Happy Birthday to the Prince of Bhutan! King Jigme and Queen Jetsun celebrate their youngest son’s fourth birthday with two sweet photos

Queen Jetsun Pema of Bhutan has released two new photos on the occasion of her son Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck’s fourth birthday.

The 33-year-old Queen of Bhutan, who is also called the Kate Middleton of the Himalayas, got to work on it Instagram to share the sweet images.

The second child of Bhutan’s King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, 44, flashed a beaming smile as he played outside in the first image.

Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck, second in the line of succession after his elder brother Gyalsey Jigme Namgyel, looked dapper in traditional attire.

The second image offered a close-up of the four-year-old holding up flags with a dragon motif, believed to be taken during the Lunar New Year, which heralded the Year of the Dragon.

In the snap, he was staring at the camera with a calm expression as he donned traditional Bhutanese attire.

The Queen shared the photos with the caption: “Congratulations to His Royal Highness Gyalsey Ugyen Wangchuck who turns four today.”

Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck was born on March 19, 2020 at Lingkana Palace in Thimphu.

It comes after Bhutan’s royal family held a lavish naming ceremony in December to announce the name of their third child.

Three months after the birth of a daughter, Queen Jetsun Pema and King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck introduced Her Royal Highness the Gyalsem, who has been named Sonam Yangden Wangchuck.

The royal household shared the happy news and photos of the glamorous celebrations on the Queen’s official Instagram account.

The message explained that Sonam is a Bhutanese name that denotes ‘merit, longevity and happiness’.

The queen, who already has two sons, Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, seven, and Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck, four, stunned in a traditional purple dress with gold patterns.

In the second image, the young royal flashed a beaming smile as he played outside in traditional attire

The King (center left) and Queen (center right) of Bhutan have three children, Jigme Namgyel (far left), Jigme Ugyen (far right) and Sonam Yangden (sat on her mother’s lap)

Meanwhile, Sonam was wrapped in a silk pink blanket and a matching hat, with pink embellishments that mirrored the blanket.

Sonam’s older brothers, Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck and Jigme Ugyen Wangchuck, looked just as adorable as they celebrated their sister and posed for photos.

The message explained: “Her Royal Highness the Gyalsem is called Sonam Yangden Wangchuck.

‘Sonam is a Bhutanese name meaning merit, longevity and happiness. The name Yangden, which means precious jewel, signifies prosperity and well-being.

‘The naming ceremony took place in Tashichhodzong on the anniversary of His Majesty’s accession to the Golden Throne in 2006.

‘The ceremony was presided over by His Holiness the Je Khenpo. His Majesty the Fourth Druk Gyalpo, Their Majesties the Queen Mothers and members of the Royal Family attended the ceremony.

“Representatives of the Dratshang presented Ku Sung Thugten Mendrel. The Dzongdas, Thrizins and Lam Netens of twenty dzongkhags, representing the people of Bhutan, performed buelwa sacrifices.

‘Her Royal Highness, the third child of Their Majesties The King and Gyaltsuen, was born on September 9 this year.’

Queen Jetsun Pema (pictured May 2023), dubbed the Kate Middleton of the Himalayas, shared the photos on Instagram

Last year, the Queen joined the royal family at the wedding of Crown Prince Hussein and Princess Rajwa Al Hussein of Jordan, and attended King Charles’ coronation in London in early May with her husband.

King Jigme, the hugely popular fifth Druk Gyalpo, studied in Britain and the US and ascended the throne in 2006, aged just 26, after his own father abdicated.

Unlike his son, who plans to have a monogamous marriage, the former king, who introduced democracy to Bhutan during his reign, has four wives, all sisters, whom he married on the same day.

But despite his own upbringing, the current monarch has made it clear he only wants one wife, whom he married on October 13, 2011, while she was still studying international relations at Regent’s College London.

The match made headlines at the time because the young king was more openly affectionate with his wife than citizens were used to – leading the couple to be dubbed ‘the William and Kate of the Himalayas’.

The Bhutanese King and Queen married in 2011 – the same year Prince William and Kate got married – and have since welcomed your children.

However, the king’s very public displays of affection – including kissing his wife on the cheek and holding her hand – were well received by young people, with many even choosing to follow the royals’ example.

The couple have an unusually close family, with the King’s sister and brother married to the Queen’s brother and sister.

The Queen’s older sister, Yeatso Lhamo, is married to the King’s brother, Prince Jigme Dorji Wangchuck.