Kate Middleton at 40: 5 things to know about the Duchess of Cambridge
Kate turns 40: Kate Middleton, who has been the Duchess of Cambridge for more than a decade, turned 40 on Sunday. (Geoff Pugh/Pool Photo via AP, File)
By Bob D'Angelo, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Kate Middleton turns 40 on Sunday, and the Duchess of Cambridge has always remained proper and immaculately dressed in the public eye as she travels the world with Prince William, who is second in line to the throne of the United Kingdom. There is no hint of scandal hovering around Kate as she dotes on her three children and does charitable work.
“This is the woman who was the commoner who married into the royal family and who has not tripped up, not caused any embarrassment,” Katie Nicholl, author of “Kate: The Future Queen,” told The Associated Press. “It’s not been an easy year, and yet somehow Kate seems to be a bit of a beacon in all of this.’’
She and William were married on April 29, 2011, at Westminster Abbey in London. The couple’s first son, Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge, was born July 22, 2013. Their daughter, Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge, was born on May 2, 2015. Their youngest child, Prince Louis Arthur Charles of Cambridge, was born April 23, 2018.
Here are five things to know about Kate Middleton.
Who is she?
Kate Middleton was born on Jan. 9, 1982, in Reading, a county of Berkshire. Her given name is Catherine Elizabeth Middleton. Catherine is the eldest of three children of Michael and Carole Middleton; her siblings are Philippa (Pippa) and James.
Her parents, Carole and Michael, met at British Airways, The New York Times reported. Carole Middleton was a flight attendant, while Michael Middleton was a flight dispatcher, respectively. According to a chart printed in The Times of London, Carole Middleton’s father was a builder and her mother was a store clerk.
The Middletons moved to Jordan when Kate was 2 years old because of her father’s work, according to the AP. They returned to England in 1986.
Carole Middleton’s great-grandfather worked in the village of Hetton-le-Hole in a coal mine. It belonged to the Bowes-Lyon family -- one of whose descendants would go on to become William’s great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.
What is her title?
When Prince William married Kate in 2011, he was given the title of Duke of Cambridge by his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II. This made Kate Middleton the Duchess of Cambridge.
Kate’s full title in the United Kingdom is Her Royal Highness, Princess William, Duchess of Cambridge, Countess of Strathearn, Lady Carrickfergus, according to Prestige. The reason her official title has “Princess William” and not her own name is because of royal protocol, which stipulates that only those born as princesses can be styled by their own name.
Then, why was William’s mother, Diana Spencer, referred to as “Princess Diana” even though she was not born into the royal family? According to several British publications, the late Princess Diana got the title from the people and the media because they admired her immensely. Her official title was Diana, Princess of Wales, which she received upon marriage to Charles, Prince of Wales.
Education
Kate graduated from the University of St. Andrews in 2005 with a degree in History of Art, according to the BBC.
Before that, she enrolled at St. Andrew’s School in Pangbourne in September 1986, according to her official biography. She remained there until July 1995. After that, she attended the Marlborough College in Wiltshire and studied chemistry, biology and art. She was an athlete, competing in tennis, hockey and netball, and the high jump in track.
After leaving the college in July 2000, the duchess studied at the British Institute in Florence, Italy, then studied in a Raleigh International program in Chile. She also crewed on Round the World Challenge boats.
Kate met Prince William in 2001 when they were both studying at the University of St. Andrews.
First friends and then housemates with two other students, William and Kate became romantically linked around 2004. The British tabloids dubbed her “Waity Katie” for her patience during their courtship, according to the AP.
Loves photography
The official site of The Royal Family describes the duchess as a “keen photographer, and an honorary member of the Royal Photographic Society”.
Kate became the first Royal Patron of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in 2018. She has also been a patron of the National Portrait Gallery since 2012.
Kate took a photograph of her youngest child, Prince Louis, sitting on the lap of Princess Charlotte, which was taken at the family’s Kensington Palace residence. It was shared on the official social media handles of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The first official photo of Princess Charlotte on the lap of her brother Prince George was also taken by Kate.
She has also taken photographs of Princess Charlotte’s first day at school and Prince Louis taking his first baby steps.
Allergic to horses
The duchess is a royal family member who has never been seen on horseback. Marcia Moody, the author of “Kate: A Biography,” told Town & Country that the duchess never learned how to ride when she was young.
“Kate doesn’t ride, purely because didn’t do it growing up. William and Harry were taught from an early age, but the only time they ride now is for polo -- they don’t go off on hacks like the queen always has,” Moody told the publication.
According to a Reader’s Digest story in 2009, Kate told Australian author Kathy Lette that she is allergic to horses. People reported in 2011 that the Duchess was working to overcome that allergy.
Clarisa Ru, wife of Santa Barbara Polo Club president Wesley Ru, told the publication that the duchess was working to overcome the allergy.
“I asked if she was into polo before she met William. She said no,” Ru told the magazine. “But she’s been riding horses for a while and she hopes to play polo one day. She said ‘I’m actually allergic to them, but the more time one spends with them the less allergic you become.’”
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton as a 5-year-old. (Middleton Family/Clarence House/Getty Images )
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton, back row, third from left, is pictured in a tennis team photo during her time as a pupil at St Andrew's School in Pangbourne, England, where she attended from 1986 to 1995. (St Andrew's School - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton and her father, Michael Middleton, before her graduation from the University of St. Andrews in June 2005. (Indigo/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton does some shopping during the Gatcombe Park Festival of British Eventing in August 2005. (Anwar Hussein/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Prince Harry, left, Prince William, center, and Kate Middleton cheer on the English team during the RBS Six Nations Championship match between England and Italy in 2007. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton takes part in a training session with The Sisterhood cross channel rowing team on the Thames in August 2007. (Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton and Prince William announced their engagement in November 2010. ( Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend the Calgary Stampede in 2011. (Samir Hussein/WireImage)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton, right, sits with her sister, Pippa Middleton in the Royal Box during the 2012 Wimbledon men's final between Roger Federer and Andy Murray. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton plays hockey with the GB hockey teams at the Riverside Arena in 2012. (Chris Jackson - WPA Pool /Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton and Queen Elizabeth II enjoy a children's sporting event in 2012. (Phil Noble - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge, depart The Lindo Wing with their newborn son, Prince George, at St Mary's Hospital on July 23, 2013, in London. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images) (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton waves her wand and casts a spell on the set used to depict Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter Films during the Inauguration Of Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden in 2013. (Paul Rogers - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton tries her hand at cricket during the countdown to the ICC Cricket World Cup on April 14, 2014, in Christchurch, New Zealand. (Joseph Johnson/Getty Images for ICC Cricket World Cup)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry spearheaded a campaign called Heads Together in 2016. (Nicky J Sims/Getty Images for Royal Foundation)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge pose with Prince Louis after his birth in 2018. (Samir Hussein/WireImage)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle attend Wimbledon in 2018. (Karwai Tang/WireImage)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years. Princess Charlotte arrives for her first day of school, with her brother Prince George and her parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, at Thomas's Battersea in London on Sept. 5, 2019, in London. (Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visit Badshahi Mosque during their royal tour of Pakistan in October 2019. (Owen Humphreys - Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge enjoy some sports during a 2020 trip to Ireland. ( Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, center, is flanked by Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, on the balcony overlooking the Cenotaph during the National Service of Remembrance on Nov. 14, 2021, in London. (Richard Pohle - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton, left, chats with U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu as they return to the LTA's National Tennis Centre for The Homecoming on Sept. 24, 2021 in London. (Chris Jackson/Getty Images for LTA)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge take part in a land yachting session on West Sands beach in May 2021. (Max Mumby, pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Kate Middleton tries her hand at archery during a 2021 visit to Wolverhampton, England. (Jacob King - WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton Through the Years SANDRINGHAM, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 15: William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales, look at floral tributes, following the death of Britain's Queen Elizabeth, at Sandringham Estate on September 15, 2022 in Sandringham, England. (Photo Toby Melville - WPA Pool/Getty Images) (WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton Through the Years LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 19: Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales is driven down The Mall after the funeral for HM Queen Elizabeth II's funeral on September 19, 2022 in London, England. Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor was born in Bruton Street, Mayfair, London on 21 April 1926. She married Prince Philip in 1947 and ascended the throne of the United Kingdom and Commonwealth on 6 February 1952 after the death of her Father, King George VI. Queen Elizabeth II died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on September 8, 2022, and is succeeded by her eldest son, King Charles III. (Photo by Tom Jenkins - WPA Pool/Getty Images) (WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton Through the Years CARRICKFERGUS, NORTHERN IRELAND - OCTOBER 06: Catherine, Princess of Wales pictured during her visit to Carrickfergus on October 6, 2022 in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales are on a one day visit to the province. (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images) (Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)
Kate Middleton Through the Years LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 13: Catherine, Princess of Wales plays boccia as she attends the 10th Anniversary Celebration of Coach Core at Copper Box Arena on October 13, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Heathcliff O'Malley - WPA Pool/Getty Images) (WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Photos: Kate Middleton through the years Catherine, Princess of Wales attends the Christmas Morning Service at Sandringham Church on December 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk. (Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images) (Stephen Pond/Getty Images)