Royals who secretly hid scars – including Princess Kate's three-inch mark

Princess Kate has a large scar on her left temple, which is almost always covered by her brunette locks. While the origin of her mark is unknown, a spokesperson for Kensington Palace did confirm that the scar was related to an operation she had in childhood.

Princess Eugenie has been open about her struggles with scoliosis for several years, and even wore a wedding dress with an open back to reveal her surgical scar.

The royal was diagnosed with scoliosis – curvature of the spine – in 2002, and had surgery to correct it when she was 12.

"[I was] told that I would need corrective surgery. This was, of course, a scary prospect for a 12-year-old; I can still vividly remember how nervous I felt in the days and weeks before the operation," she wrote in an article for the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Charity.

"During my operation, which took eight hours, my surgeons inserted eight-inch titanium rods into each side of my spine and one-and-a-half-inch screws at the top of my neck. After three days in intensive care, I spent a week on a ward and six days in a wheelchair, but I was walking again after that."

Eugenie then revealed the scar down the back of her neck at her 2018 wedding to Jack Brooksbank and spoke about what the moment meant for her.

"I had always wanted a low back [for my wedding dress] – part of it was showing my scar. And I believe scars tell a story about your past and your future, and it's a way of getting rid of a taboo," she said in an exhibition at Windsor Castle.

"For me, it's a way of communicating with people who are going through either similar situations with scoliosis or having a scar of their own that they are trying to deal with."

The Princess of Orange showcased the large scar on the back of her arm for the first time in 2026, a year after falling from her horse, Mojito, and breaking her arm. 

The Dutch palace issued a statement after the incident, detailing Amalia's serious injury. "The Princess of Orange broke her upper arm today after falling from her horse. She will undergo surgery at the UMC Utrecht," the statement read.

The Prince of Wales has a large scar, nicknamed his "Harry Potter scar" due to its placement on his forehead. William obtained the mark in a golfing accident as a child, as he recounted to the BBC in 2009.

"Got hit by a golf club when I was playing golf with a friend of mine. We were on a putting green and the next thing you know there was a seven-iron, and it came out of nowhere, and it hit me in the head," he shared. 

"I call it [my Harry Potter scar] because it glows sometimes and some people notice it – other times they don't notice it at all."

The King has a facial scar of his own, which he earned in 1980 during a polo match when he was reportedly thrown and kicked by his horse. 

As a result, he needed six stitches, leaving a five-centimetre crescent scar on his left cheek.

The Duchess of Sussex appears to have a small scar running down the side of her left foot, and she has never commented publicly on the tiny mark. 

Speculation has since run rampant that Meghan's scar is the result of bunion surgery, although she has never confirmed this rumour.

The Monégasque monarch sported a fresh scar on his face during a meeting with Pope Leo XIV in January 2026, with the palace later revealing that the new mark was the result of a "benign condition".

"The Princely Palace reports that, as part of a routine dermatological follow-up, H.S.H. Prince Albert II underwent a scheduled, short medical procedure on his scalp and face to treat a benign condition," the statement read. 

"The procedure required a few stitches. The Sovereign Prince's schedule of activities continues as normal."