Prince William and Kate Middleton celebrate 6th wedding anniversary

As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge celebrate their sixth wedding anniversary, Kensington Palace marked the occasion on social media with a post thanking royal watchers for their warm messages congratulating the couple.

Sharing an image of Kate and William from the royal wedding on the official Instagram page, the accompanying message read: "Thank you so much for all the lovely messages wishing The Duke and Duchess a happy sixth wedding anniversary."

The post received over 50,000 likes and the royal account was inundated with congratulatory messages from fans from around the world.

One follower posted on the royal Instagram page: "Happy Anniversary to our future King and Queen! Such an inspirational couple," while another sent a message from Mexico saying: "Wish their royal highness a life full of happiness and love, wish for them to have a strong marriage because when I see them I see true love."

"Happy Anniversary to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Catherine! ❤ Love from America!", posted an admirer from the US, while others fondly recalled waking up to watch the royal wedding.

Responding to the avalanche of well-wishes Kensington Palace posted a further message on their Twitter page, which read: "Thank you for all the lovely messages wishing the Duke and Duchess a happy wedding anniversary – it's been an amazing six years!"

Highlights from Prince William and Kate Middleton's 6 years of marriage

The message was accompanied by a series of images capturing some of the highlights of the last six years, including an image of the couple's children Prince George and Princess Charlotte, captured during their tour of Canada and an iconic photo of the royals outside the monument to love, the Taj Mahal.

William and Kate had been dating while studying together at St Andrews University. Following a brief split the pair reunited and in October 2010 William proposed to Kate while on holiday in Kenya.

They announced their engagement in a TV interview as Kate displayed the sapphire and diamond engagement ring that once belonged to William's mother Princess Diana.

William, 34, and Kate, 35, were married on Friday 29 April, 2011 in Westminster Abbey, London before a gathering that included heads of states and a global viewing audience of a billion people. Well-wishers lined the streets outside Westminster Abbey and all eyes were on the bride, who emerged from a carriage wearing a long-sleeved Alexander McQueen wedding dress.

While no formal event has been announced to mark the anniversary, it is thought that after their hectic schedule of events last week, promoting their Heads Together campaign along with Prince Harry to raise awareness of mental health issues, the Duke and Duchess are celebrating their anniversary privately.