She’s been hailed as the royal family’s ‘secret weapon’, thanks to her natural poise combined with a down-to-earth nature and resemblance to her late grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, but away from the limelight Lady Louise Windsor is just like any other university student.

Once dubbed an ‘English rose that is blossoming’, Lady Louise – whose parents are the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh – is celebrating her 21st birthday today, and has been making the most of student life at St Andrews University in Scotland.

Snaps from a fundraiser for the university’s drama society earlier this year, show the 16th in line to the throne – who has recently entered her third year studying English – partying with friends, showing off her moves on the dancefloor and snapping selfies with her rumoured boyfriend.

Donning a classic V-neck little black dress, Edward and Sophie’s daughter looked particularly cosy with Felix da Silva-Clamp, who she is said to have found romance with.

The duo wrapped their arms around each other, gently placing their heads together as Lady Louise took selfies on her phone, while in another image, Lady Louise is seen snuggling up to Felix, placing her hand on his chest and her head on his shoulder.

The pair have been forging a strong bond over the past two years, with Felix – whose father is a solicitor – even travelling down to the Sandringham estate in Norfolk to see Louise at her driving competition in June, where she won an impressive silver medal.

If the couple go the distance they will follow in the footstep of William and Kate, who also met when they were students at St Andrews, and Felix already seems at ease with the family.

He appeared to get on well with Lady Louise’s parents, beaming as he chatted to the Duchess of Edinburgh.

Felix works in an ice cream parlour in St Andrews while undertaking his studies, according to the Daily Express, and Lady Louise herself has experience of taking on a low-key part-time job despite her royal status.

In 2022, she spent the summer working at a garden centre before embarking on her higher education.

Louise was said to have been helping out on the tills, greeting customers, and pruning and potting plants – for £6.63 per hour.

One customer said: ‘She is a really modest and sweet young woman who is polite and attentive to customers. She seemed to be loving the job. You’d never imagine the Queen’s granddaughter would take on a role working behind a till.’

Another added: ‘The staff seemed to adore her. It’s not every day you buy your begonias off a royal.’

As part of Lady Louise’s four-year English Literature degree programme, undergraduates can study a semester abroad.

Although Felix was born in London, he went to Melbourne Grammar School and his mother, who works for the World Health Organisation’s mental health gap action programme, currently lives Down Under.

It has been reported that Lady Louise is keen to jet off to Australia for her final year – with Macquarie University at the top of her list.

A source told the Express that due to Felix previously attending a school in Australia, studying abroad is an option he and Lady Louise are considering. However, the plan has not been finalised yet.

Thus far, Lady Louise has ensured her studies come first as she completes her degree – missing out on two Easter Sunday services in a row as she stays in Edinburgh.

Despite being cousins with Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Prince William and Prince Harry, Louise uses the title ‘Lady’ rather than ‘Princess’.

She was not made a princess at birth because her father, Prince Edward, wanted to shield her from the pressures of a life in the public eye.

Speaking to The Sunday Times in 2020, her mother, Sophie, explained: ‘We try to bring them up with the understanding that they are very likely to have to work for a living. Hence we made the decision not to use HRH titles.’

Louise has previously expressed an interest in pursuing a career in ‘the military, diplomacy or law’.

A source told The Sun in August: ‘She talks about being very keen on a career in the military, serving the King and country. She is all about the Army Cadets and has fallen in love with it.’

If Lady Louise goes down the military path, she will be the first female royal since her late grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II , to do so.

Lady Louise is thought to have been extremely close with her late grandmother, having paid nearly fortnightly visits to Elizabeth and Phillip.

Ingrid Seward explained that Louise and her brother, James, Earl of Wessex, ‘were the grandchildren that they saw the most.’

In comparison, ‘while the older ones were seen less frequently, this little girl was there every weekend.’

It was even reported that Louise had no idea her grandmother was the Queen until later in life, her parents wanting to preserve a ‘normal childhood’ for her.

Her mother, Sophie, once revealed in at an interview that as a child, Louise had come home one day saying: ‘Mummy, people keep on telling me that grandma is the Queen.’

Lady Louise was their seventh grandchild. And for Philip, she brought not just joy but a sense of personal pride.

This was because she became the first royal to officially carry the surname Mountbatten-Windsor – so allowing Philip’s surname, Mountbatten, to continue into the future of the Royal family.

A former aide said Philip would be ‘thrilled’ that, 55 years after the birth of his first child, a member of the Royal Family would finally be carrying on the Mountbatten line.

But Lady Louise also shared a love of carriage driving with the late Duke of Edinburgh, who was instrumental in helping to establish the activity as a sport in Britain.

Following his retirement, Philip had more time to enjoy carriage-driving, which was one of his favourite pastimes since the 1970s. He raced carriages near Norfolk before going on to represent Britain at several world and European championships.

Sophie previously revealed that Prince Philip was ‘so pleased’ when his granddaughter wanted to take up the sport.

‘My father-in-law was always so good at encouraging, he was really encouraging of Lady Louise. So when she not only said “please can I have a go”, but then when she showed a flair for it, he was just brilliant with her,’ she said.

‘They used to chat away about it and he would always turn up if she was competing in the Great Park, he would always turn up to watch her and watch her training days.’

Lady Louise paid tribute to her grandfather’s legacy by taking part in a carriage-driving event in April 2022, on the weekend of the anniversary of his death.

As part of her parents’ effort to maintain a normal life for the children, Louise is scarcely seen at royal events.

Prior to Queen Elizabeth II’s death, royal expert Ingrid Seward said the queen and her granddaughter, Louise were ‘extremely close’.

‘She is like another daughter to the Queen,’ she said.

Louise could follow in the footsteps of her closely held grandmother, with the two having been compared on a number of occasions.

Commenting on the likened nature of the two, Ingrid Seward said: ‘There are shades of the young Elizabeth. There is something about her – a capability. She’s obviously a very gentle young woman.’

As far back as 2021, she was dubbed the royal family’s ‘secret weapon’ thanks to her popularity with royal fans.

This was seen in this year’s Trooping the Colour celebrations, when fans of the monarchy expressed their excitement to see Lady Louise on the balcony – as she did not go to the event last year.

The annual event, a major highlight of the royal calendar, celebrates the birthday of the reigning monarch in the UK and has been held every year for the past 260 years.

She looked graceful in a white chiffon tea dress adorned with blue flowers – a frock she previously donned for the King’s Coronation in May 2023.

Leading celebrity stylist Alex Longmore – who has worked with Joan Collins, Jerry Hall and Louise’s cousin Zara Phillips – said Lady Louise is an ‘English rose that is blossoming’.

She told MailOnline: ‘Lady Louise isn’t trying to make statement, she is aristocratic and not fashion conscious.

‘It is intimidating stepping out as a member of the royal family and she has been doing it tactfully with a slow progression as she gains confidence.’