The Princess of Wales is "not going to buckle" after the recent photo editing controversy, a royal author has claimed.
She might not have made an official public appearance for months, but in recent weeks more scrutiny than ever has been directed towards the future Queen. Kate underwent abdominal surgery in January and after leaving hospital she’s been recovering at home at Adelaide Cottage. She returned to social media with her first personal message of the year on Mother’s Day alongside a photo of her with Prince George, Charlotte and Louis.
However, the special moment was somewhat overshadowed by the withdrawal of the image by several picture agencies citing concerns. Kate issued a personal apology for any confusion caused, admitting she does "occasionally experiment with editing". Now royal author Robert Jobson has expressed his belief that Kate won’t "buckle" amid the controversy.
Speaking to Hello!, Robert - whose new biography, Catherine, Princess of Wales, is available to pre-order now - suggested that people might mistake Kate’s kindness for her being "weak".
"Kate is somebody who has inner strength and is steely behind the smile… Just because Kate is a nice person, and a decent person, doesn't mean she's a weak person," he claimed.
The royal author went on to reflect on everything that the Princess of Wales is handling right now and stated that in light of how she’s able to balance it all, she won’t "buckle" now over a photo.
He said, "She's an intelligent, independent woman who's got three kids and carries out a full schedule of work and is recuperating from serious surgery. So, with all these things going on, she is not going to buckle at this."
Meanwhile, Editor-in-Chief of Majesty magazine, Ingrid Seward told the publication that Kate has "always been strong and determined" and is "certainly no pushover". The immense global attention that the editing of the Mother’s Day photo attracted is something that the Princess of Wales would likely not have anticipated and it was very significant that she returned to social media to take responsibility for it.
At the time it was reported that Kate was deeply "upset" about what had happened and according to The Times, it's understood had wanted to "own up" as she believed "honesty was the best policy". The Princess of Wales’s ethos about doing the right thing is something that she touched upon in her engagement interview back in 2010.
Asked about how she handles negativity towards her and her family, Kate thoughtfully responded, "I think, the people around home are very supportive to us and those are the people who really matter to us, our close friends and close family and I think if they feel you are doing the right thing you can only be true to yourself."
The Princess added, "You sort of have to ignore a lot of what's said, obviously take it on board, but you have to be yourself really and that's how I have stuck by it really."
So it seems that even from the beginning Kate had a very considerate and measured approach in the face of criticism. This will likely be standing her in good stead following the photo editing controversy as the Princess of Wales continues to recover ahead of her return to public duties.
