Prince William Stepped in for King Charles at His First Public Event Since His Cancer Diagnosis

Prince William is resuming his royal duties following his family's health crises. On Wednesday morning, the Prince of Wales attended his first public event since his father King Charles's cancer diagnosis and his wife Kate Middleton's return home following her abdominal surgery.

William stepped in for his father at an investiture ceremony at Windsor Palace, where he handed out medals that recognize "outstanding achievement, personal bravery, or services to the U.K.," per the royal family's website. The Prince and Princess of Wales's Instagram account shared a gallery of images from today's event that capture William presenting the honors to recipients, which included former soccer player Ellen White and Officer of the Order of the British Empire Tobias Lambert.

"Honouring amazing people doing incredible things in our communities up and down the country," the caption read.

Charles's sister, Princess Anne, also hosted an investiture ceremony earlier this week on behalf of Charles and the Firm. William is expected to take on more of the king's responsibilities, but according to People, there are no concrete plans to assign duties to Counsellors of State (current members are Queen Camilla, Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew, Princess Beatrice, Princess Anne, and Prince Edward) on behalf of Charles.

The affair marks William's first appearance since Middleton left the London Clinic to continue recovery at home following a planned abdominal surgery. People previously reported that William would postpone duties to be by his wife's side, but now with Charles's cancer diagnosis, he will have to balance his family and his royal responsibilities.

“It is hard with Kate being ill as well, but he will step up,” a royal source told the outlet.

The palace first announced Charles's diagnosis earlier this week with a statement explaining that during his treatment for an enlarged prostate, doctors found a form of cancer. Although the family has not disclosed what type of cancer he has, they revealed that the doctors were able to "swiftly" intervene. The king "remains wholly positive about his treatment and looks forward to returning to full public duty as soon as possible."

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