Young Kate Middleton stuns in new British royal family photos

Buckingham Palace has released never before seen photos of the Royal family including a striking portrait of the ailing Princess Catherine.

Previously unseen photos of the Royal family are on display for the first time including a picture of Princess Catherine taken to celebrate her 40th birthday in 2022.

The intimate images, including four royal mums with their babies, will be unveiled at an exhibition at Buckingham Palace.

Queen Elizabeth, sister Princess Margaret, cousin Princess Alexandra and the Duchess of Kent all showed off their newborns in 1964.

A previously unseen photo of Princess Catherine has been released by Buckingham Palace. Picture: Supplied

For 60 years this private family photo by Princess Margaret’s photographer husband Lord Snowdon was kept in a family album. Now, the British public can see the image at a new exhibition.

A group of royal mums including the Queen and Princess Margaret. Picture: Supplied

It is one of 150 on view, including a pose from the Princess of Wales and a reflective look at a young Charles and Anne.

There is also a photo of the young Elizabeth and Margaret alongside their parents during wartime.

The photograph of the Princess of Wales, taken for her 40th birthday. Picture: Getty Images

More modern photographs such as King Charles’ coronation portraits and photographer Paolo Roversi’s 40th-birthday portrait of Princess Catherine can be viewed by visitors.

The image of the princess bears a “striking resemblance” to an 1864 portrait of Alexandra, Princess of Wales, by Franz Xaver Winterhalter from the Royal Collection, which will hang nearby.

A young Princess Elizabeth at 16. Picture: Supplied

Sir Cecil Beaton captured the royal family's Blitz spirit with this picture of King George VI, Queen Elizabeth (the future Queen Mother) and their daughters during the war. Picture: Supplied

Royal fans will also be able to see how the retouching of images has happened since the earliest days of photography, and how the influence of traditional art on photography is explored in the exhibition.

An unseen photo of the Queen and Prince Philip. Picture: Supplied

Buckingham Palace said the collection a reminder of the power of photography and how it has shaped the public perception of the Royal Family over the past century.

“I think the Royal Family, in general, understands the importance of photography and how immediate it is as a visual medium. It can reach everybody across the world. It’s a very powerful visual tool,” curator Alessandro Nasini said.