The publication of the photos caused quite the backlash.

Media representatives in France are set to go on trial today over the publication of long-lens topless photos of Kate Middleton. The Duchess of Cambridge was sunbathing on holiday in the south of France with husband Prince William when the photos were taken in 2012. They were published by glossy French magazine Closer and regional paper La Provence in September 2012, prompting a "furious" reaction from the royal family, according to Agence France Presse. They were quick to launch legal proceedings after the publication of the photos. A lawyer for the family argued that "the photos were particularly distressing for the couple as it brought back painful memories of William's late mother Princess Diana's death in a car crash in Paris in 1997 while being pursued by paparazzi." Laurence Pieau, the editor of Closer in France, Ernesto Mauri, chief executive of the Mondadori group which owns the magazine, Cyril Moreau and Dominique Jacovides, two Paris-based agency photographers suspected of having taken the topless photos, will appear on charges of invasion of privacy and complicity. La Provence's publishing director at the time, Marc Auburtin and photographer Valerie Suau will also go on trial. The royal couple is not expected to attend the trial in Nanterre, Paris.