Since the early noughties, when she first started dating Prince William, Kate Middleton has been one of the most photographed and talked about women in the world. Whether it's her sense of style, her marriage, her charity work - or simply the world's ongoing obsession with her hair, sigh - Kate continues to fascinate the nation.
Of course, the Princess of Wales has certainly hit headlines in recent week following her photoshop scandal. After taking a break from the public eye while she recovers from planned abdominal surgery, a photoshopped photograph of Kate gave way to a whirlwind of conspiracy theories and memes.
But how much do you actually know about the Princess of Wales? From her family background to her university days, motherhood to royal life, we've rounded up everything you could ever need to know about Kate Middleton below (including her height, and what Netflix's The Crown did and didn't get right.)
What is Kate Middleton’s date of birth?
Catherine 'Kate' Middleton was born on 9 January, 1982, making her currently 42 years old (and a reliable and hardworking Capricorn.) Kate was the first child for parents Michael and Carole Middleton, born at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading, before being christened at St Andrew’s Church in Berkshire on 20 June, 1982.
What is Kate Middleton's parents' net worth?
At the time of Kate Middleton and Prince William's wedding in 2011, Carole and Michael Middleton's business, Party Pieces, was said to be worth around £30m. As of 2023, the self-made millionaires are thought to be worth more than £54m between them.
What was Kate Middleton's parents' business?
The Middleton family business, Party Pieces, was a popular mail order party supply and decoration business. Launched back in 1987, Carole Middleton ran the business up until last year - when it was revealed the company had found itself over £2.5m in debt. After a report filed to Companies House revealed that 'rescuing the company is not achievable,' the company was sold in part to Teddy Tastic Bear Company for £180,000.
Who are Kate Middleton's brother and sister?
Kate is the eldest of three children, having two younger siblings in James and Philippa (Pippa) Middleton.
Kate's sister Pippa Middleton, 40, went viral at the Royal couple's 2011 wedding over her infamous bridesmaids dress. On 20 May, 2017, Pippa married James Matthews - the elder brother of former Made in Chelsea star Spencer Matthews. The couple have three children together: Arthur, five, Grace, three, and Rose, one.
Entrepreneur James Middleton, 36, married finance analyst Alizee Thevenet in 2021, welcoming their first child, a boy named Inigo, last October.
How tall is Kate Middleton?
We know that the Princess of Wales is partial to a high-heel, but when she forgoes them, she's thought to stand at 5ft 9ins. However, there have been some discrepancies about this, with some outlets reporting that Kate is around two inches smaller.
Where did Kate go to school?
During the period May 1984 to September 1986, the Middleton family lived in Amnam, Jordan, as Kate’s father Michael worked for British Airways. Whilst there, Kate attended an English speaking nursery.
When the family returned to Berkshire in 1986, four-year-old Kate attended St Andrew’s Schoo, before enrolling at Marlborough College, a boarding school in Wiltshire. It's thought that she gained As in both Maths and Art at A Level, and a B in English. The future Royal then studied History of Art at St Andrew’s University until 2005. As The Crown showed, this is where she first met William.
Kate’s career
Kate is renowned for her impeccable taste, which is why it’s hardly surprising to learn that she once worked within the fashion industry. In November 2006, the Princess joined Jigsaw as an Accessories Buyer, where she worked part time for a year. She also worked until 2011 at her parents' business, Party Pieces.
The business was most certainly a family affair, with younger sister Pippa also working at the company following her graduation from the University of Edinburgh with a degree in English Literature. While working at Party Pieces, Kate was responsible for catalogue design, marketing and photography. The company was sold in May 2023 after collapsing into administration.
Did Kate Middleton follow Prince William to university?
One of the big storylines in the sixth and final season of The Crown is Prince William and Kate Middleton's courtship at St Andrews University, with Meg Bellamy playing a young Kate Middleton and Ed McVey playing a young Prince William.
In the final season, we see a teenage Kate cutting out pictures of Prince William after a brief encounter with him and his mother, saying he had 'kind eyes'. Carole Middleton later tunes in to the radio to find out where Prince William was going to university, encouraging Kate to change her plans and apply to St Andrews to study the same course. The show also shows Carole planning for her daughter to do the same volunteering programme as Prince William in her gap year – something he had publicly announced he was doing in a press conference.
It is true that Kate had accepted a place and even arranged accommodation at the University of Edinburgh before pulling out and applying to St Andrews. She also did the same Raleigh International volunteering programme in Patagonia as Prince William did, just a few weeks apart.
But while we don't know the ins and outs of Kate's university life, we do have a few pictures of some fashion choices from her earlier days.
Prince William and Kate Middleton's relationship timeline
Though it's hard to find a definitive timeline of Kate's relationship with Prince William, we know that Kate first met William back in 2001, when the couple were both studying at the University of St Andrews (Kate for a degree in History of Art, and William for a degree in Geography). The pair moved into a student house together during their second year, and although it was never publicly confirmed, they're thought to have started dating a year later.
It was reported in April 2007 that Kate and William had separated during a holiday in Zermatt, Switzerland, with the intense media interest in their relationship assumed to be a major factor. The pair soon made up, however. Kate was photographed at the Concert for Diana in July of the same year, sat just a few rows from William. Very subtle, guys.
The following year, Kate attended the RAF ceremony in which William was presented with his 'wings' (confirming him as a qualified pilot). Two years later, the couple moved in together in Anglesey, close to William's RAF base.
Prince William proposed to Kate in October 2010 during a ten-day trip to Kenya. The engagement was officially announced by Clarence House on 16 November.
William proposed to his bride with his late mother Princess Diana's engagement ring.
The iconic Ceylon sapphire ring was designed by Garrard & Co, and set in 18 carat white gold. It features 14 solitaire diamonds which surround the twelve carat centre stone. In the press conference that followed William and Kate's engagement announcement, the Prince explained that giving his fiancée his mother's ring was a way of keeping Diana's memory alive. 'She’s not going to be around to share in any of the fun and excitement of it, so this is my way of keeping her sort of close to it,’ he said.
This isn't the only sentimental piece of jewellery William has gifted his wife. Kate's ring collection features a platinum eternity band, thought to be a present from her husband to mark the arrival of their first child, and a Victorian rose gold band which dates back to their university years, set with pearls and garnets (which are both William and Kate's birthstones).
April 2011: The royal wedding
The couple married on 29 April 2011 in Westminster Abbey, with the world tuning in to watch the event. The day was declared a public holiday in the United Kingdom to celebrate.
It's thought that approximately 300 million people across the globe tuned in to watch the nuptials take place - with royal fans desperate to know everything from Kate's wedding dress designer to perfume of the day.
Kate's wedding dress
Royal wedding dresses have the power to change bridal trends around the world: just look at how Princess Diana's flouncy Emanuel gown set the agenda for Eighties brides. As the royal wedding loomed, media speculation about which designer Kate would choose on the big day grew to fever pitch. It wasn't until Kate stepped out of the wedding car that it was revealed that Sarah Burton, creative director at Alexander McQueen, had designed the gown.
Kate's wedding dress was made from ivory satin with long lace sleeves and floral motifs, which were cut from machine-made lace before being appliqued onto silk net. Burton's design received global acclaim, with the dress later exhibited at Buckingham Palace during the summer of 2011. Designer Vera Wang said: 'Diana's dress had a sense of innocence, whimsy, almost storybook romance. In contrast Catherine's gown was about way more than simply the dress. Sarah Burton channelled a new take on classicism for a modern-day bride who will one day be Queen.'
The gown also gained the approval of fellow designer Karl Lagerfeld, who told France 2 Television, 'The dress is classic and goes very well in the Westminster decor. It almost reminds me of [Queen] Elizabeth's wedding, the royal weddings in the 1950's. The proportion of the train is good. The lace is very pretty. I like the veil a lot.'
According to the Daily Mail, the Princess was also rumoured to have done her own make-up for the big day after taking private lessons from London-based make-up artist Arabella Preston.
July 2013: Kate Middleton and Prince William become parents
Kensington Palace announced that Kate Middleton was expecting her first child back on December 3, 2012. The news was declared before the Princess reached the usual 12-week mark, after Kate was rushed to hospital. It was later revealed that she was suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, of which the NHS describe as 'excessive nausea and vomiting [which] often needs hospital treatment.'
Kate gave birth to the couple's first son, George Alexander Louis, on 22 July 2013 at 4.24 pm. The same easel that announced Prince William's birth back in 1982 was used to announce the arrival of their first child, who is second in line to the throne.
On September 8 2014, Clarence House announced that the Prince and Princess of Wales were expecting their second child. Again, the couple declared the news early due to Kate suffering from severe morning sickness for a second time.
Kate gave birth to a daughter on 2 May 2015 at St Mary's hospital, where both Prince William and his son George were born. The couple named their newborn daughter Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, in tribute to her late grandmother Princess Diana and her late great-grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II.
And Princess Charlotte's birth undoubtedly marked a monumentous change in royal history. Soon after Prince William and Kate Middleton wed, the 'Succession to the Crown Act' was altered - meaning that princes no longer take precedence over their sisters. Charlotte is now third in line, sitting behind her elder brother, Prince George.
In September 2017, the palace announced that Kate was pregnant with her third child, revealing that she would have to cancel a handful of engagements due to hyperemesis gravidarum. On 23rd April 2018, the Prince and Princess of Wales welcomedPrince Louis Arthur Charles, who, like his elder siblings, was born in the Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital.
May 2017: Kate appears at Pippa Middleton's wedding
After her younger sister took on bridesmaid duties at the royal wedding, Kate Middleton was of course on the scene when Pippa tied the knot with James Matthews on 22 May, 2017. Kate was not a bridesmaid however, as she didn't wish to distract any attention from her younger sister on her big day. Instead, she served as an unofficial maid of honour at the ceremony, helping keep the unruly young bridal party (which included Prince George and Princess Charlotte) in check. Kate called upon her go-to designer, Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, for her wedding outfit: a dusty pink gown with capped sleeves and a subtle peplum detail).
But Kate made sure to gave sister Pippa a memorable wedding gift. The Princess of Wales sketched a drawing of St Marks' Church in Englefield, which was printed on the front of the guests' order of service booklets.
September 2022: Kate becomes Princess of Wales
Long known as the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate and William took on the title of Prince and Princess of Wales in September 2022, following the late Queen Elizabeth's death.
Kate Middleton's style
Where would we begin with Kate Middleton's best fashion moments? Perhaps with her impeccable red carpet style: her sequinned Jenny Packham gown, or the off-the-shoulder McQueen style she wore to the 2017 BAFTA ceremony? Maybe a simple shift dress, or one of her many colourful coat dresses? Or perhaps the blue Issa wrap dress worn for her engagement announcement, the one that's since been reissued in a range of colours and as part of numerous brand collaborations.
There's no denying the sartorial influence that the Princess of Wales possesses. Dubbed the 'Kate Effect', her royal wardrobe has inspired cult items to sell out within minutes, whether they are from high street brands (Kate tends to favour LK Bennett, Zara and Reiss) or higher end labels such as Mulberry or Self Portrait. Her influence on fashion even led one brand in particular into financial trouble following an influx of pre-orders.
The Princess of Wales is also renowned for repeating her outfits, a sartorial trick Princess Diana once played. Indeed, it seems that the Kate often pays sartorial homage to Diana often referencing some of her most iconic outfits and frequently donning one of her most cherished brands, Catherine Walker.
Kate has even worn some of the late Diana's accessories including the iconic 'Cambridge Lover's Knot' tiara. The 19-tiered diamond crown was loaned to Princess Diana by the Queen as a wedding gift back in 1981, and though she chose not to wear it on her wedding day (opting instead for the Spencer Tiara in a nod to her family), it become one of her favourite pieces. Kate has since donned the glittery piece for many royal occasions (she is the Princess of Wales, after all).
And Kate's hair is another hot topic. Though she still reportedly frequents Richard Ward's Chelsea salon for colour, the woman tasked with tending to her glossy chestnut lengths on the regular is Amanda Cook Tucker. She has a long history with the royals, having cut William and Harry's hair when they were youngsters, and has worked with Kate since 2012. It seems that she's practically one of the family: she was among the first people to meet each of Kate's three children (gotta get that Lindo Wing blow-dry perfect...) and was even introduced to Prince George ahead of his grandparents Michael and Carole Middleton.