Prince Charles: 70 years in 70 pictures

To mark the Prince of Wales' 70th birthday, we present an image from the Press Association archives from every year of his life.

1948

Image copyright PA

Image caption Charles Philip Arthur George was born on 14 November 1948, five years before his mother was crowned Queen.

1949

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles with his father, the Duke of Edinburgh, in the grounds of Windlesham Moor, the country home in Surrey of Princess Elizabeth and the duke at that time.

1950

Image copyright PA

Image caption Charles and his mother watch as a procession including Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands passes Clarence House.

1951

Image copyright PA

Image caption King George VI with his grandson Prince Charles celebrating his third birthday at Buckingham Palace. It was the first photograph of the King taken after his lung operation in September.

1952

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles keeping a lookout on his fourth birthday with his mother, who was by then Queen Elizabeth II.

1953

Image copyright PA

Image caption Fifth birthday portrait of Prince Charles.

1954

Image copyright PA

Image caption Princess Anne and Prince Charles with their grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, in the grounds of the Royal Lodge, Windsor, Berkshire. The picture was taken shortly before they left for Tobruk, Libya, to join their parents the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, homeward bound from the Commonwealth tour.

1955

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles pictured for his seventh birthday.

1956

Image copyright PA

Image caption Charles with the ponies at Smith's Lawn, Windsor Great Park, where his father, the Duke of Edinburgh, was playing polo.

1957

Image copyright PA

Image caption The prince with his father, the Duke of Edinburgh, at the wheel, as they take a motorboat ride up the River Medina at Cowes, Isle of Wight.

1958

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles on his way to Cheam School, in Berkshire. He was educated at home until the age of eight.

1959

Image copyright PA

Image caption A family portrait at Windsor Castle. With them is Sugar, one of the Queen's pet corgis.

1960

Image caption Prince Charles and Princess Anne now have a baby brother, Prince Andrew. Here, they take him for a walk in the grounds at Balmoral.

1961

Image copyright PA

Image caption Out riding at Windsor Castle with his mother, the Queen.

1962

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles arrives at his new school, Gordonstoun, alongside his father, the Duke of Edinburgh (left), and Capt Iain Tennant, who chaired the board of governors.

1963

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Royal Family on their way to Westminster Abbey for the wedding of Princess Alexandra and Angus Ogilvy.

1964

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles, who had recently recovered from pneumonia in an Aberdeen nursing home, at Windsor Great Park.

1965

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles as Macbeth in the Gordonstoun School production of the Shakespeare play. His parents were in the audience with other parents to watch the final performance.

1966

Image copyright PA

Image caption A portrait of Prince Charles wearing the Balmoral tartan, commissioned for his 18th birthday.

1967

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles, wearing the Trinity gown of blue silk with black facings, accompanied by head porter Mr Bill Edwards posing on the steps of Neville Court, Cambridge University. The prince was in Cambridge to take up studies in archaeology and anthropology.

1968

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles batting for Lord Brabourne's XI against a team of racing drivers, including Graham Hill, at Mersham, near Ashford, Kent.

1969

Image copyright PA

Image caption Queen Elizabeth II investing her son, Prince Charles, as the Prince of Wales during a ceremony at Caernarfon castle.

1970

Image copyright PA

Image caption Charles playing the role of a weatherman in rehearsals for a sketch for the Dryden Society's Trinity College revue at Cambridge University.

1971

Image copyright PA

Image caption Behind the wheel of his Aston Martin DB6 convertible sports car on London's Strand after visiting the Press Association in Fleet Street.

1972

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Royal Family at Buckingham Palace. Prince Charles, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew have now been joined by a younger brother, Prince Edward.

1973

Image copyright PA

Image caption By 1973 Prince Charles was a sub-lieutenant in the Royal Navy, here on the bridge of the frigate Minerva at Devonport before leaving for routine patrols and exercise around the West Indies.

1974

Image copyright PA

Image caption A year later, he is about to set off on his first "dual control" flight, with instructor Lt Cdr Alan MacGregor in a Royal Navy Wessex V helicopter.

1975

Image copyright PA

Image caption Under the Arctic ice at Resolute Bay, Canada.

1976

Image copyright PA

Image caption Sporting a new beard at the Badminton Horse Trials.

1977

Image caption Comedy duo Morecambe and Wise shared the stage with Prince Charles during their special Royal Charity Show in aid of the Queen's Jubilee Appeal.

1978

Image copyright PA

Image caption Taking to the water, Prince Charles windsurfing during Regatta Week at Cowes on the Isle of Wight.

1979

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 1979, Prince Charles fulfilled an ambition to fly a pre-War Tiger Moth biplane, when he took to the skies over RAF Benson in Oxfordshire.

1980

Image copyright PA

Image caption Charles on his 10-year-old Irish chaser, Allibar, at Ludlow, where he finished second in an amateur riders' steeplechase.

1981

Image copyright PA

Image caption Newlyweds, Prince Charles and his bride, Diana, Princess of Wales, make their way to Buckingham Palace after their wedding ceremony at St Paul's Cathedral in London.

1982

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 1982 Prince Charles's first child, Prince William, was born.

1983

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Prince and Princess Of Wales during a visit to Montague, Prince Edward Island, Canada.

1984

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles plays with his son Prince William in the garden of their home, Kensington Palace.

1985

Image copyright PA

Image caption To the delight of youngsters at a discotheque in Middleton-on-Sea, Sussex, Prince Charles tries his hand at break-dancing. The event was organised by the Prince's Trust.

1986

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles receives a prize and kiss from his wife after playing for the England II team against Chile, at the Cartier International Polo Spectacular at the Guards Polo Club in Windsor Great Park, Berkshire.

1987

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles makes his way across a bridge during a trek in the foothills of Ben Nevis with the Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team.

1988

Image copyright PA

Image caption The prince wearing his new Royal Navy captain's uniform on his 40th birthday.

1989

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Harry has now joined the family. They are seen here on holiday in Tresco, Scilly Isles.

1990

Image copyright PA

Image caption While on a visit to British troops in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Prince Charles was given a ride in a Challenger tank by the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.

1991

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 1991, he visited a group of unemployed youths taking part in the Prince's Trust scheme, in Caister-On-Sea, Norfolk.

1992

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, are seen during a visit to a memorial to the Gloucester Regiment, who fought with distinction in 1951 during the Korean War, near Seoul, South Korea. It was in 1992 they split, formally divorcing in July 1996, citing "irreconcilable differences".

1993

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles and his mother watch the racing at Epsom on the 40th anniversary of the Queen's coronation.

1994

Image copyright PA

Image caption British paratroopers land on Ginkel Heath to mark the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Arnhem, as Prince Charles looks on.

1995

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles leads his two sons during a toboggan race on the slopes outside their hotel in the Swiss resort of Klosters.

1996

Image copyright PA

Image caption Charles is seen on his own on the Giant's Wishing Chair at the Giant's Causeway, Co Antrim.

1997

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Duke of Edinburgh, Prince William, Earl Spencer, Prince Harry and the Prince of Wales turn on to Horse Guards Parade as they follow behind the coffin of Diana, Princess of Wales, during the funeral procession to Westminster Abbey. Following the death of the princess in a car crash in Paris, in 1997, the prince insisted that she be given a royal funeral.

1998

Image copyright PA

Image caption He celebrated his 50th birthday in 1998, with his mother, the Queen, at a reception in his honour at Buckingham Palace.

1999

Image copyright PA

Image caption A year later, Prince Charles was seen in public for the first time with Camilla Parker Bowles, who later became his wife.

2000

Image copyright PA

Image caption During a tour of the Caribbean, Prince Charles donned a rasta cap, causing much laughter among the locals at the Trenchtown community centre in Kingston, Jamaica.

2001

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles and his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, were very close and here he shares a joke with her during the unveiling of an Aberdeen Angus sculpture at the Grampian Transport Museum in Aberdeenshire.

2002

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 2002, the prince stood vigil at his grandmother's coffin in Westminster Hall in London on the eve of her funeral.

2003

Image copyright PA

Image caption Three generations of the British Royal family - Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, their eldest son, the Prince of Wales, and his elder son, Prince William, at Clarence House in London before a dinner to mark the 50th anniversary of her coronation.

2004

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles and his elder son, Prince William, share a joke with the media on the Madrisa ski slopes, above the Swiss village of Klosters.

2005

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 2005, the Prince of Wales married Camilla Parker Bowles, who became the Duchess of Cornwall, at Windsor's Guildhall.

2006

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall with his sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, at Sandhurst Royal Military Academy after the Sovereign's Parade that marked the completion of Prince Harry's officer training.

2007

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 2007, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary. Here, the family pose for a picture before a formal dinner.

2008

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince Charles and his wife enjoy the Mey Highland Games in Caithness.

2009

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall on the Beach of North Seymour Island, which is part of the Galapagos Islands, in the Pacific Ocean.

2010

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Prince of Wales looks through the window of a British military helicopter as he travels to Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan.

2011

Image copyright PA

Image caption In 2011, his elder son, Prince William, married Kate Middleton. Here, the prince sits with the Duchess of Cornwall and his parents in Westminster Abbey waiting for the ceremony to begin.

2012

Image copyright PA

Image caption Prince William, now the Duke of Cambridge, shows his father one of the Sea King helicopters he captains at RAF Valley on Anglesey.

2013

Image copyright PA

Image caption The prince and duchess host a reception for the Elephant Family, a charity working to save the Asian elephant from extinction in the wild.

2014

Image copyright PA

Image caption The prince raises a glass to D-Day veterans at a community centre in Ranville, Normandy, as part of the 70th anniversary of the D-Day campaign.

2015

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Duchess of Cornwall, the Prince of Wales, Prince George, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Queen Elizabeth II on the balcony at Buckingham Palace following Trooping the Colour at Horse Guards Parade.

2016

Image copyright PA

Image caption Queen Elizabeth II, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales in Poundbury, his model town in Dorset. Prince Charles designed the village on the outskirts of Dorchester after outlining his plan in his 1989 book, A Vision of Britain.

2017

Image copyright PA

Image caption The Prince of Wales, known as the Duke of Rothesay in Scotland, takes the salute during the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle.

2018

Image copyright PA

Image caption And one for luck, the 71st image that brings us up to date. The Prince of Wales walks Meghan Markle up the aisle of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle for her wedding to his son Prince Harry.

Image copyright Chris Jackson/Clarence House/PA

Image caption But why stop now? Here is one more picture released to mark Prince Charles' birthday. It shows three generations of royals, as Charles sits with his wife, children and grandchildren.

All photographs from the archives of the Press Association