Kate Middleton and William: Expert discusses temporary break-up
It is the Duchess of Cambridge’s 39th birthday this week, a nice moment of celebration for the family. However, Kate’s birthday has not always been a positive time for her relationship with William. On her 25th birthday, there was much speculation over whether the prince would propose to his then-girlfriend, resulting in Kate being harassed by paparazzi outside her flat.
What made matters worse was she and William were actually going through a difficult patch, and actually temporarily split up just weeks later, in March.
They eventually reconciled after just a few months and were married four years after that, but it would have been very difficult at the time.
Royal author Jessica Jayne claimed Kate felt “humiliated” by William’s partying habits and felt the need to temporarily call time on their relationship.
In her book ‘The Duchess of Cambridge: How Kate Middleton Became A Future Queen’, she claimed that, three years before their engagement, Kate quit her job at fashion house Jigsaw because she needed “some time to think about her relationship with William”.
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Kate was “humiliated” after pictures of William partying surfaced in newspapers (Image: GETTY)
Kate leaving her flat on her 25th birthday (Image: GETTY)
Ms Jayne posed in her 2012 biography that Kate was doubting her boyfriend when she learned he was going clubbing with his friends instead of seeing her.
What was particularly hurtful was William was seen to have “flirted and danced with a girl” while in London club Boujis.
The couple decided to “take a break” in early 2007 when a picture of the prince getting close to two girls in a nightclub was published in the tabloids.
Mr Jayne said: “Kate was further humiliated when a photo of William with two girls was published in the tabloids.”
William and Kate at a rugby match in February 2007 (Image: GETTY)
William’s behaviour was in stark contrast to all the claims he was readying himself to propose to Kate.
Despite the split, it was not long before the couple reunited at the Concert for Diana in July 2007.
William whisked her off on holiday and things were soon back on track.
However, she did have to wait another three years before he proposed.
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William and Harry dancing at the Concert for Diana in July 2007 (Image: GETTY)
Kate was two rows and to the right of William and Harry at the Concert for Diana (Image: GETTY)
In November 2010, Kate and William announced their engagement, with Kate showing off Princess Diana’s iconic sapphire engagement ring on her finger.
They tied the knot the following year and have now been married for nearly a decade.
Kate will spend her 39th birthday in lockdown, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced yesterday that the country will once again shut down to stop the spread of coronavirus.
Over the past year, the Royal Family have had to adapt quickly to coronavirus restrictions, cancelling their in-person engagements and instead using video calls to connect to people.
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It is expected that Kate will release a photograph to mark her birthday this Saturday, as she did with all three of her children’s lockdown birthdays last year.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have centred their work this year around topical issues such as thanking NHS staff and key workers amid this terrible pandemic.
However, they have also continued to push on with their own projects, such as Kate’s early years work and William’s environmental efforts.
Last year the Duke launched the Earthshot Prize with David Attenborough, a huge £50million initiative that will reward fantastic new ideas on how to resolve some of the world’s most pressing environmental problems.
The Cambridges’ Christmas card this year (Image: Matt Porteous / The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge/Kensington Palace via Getty Images)
This week also marks the one-year anniversary of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s announcement to step down as senior royals.
It caused a rift at the time, not only because it was not cleared by the Queen before it was released, but because the timing of it was seen as inconsiderate to Kate.
The Megxit announcement was the day before Kate’s birthday and completely overshadowed it, contributing to William’s outrage over the situation.
