New photos of Prince Louis and Princess Charlotte released by Kensington Palace

Touching pictures of Prince Louis’s first days at home – including a snap of the baby royal being cuddled by his big sister – have been released by their proud parents.

The newest member of the royal family, born on April 23, was photographed by the Duchess of Cambridge at Kensington Palace when he was just three days old.

Louis is pictured in a white outfit propped up on top of a white frilly cushion on a seat at the family residence in London.

The baby prince is not looking at the camera, but is wide-eyed and staring at something to the side.

A second photograph shows Louis receiving a tender kiss from his sister Princess Charlotte, taken by their mother on May 2, Charlotte’s third birthday.

Louis appears to be sleeping soundly, as Charlotte puts a protective arm around her baby sibling and plants a kiss on his forehead.

The last time the public saw Charlotte was when she arrived at St Mary’s Hospital with her father, the Duke of Cambridge, and her older brother Prince George, to meet the latest addition to the Cambridge family.

A confident Charlotte turned to wave at the photographers as she led the way up the steps holding William’s hand, while four-year-old George appeared more wary of the huge crowds of media.

George does not appear in the two photographs released by Kensington Palace.

The palace said William and Kate were “very pleased” to share the photographs, adding: “Their Royal Highnesses would like to thank members of the public for all of the kind messages they have received following the birth of Prince Louis, and for Princess Charlotte’s third birthday.”

This is not the first time Kate, one of the world’s most photographed people, has gone behind the lens and released her own pictures.

The 36-year-old Duchess is a keen and accomplished amateur photographer who last year accepted a lifetime honorary membership of the Royal Photographic Society which recognised her “talent and enthusiasm”.

Kate bucked tradition when she took the official photographs of her newborn daughter in 2015.

The photos of Charlotte showed the young princess being cradled by her older brother George at William and Kate’s Norfolk home, Anmer Hall.

Kate, a history of art graduate, has released pictures to mark other milestones in her children’s lives, including George and Charlotte’s first days at nursery school and Charlotte’s first birthday.