Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Jennifer Newton

Kate Middleton's silent gesture at memorial showed deep respect for Queen

During her time in the Royal Family, the Duchess of Cambridge appears to have struck up a sweet bond with the Queen.

Despite the age difference, Kate seemingly has a lot in common with her husband Prince William's grandmother including photography and dogs.

And it appears that Kate was keen to show her deep respect for Her Majesty at Prince Philip's memorial service last week - but she did it in a silent yet powerful way.

Royal fans spotted that as the Queen entered Westminster Abbey for the service last week, Kate performed a deep yet discreet curtsy towards Her Majesty.

Kate Middleton at Prince Philip's memorial service last week (Getty Images)

Footage from the service shows Kate bobbing down to perform the gesture as the Queen passed by her as she walked to her seat.

Shortly afterwards, as the Queen passed by Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, and her daughter Lady Louise Windsor, they too curtsied towards her.

However, not all royal women were seen performing the gesture for the Queen as she entered the Abbey for the memorial service.

Kate greets the Queen as she enters Westminster Abbey for Prince Philip's memorial service (BBC)
Kate performs a curtsy for the Queen (BBC)

Love the royals? Sign up for the Mirror's daily newsletter to get all the latest news on the Queen, Charles, Kate, Wills, Meghan, Harry and the rest of The Firm. Click here to sign up.

And the rules surrounding who should curtsy and when may explain this.

They are only performed to the monarch on their "first meeting of the day" - this means it's likely that Kate, Sophie and Louise hadn't seen the Queen that day before they curtsied.

Therefore it is also likely that the other royal women didn't curtsy as they had already seen the Queen earlier that day.

As well as attending the service with husband William, Kate also brought her two oldest children Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

William, Kate, George and Charlotte leave the memorial service (Ian Vogler / Daily Mirror)

The youngsters walked into Westminster Abbey with their parents before taking their seats in the row behind the Queen and Prince Charles.

The eight-year-old future king and his six-year-old sister looked slightly nervous when they got out of the car and walked towards the building, however some reassuring words from mum Kate saw Charlotte start smiling.

According to lip reader Jacqui Press, Kate whispered to a very serious and nervous-looking Charlotte, "you can smile", reports MailOnline.

The princess, who was holding her mum's hand, then broke into a big smile.

Meanwhile, William held George's hand and gave him some instructions, saying: "Let's go in". He then guided his son toward the dignitaries and introduced them.

George – who will one day be monarch – and Charlotte’s appearance marked a key moment in their public lives, being the first major televised church service they have attended.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.