Queen Elizabeth’s “Startling Gesture” Ahead of Prince William and Princess Kate’s Royal Wedding

Wedding planning can be stressful under the most normal of circumstances, but when you’re marrying the World’s Hottest Bachelor/Future King of England/grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, the stakes couldn’t have been higher. While planning their 2011 wedding, then-Kate Middleton and Prince William had more to think about than seating charts and caterers. It was considered the wedding of the century, and luckily they had an unexpected gentle hand to guide them.

In Russell Myers’ new book, William and Catherine: The Monarchy's New Era: The Inside Story, the royal expert reveals that Queen Elizabeth invited Kate Middleton to an “informal catch-up” at Buckingham Palace to hear about their wedding plans. Over tea and finger sandwiches, the monarch and the bride chatted guest lists—the Queen reassured Kate that there would be "plenty of room for her loved ones"—and wedding woes as the late Queen "looked to comfort the young woman she hoped would successfully shape the institution for the next generation.”

Myers wrote that one former courtier revealed that Queen Elizabeth "offered words of encouragement to Catherine” regarding both her role as a member of the royal family, and as a wife, as the Queen provided “guidance in how to deal with ‘headstrong’ husbands.” Queen Elizabeth and Kate Middleton would go on to form a sweet bond in the 12 years that followed this meeting until the late Queen’s death in 2022.

This meeting was also the momentous occasion when Kate Middleton was offered the opportunity to consider a tiara from the Queen’s "personal, priceless jewellery collection" to wear on her big day, Myers reported. This was apparently a "startling gesture to the young bride," who was probably not expecting to leave the informal teatime chat with a diamond tiara. "Catherine left the meeting with the Queen with a spring in her step,” Myers wrote in the book.