William of England and Kate Middleton, a decade summed up in ten historic photos and a new one
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were married on April 29 in Westminster. In this time, they have consolidated their image as the future of the British crown
This Thursday, April 29, marks the ten-year anniversary of one of the most followed weddings in the United Kingdom: that of William of England and Kate Middleton at Westminster Abbey in London. Throughout this decade, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have established themselves as a married couple, have formed a large family with their three children, Princes Jorge, Carlota and Luis, and have earned the admiration and respect of the vast majority of British citizens, who raise them up as the future kings of the United Kingdom. However, it will be William's father, Charles of England, who will succeed Elizabeth II when the queen decides to abdicate.
There is no doubt that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have also become the monarch's greatest hope and cause of joy, than after the recent death of Duke Philippe of Edinburgh and the continuous news about the breakup of the royal family. British between the scandals of Andrew of England for his relationship with the pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and the controversial interview of Henry of England and Meghan Markle, does not lift his head. A review of some of the key or anecdotal moments of these ten years of royal marriage.
The royal wedding
The eldest son of Prince Charles and Lady Di and Kate Middleton were married ten years ago in the presence of 1,900 guests and around 2,000 million viewers who followed the ceremony through their televisions. The link did not lack the cream of the United Kingdom and half the world. In addition to the representatives of all the royal houses, the guests included Elton John, a great friend of the family due to his special union with Princess Diana, and David and Victoria Beckham, with whom Guillermo maintains a great friendship.
Princes Jorge, Carlota and Luis
In keeping with tradition, which only Meghan Markle has skipped in the British royal family, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have posed at the gates of St. Mary’s Hospital in London each and every time Kate Middleton has given birth. The most anticipated was on July 22, 2013, with the first-born George of Cambridge who became the third in the line of succession to the British throne, behind his father and his grandfather, Carlos of England. On May 2, 2015, Princess Charlotte was born who, thanks to changes introduced two years earlier in the laws governing the succession, despite being a woman, retains her fourth place in the succession. On April 23, 2018, the third and last child of the couple arrived in the world: little Luis.
Family leisure
They are both snow lovers and have escaped to ski on more than one occasion. In March 2016 they traveled with Prince George and Princess Charlotte to the French Alps to enjoy a few days of snow and rest. It was their first family vacation and they wanted to invite British Royal Family photographer John Stillwell to capture the moment.
Your job as a pilot
Before assuming royal responsibilities, William of England worked for a few years as a pilot for the East Anglian Air Ambulance, an air ambulance team. A job that he liked very much although he recognized that it also had the dark side of it. “There are some sad and dark moments and we talk about it a lot. The best way to deal with some situations is to talk about it, ”he said in a BBC documentary. In July 2017 he executed his last flight in order to fully devote himself to the official duties of the palace.
Faithful to the queen
That the queen has always had a special devotion to her grandson Henry of England has been an open secret. However, since the Prince and Meghan Markle announced their departure from the British royal family, Elizabeth II has turned her attention to William of England and Kate Middleton. In the last year, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been seen on several occasions with the queen, such as that day that Prince William accompanied his grandmother to what was his first face-to-face act in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic; or the monarch's nod to Kate Middleton at the funeral of Philippe of Edinburgh by lending him the jewels that she wore on that special day. A gesture that reflects the sympathy and affection that he professes for the wife of his grandson Guillermo.
The good harmony with Carlos de Inglaterra and Camila
The harmony between William of England and his father, Prince Charles, was never as good as it is now, as father and son have always clashed in character and way of thinking. Over the years and after the departure of Enrique and Meghan, Carlos and Guillermo have become more and more united. And, according to the British media, Kate Middleton has had a lot to do with making that closeness possible.
The dream team
For a time they were called the dream team by some British media. After making their commitment official, Enrique and Meghan were seen with Guillermo and Kate in a quartet that for many was going to be long-lasting. Their first appearance together was in the winter of 2017, during the Christmas Mass at Sandringham. Two months later, in February 2018 they held their first official act together at the first annual Royal Foundation Forum, where they analyzed why the foundation was created and the projects they were working on. The Royal Foundation was created at the initiative of Prince William, Kate Middleton and Prince Henry as the main vehicle for coordinating their philanthropic activities. Since the departure of Enrique and Meghan from the royal family, each couple has continued their solidarity work in parallel.
Official trips
Following the decision of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to withdraw from public life due to media pressure, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge managed to make their discretion their greatest weapon of seduction and began to assume a notorious role in their increasingly numerous events and trips. This was the case of one of his last official trips abroad, during his tour at the end of 2019 in Pakistan, a country to which a member of the British royal family had not visited on an official trip for more than a decade. It became one of their most ambitious and complex tours in which they followed in the footsteps of Diana of Wales following an ambitious program in which they dealt with issues such as education or climate change.
With Barack and Michelle Obama
In 2016, the then President of the United States, Barack Obama, and the First Lady, Michelle Obama, took an official trip to the United Kingdom and visited the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at Kensington Palace. There they were received by little Jorge, who had just woken up from a nap and greeted the then US president in a robe and slippers. After a tender handshake and a brief chat, and under the smiling gaze of the dukes, Prince George showed the Obama couple how he played with the wooden horse that they themselves had sent him as a gift for his birth.
Christmas
The Christmas greetings of the Dukes of Cambridge with their children is always an unpublished image that remains in the collective memory. The choice of Prince William and Kate Middleton to wish happy holidays last year featured a family posing in a laid-back scene, where the dukes and their children are seated on blocks of hay with a pile of firewood behind them. Seven-year-old Prince George is sitting and smiling next to his father. Princess Charlotte, five, also smiles at the camera sitting on her mother's knee; and little Luis, two years old, is between his parents, laughing out loud and with his eyes almost closed.
The tenth anniversary
On the occasion of the 10 years of marriage of William and Kate, the dukes have decided to publish two portraits of both together, very affectionate, taken this week at Kensington Palace, their habitual residence. They have been made by Chris Floyd, a regular portraitist for rock stars like Oasis, Supergrass or David Bowie. The second of them, of both embraced, recalls the photo that Mario Testino took of them on the occasion of their engagement, announced in December 2010, and where the blue diamond ring that belonged to Diana was in the foreground.
