Being part of one of the most famous and influential families in the world, it’s no surprise that the Prince and Princess of Wales receive a lot of attention from both the public and the media.
Ever since the world learned they were dating, all eyes have been on them.
However, no matter how picture-perfect their relationship seems, they have had their ups and downs throughout the years.
Speaking about the time they first met through mutual friends, Kate recalled: “I actually went bright red when I met you and scuttled off feeling very shy about meeting you. William wasn’t there for quite a bit of the time initially, he wasn’t there from Fresher’s Week, so it did take a bit of time for us to get to know each other.”
According to the documentary The Day Will and Kate Got Married, which aired in April 2021, the two were just good friends at the beginning, but one night changed it all. During a student fashion show, Kate wore a sheer dress that wooed the Prince, and the rest is history.
“A switch had been flicked, he suddenly saw her in a different light, and I really believe that was the turning point in their relationship,” Vanity Fair’s royal correspondent, Katie Nicholl, said in the documentary.
As reported by The Telegraph, Prince William said: “We were friends for over a year first and it just sort of blossomed from then on. We just spent more time with each other and had a good giggle, and realized we shared the same interests.”
Their love deepened, and they garnered significant media attention. Kate even made a public appearance with the Royals and attended the Sovereign’s Parade at the Royal Military Academy, in which William participated, along with her family.
As everyone believed a royal marriage was just around the corner, the two split in 2007. Recalling the time of their breakup, both Kate and William claimed it was actually good for them because they got to “find themselves.” Kate even said that “you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you’re younger,” as per The Telegraph.
The two got back together in 2008, and William proposed to Kate in 2010 during a trip to Kenya with his late mother’s engagement ring.
Today, after three children and years together, William and Kate’s relationship is as strong as ever.
In 2021, royal expert Duncan Larcombe spoke with OK! Magazine about how Prince William and Kate ensure quality time together and what their date nights look like.
“Kate and William’s relationship blossomed when they were at St. Andrew’s University, doing normal student-y things and just enjoying each other’s company,” Duncan said.
“While the doting grandparents do the babysitting, William and Kate have been able to slip to the local pub for a night out, just the two of them,” the royal expert explained.
“I’m told that they did this to celebrate William’s birthday in June [in 2021]. Another favorite of the couple is for William to cook bolognese for Kate, and they sit on the sofa watching TV. It reminds them of their student days when they first met and their enduring romance began,” the expert added.
Recently, the royals attended the wedding of the Prince of Jordan. Kate wore a beautiful pink dress by the Lebanese designer Elie Saab, and the bride wore a wedding gown by the same designer. The newlyweds paid tribute to William’s grandmother, the late Queen Elizabeth II, when they left the wedding for the reception in a 1984 Range Rover, specially customized for the queen’s visit to Jordan in 1984.
The day seemed impeccable, but something happened that caught the attention of many who branded William as ‘rude.’ Namely, he greeted the bride, and when Kate did the same and took some time to chat with her, William urged her to be quick by saying, “chop, chop.”
The author of Gilded Youth: An Intimate History of Growing Up in the Royal Family spoke to Fox and explained that the royal couple inevitably have days when they are “really, really cross with each other,” as well as days when they don’t even talk to each other.
Just like every other couple out there, William and Kate have their differences.
“From people I’ve spoken to, it’s not as placid. It’s not as perfect as it might seem,” royal author Tom Quinn told Express. “But William adopts the manners and the way of behaving of his grandmother, and Kate is very good at not complaining and adapting.”
He continued: “Both of them have stuck to the thing that made the late Queen such a remarkable monarch. They very, very rarely complain. And when they do, it’s always in measured terms.”
Further, Quinn said the royal’s marriage isn’t all “sweetness.”
“Kate might seem to be a very calm person, and William also. But it’s not always true. Because the big stress for William and Kate is that they’re constantly surrounded by [palace aides]. It’s like a Jane Austen novel,” he claimed.
“Kate is very much the calm one,” he added. “William is the one who’s a bit hotheaded. We see an example of that in Harry’s book… But Kate is very level-headed. She’s the one who will pour oil on troubled waters and go, ‘Let’s not stir things up.’”
