@HelloCanada) June 14, 2025
Fashion Correspondent Bethan Hold told People magazine that Middleton's sartorial tributes to Diana are always carefully coordinated. She believed that Prince William "has always been very conscious of his mother as a style icon." She opined, "I think that William and Kate between them might have decided that actually on some occasions it's a nice thing for Kate to reference the fact that Diana is still a fashion muse today and to do that through her own clothes." For the King's birthday parade, the Princess completed her look with nude high heels and wore her beautiful hair up a chignon.