British royals
Similarities to Queen Mum: Duchess Kate turns 40
Duchess Kate is considered the haven of calm for the British royal family. Photo: Victoria Jones / PA Wire / dpa / Archive
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From “Waity Katie” to the lifeline of the monarchy: The Duchess of Cambridge has gone through an enormous development. Kate has long been considered the haven of calm for the Royal Family. This will also be necessary in 2022.
Catherine Middleton was once above all a style icon, whose look inspires worldwide, and “woman of”. But Duchess Kate has long since gained stature and is no longer automatically mentioned in the same breath as her husband Prince William.
Before her 40th birthday on Sunday (9th January) it rained praise and widespread recognition for appearance and commitment.
Kate plays a central role
The Duchess of Cambridge is the “secret weapon” of the royal family, wrote the royals expert Emily Andrews in the newspaper “The Sun”. The death of Queen’s husband Prince Philip in April 2021 showed that the Golden Age of Queen Elizabeth II (95) was coming to an end. When the Queen dies, Prince William will be heir to the throne. “But Kate’s calm composure signals that the future of the family is in the best of hands,” said Andrews.
But Kate’s central role is no longer all too secret. On Christmas Eve, the ITV station showed a Christmas concert that the daughter-in-law of heir to the throne Prince Charles had organized in memory of the “unsung heroes” of the pandemic. The Duchess picked up the keys herself: In the red dress, she played the piano in public for the first time, as an accompaniment for pop star Tom Walker.
Three children – in addition to Prince George (8), number three in the British line of succession, are Princess Charlotte (6) and Prince Louis (3) – and a lot of commitment to charities with numerous online video calls during the pandemic ensure a busy schedule. There are also public appearances in which Kate can not afford to slip up. She copes with all of this with flying colors, as her observers attest. The “Golden Girl of the Nation” looked like a Hollywood star when it appeared at the cinema premiere of the new James Bond film, wrote Andrews.
The family’s haven of peace
In addition, Kate is considered the family’s haven of peace. It will not be forgotten how she brought her husband William to Prince Harry (37) after Philip’s funeral and thus enabled a truce between the quarreling brothers. The Duchess is said to have a close relationship with her grandma-in-law Elizabeth. The Queen honors Kate’s hard work and quiet restraint. Compared to Harry’s wife, Duchess Meghan, who is blamed in the British tabloids for the Queen’s grandson’s rift with the palace, Kate always does significantly better.
“People love William and Kate,” said former Royals spokeswoman Colleen Harris. “Because they see them as normal people with fairy dust.” Long forgotten the time when Catherine Middleton was mocked by the population as “Waity Katie” – as “waiting Katie” because the couple, who met while studying at the Scottish University of St. Andrews, had been in a relationship for years without William made her a wedding proposal.
Compare with Williams’ great-grandmother
Meanwhile, commentators compare the jubilee with William’s great-grandmother Elizabeth. Kate is said to have strong similarities with the nationwide popular “Queen Mum”, who died in 2002 at the age of 101. She has the same temperament, said her former private secretary Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, who also worked for “Queen Mum”, the newspaper “The Times”. Kate be polite to everyone, take time to talk, and be tough. “She has that queen mother-of-mind feeling that she is there when something needs to be done,” Lowther-Pinkerton said.
2022 will once again be a special year for the Royals. It’s been 70 years since Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne, and big celebrations are planned. But the anniversary threatens to be overshadowed by allegations of abuse against the Queen’s son Prince Andrew, who could be tried in New York. A lot of pressure on the monarchy, the burden also rests on Kate. “In the past 20 years it has established itself as the institution’s lifeline,” said her former advisor, David Manning, of the Times. “It is now central to your future success.”