Princess Charlene returns to public life

Princess Charlene looked solemn today as she appeared at an official engagement with her husband Prince Albert of Monaco for the second consecutive week.

The royal couple were joined at the Sainte Dévote Rugby Tournament – which Princess Charlene was co-hosting – by their seven-year-old twins Princess Gabriella and Prince Jacques.   

Charlene, 44, has rarely been seen with Albert since she spent some 10 months in South Africa last year. She contracted a serious sinus infection on a charity trip, which left her hospitalised and delayed her return to Monaco.

She returned home in November, but left almost immediately for Switzerland to receive treatment for ‘exhaustion’.  

Today’s photos mark the second time the Monaco royals have been seen in public together as a family since Charlene returned to the principality following her treatment.   

Princess Charlene looked solemn today as she appeared at an official engagement with her husband Prince Albert of Monaco for the second consecutive week

The royal couple were joined at the Sainte Dévote Rugby Tournament – which Princess Charlene was co-hosting – by their seven-year-old twins Princess Gabriella and Prince Jacques

Charlene, 44, has rarely been seen with Albert since she spent some 10 months in South Africa last year. She contracted a series sinus infection on a charity trip, which left her hospitalised and delayed her return to Monaco

Throughout the outing – a rugby tournament for under 12s – Charlene doted on her two children, and was pictured with Gabriella sat on her lap for part of the event

The family attended the Monaco E-Prix last weekend, with Charlene’s return to public life described as “an event awaited in the principality for many, many months”.

Today, the royal was pictured wearing a navy blue midi dress, with an open button collar and a tie-waist detail. She paired the chic dress with simple, black sling back kitten heels, and wore her platinum blonde hair swept back.

Charlene opted for simple make-up and dainty, silver earrings for this afternoon’s engagement.

Throughout the outing – a rugby tournament for under 12s – Charlene doted on her two children, and was pictured with Gabriella sat on her lap for part of the event.

Charlene has faced a variety of health problems in recent months, including what the palace has previously referred to as a ‘state of profound general fatigue’, which have kept her largely out of the public eye.

The Monaco palace has consistently denied media reports of a rift between Charlene and the principality’s ruler Prince Albert, who were wed in 2011.

Rumours the pair were incompatible were sparked from the outset, with Charlene attracting a barrage of attention over an apparent bad dose of pre-wedding jitters which, reportedly, saw her seeking refuge in her country’s embassy and gaining the moniker ‘the Runaway Bride’. 

Princess Charlene and her seven-year-old son Prince Jacques watch the rugby tournament for under 12s in Monaco

The royal was pictured wearing a navy blue midi dress, with an open button collar and a tie-waist detail. She paired the chic dress with simple, black sling back kitten heels, and wore her platinum blonde hair swept back

Charlene (seen above with her husband and children) opted for simple make-up and dainty, silver earrings for the occasion

Charlene has faced a variety of health problems in recent months, including what the palace has previously referred to as a ‘state of profound general fatigue’, which have kept her largely out of the public eye

The Monaco palace has consistently denied media reports of a rift between Charlene and the principality’s ruler Prince Albert, who were wed in 2011

Charlene first had a 10-month absence in her native South Africa, where she contracted and was hospitalised for a serious sinus infection that delayed her return to Monaco. 

She underwent surgery in October for an ear, nose and throat infection after checking in under a pseudonym in a Durban hospital, a palace source said at the time. 

Friends previously told Page Six that the mother-of-two ‘almost died’ while she was in her home country, while her husband spoke out to say she is suffering from ‘exhaustion, both emotional and physical’. 

‘She was clearly exhausted, physically and emotionally. She was overwhelmed and couldn’t face official duties, life in general or even family life,’ Albert told People magazine in November. 

Charlene first had a 10-month absence in her native South Africa, where she contracted and was hospitalised for a serious sinus infection that delayed her return to Monaco

She underwent surgery in October for an ear, nose and throat infection after checking in under a pseudonym in a Durban hospital, a palace source said at the time

Friends previously told Page Six that the mother-of-two ‘almost died’ while she was in her home country, while her husband spoke out to say she is suffering from ‘exhaustion, both emotional and physical’

Princess Charlene stays close to her two children, seven-year-old twins Jacques and Gabriella, durning the event

The royal shook the hand of a participant in the Sainte Devote Rugby Tournament in Monaco earlier on Saturday

A palace statement released on December 23 revealed Albert and the couple’s children were planning to visit Charlene during the Christmas holidays, as well as asking for the family’s privacy to be respected. 

It added that the princess ‘is recuperating in a satisfactory and reassuring manner, although it may take a few more months before her health has reached a full recovery.’ 

But distinguished royal journalist Stephane Bern has long speculated that Charlene’s litany of supposed health problems could simply be a cover-up to excuse her from participating in royal activities alongside her husband.

Bern said in January of last year, Charlene was expected to make a trip to visit French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, but suddenly came down with an illness. 

‘The princess had contracted a sudden gastroenteritis,’ he said. 

‘The Palace has had to invoke a suffering princess so often that the Monegasques today find it hard to believe. By crying wolf, the mother of Jacques and Gabriella has discredited and isolated herself.’

Princess Charlene speaks to those who were involved in the Sainte Devote Rugby Tournament on May 7