COURAGEOUS KATE
How she’s saving the monarchy, plus a decade of love with Wills
It was subtle but incredibly significant – a thoughtful gesture by a woman who has proved by her gentle and generous actions that one day she is going to make a wonderful Queen consort.
Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, helped to break the ice between her husband Prince William and his brother Prince Harry, who have been feuding for several years, in the moments after the funeral for their grandfather Prince Philip.
“She showed herself to be a beacon of light in the darkest of hours,” says royal writer Sarah Vine.
As the small group of royal mourners left St George’s Chapel, Windsor, after the service, Kate, 39, turned to her brother-in-law Harry and started
talking to him. They were then joined by William, and as they began walking up the hill towards Windsor Castle, Kate discreetly dropped back, leaving the brothers to walk together and hopefully start on the path to reconciliation.
The relationship between the siblings had deteriorated so much – especially in the wake of the interview Harry and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, gave to Oprah Winfrey – that for the funeral procession to the chapel, William, 38, and Harry, 36, were separated by their cousin Peter Phillips, 43. According to one source, the brothers had only communicated via text since Harry arrived back in the UK.
Kate could have been forgiven for steering clear of Harry, given that it’s only been seven weeks since he sat next to Meghan while she told
Oprah that Kate had made her cry in the lead up to their
‘She showed herself to be a beacon of light in the darkest of hours’
2018 wedding.
Whatever her personal feelings about her sister-in-law, Kate showed immense dignity as she reunited the warring brothers.
“She would have been perfectly entitled to give Harry a wide berth, not just because of the Oprah interview, but because the whole thing has been so deeply upsetting for William,” says a royal expert. “But instead of shirking from the challenge, she met it head-on. Whatever her own feelings about what was said about her in the interview, she put that aside for the sake of the greater good, and she did it with effortless charm and generosity of spirit.”
Meanwhile, author Phil Dampier, who has written a series of books on the royals, says Kate really came of age at Philip’s funeral. “She comforted Prince Charles with an affectionate kiss and hug, brought William and Harry together and very much gave a quiet dignity to proceedings. Kate is maturing rapidly and wants to do what’s best for the royal family.”
Phil believes Kate will take on
‘She would have been perfectly entitled to give Harry a wide berth’
even more responsibility within The Firm now that the Queen may possibly step back even more from public life. “She has picked up many of the Queen’s qualities of tolerance and pragmatism, and like the Queen, she doesn’t hold grudges or seek revenge.
“Kate realises that the Queen needs her and William more than ever and she will do all she can to support her.”
After Philip retired from public life, he spent a lot of time at Wood Farm on the Sandringham estate, near Kate and William’s country home, Anmer Hall. Kate often met up with her grandfather-in-law, talking to him about what her role will be once William becomes king. As the longestserving consort to a British monarch, Philip was well placed to hand out advice.
His words of wisdom, along with her natural class, sincerity, kindness and sense of duty, mean that when the time does come for William to take the throne, he will have the very best support from his wife.
The expert continues, “Kate understands, as Philip did before her, that being a consort in the British royal family may be a long, hard road to walk, but if you take it one step at a time, and show yourself to be calm and wise, you can be the rock on which a great institution stands firm.”