We know that, in the midst of their unfortunate dual cancer diagnoses, King Charles and the Princess of Wales have reportedly never been closer—but, as today is Trooping the Colour and monarchs are on the brain (it is, after all, the annual birthday parade for the sovereign), what was Kate’s relationship like with the late Queen Elizabeth?
The Daily Mail reports that Kate saw Her late Majesty as “a guide” after Kate married into the royal family in 2011, and that, for her part, the late Queen grew to really trust Kate, with the two sharing a “grandmotherly bond,” the outlet reports.
Speaking in the new documentary Kate & The Queen: A Special Relationship, Richard Kay of The Daily Mail elaborated on the special bond shared between the two women: “The Queen grew to trust Kate,” he said. “I don’t think she really trusted anyone on first impression. We’re all performing the same show—the show is supporting the Queen. But with Kate and the Queen, it grew deeper than that. There was a real grandmotherly affection between the two.”
Queen Elizabeth died on September 8, 2022, at 96 years old; the two met when Kate was still a student at the University of St. Andrews, which is where she met her future husband, Prince William, in 2001. “I think the Queen saw her strength and saw that she is a caring person who had this amazing affiliation to duty,” said Ingrid Seward, royal biographer and editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine. “I think Kate would have really appreciated the kindness and attention the Queen had given to her, and she knows better than anyone how busy the Queen is. She put time aside to make Kate feel appreciated.”
That bond only strengthened after Kate welcomed her three children Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, and “made a great effort to involve Her late Majesty in the children’s lives,” The Daily Mail writes.
“It’s very special, us having a new little girl to the family,” Kate herself said in the 2016 documentary The Queen at 90, referring, of course, to Charlotte, who had been born the year prior. “Very lucky that George has got a little sister. The Queen, she was really thrilled that it was a little girl, and I think as soon as we came back here to Kensington [Palace], she was one of our first visitors here.”
One of Charlotte’s middle names pays homage to Elizabeth. (Her full name is Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, paying tribute also to her late grandmother, Princess Diana.) “I think she’s very fond of Charlotte, always watching what she’s up to,” Kate said of the Queen. “George is only two-and-a-half and calls her ‘Gan-Gan.’ She always leaves a little gift or something in their room when we go and stay, and that just shows, I think, her love for her family.”
After Kate officially joined the family in 2011 and subsequently became a working royal, “The Queen was perfectly aware of how daunting it was for an outsider to join the royal family, so they would have had their techniques of making someone look at home,” royal correspondent Simon Vigar said. Fellow royal expert Victoria Murphy added that Kate always described the Queen as a “gentle guidance”: “Right from the beginning, Kate had a lot more in common personality-wise with Elizabeth,” Murphy said. “They have something about them which has that inner poise and the capacity to lead and command respect.”
India McTaggart, who too is a royal correspondent (in McTaggart’s case, for The Telegraph) added “Catherine has said the Queen was very supportive of her as she was undertaking her first engagements without William. I think she influenced her by showing her by example.”
Speaking back in 2016, Kate said that Her late Majesty wasn’t “forceful in her views,” adding “The most memorable engagement for me, I suppose, was an away day to Leicester, and I went without William, so I was rather apprehensive about that,” Kate said. “I think there is a real art to walkabouts. Everyone teases me in the family that I spend far too long chatting, so I think I’ve still got to learn a little bit more and pick up a few more tips, I suppose.”
Of the Queen, Kate said that “She was very supportive. The fact she took the time to make sure that I was happy and looked after for that particular occasion—which probably in everything that she’s doing is a very small element, which just shows how caring she is, really.”
She continued that, of her late grandmother-in-law, “You would expect a lot of grandeur and a lot of fuss, but actually, what really resonates with me is her love for the simple things,” Kate said. “And I think that’s a special quality to have.” Recalling her first Christmas at Sandringham alongside the Queen and the rest of the royal family, she added “I can remember being at Sandringham for the first time at Christmas, and I was worried what to give the Queen as her Christmas present,” Kate said in 2016. “I was thinking, ‘Gosh, what should I give her?’ I thought, ‘I’ll make her something,’ which could have gone horribly wrong, but I decided to make my Granny’s recipe for chutney. I noticed the next day that it was on the table. Such a simple gesture went such a long way for me.”
Kate would no doubt be thrilled to hear that, 13 years in, her marriage to William is often compared to that of the Queen and her husband, Prince Philip, who were married for 73 years before his death in April 2021.
