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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsThe relationship between Catherine, Princess of Wales, and William, Prince of Wales, began at the University of St Andrews in 2001, survived a publicly confirmed separation in 2007 and led to their Westminster Abbey wedding on 29 April 2011. They now have three children and remain married as of the latest authoritative information available for this timeline, dated 12 August 2026.
The relationship between Catherine, Princess of Wales, and William, Prince of Wales, began as a university friendship at St Andrews in 2001, developed into a romance during their student years, survived a publicly confirmed separation in 2007, and led to their Westminster Abbey wedding on 29 April 2011. They now have three children and, as of the latest authoritative information available for this timeline—12 August 2026—remain married and serve together as the Prince and Princess of Wales.
The broad chronology is well documented. The less certain parts are the exact moment their friendship became romantic and the private reasons for their 2007 breakup. A reliable timeline should distinguish official records from later biographies, press reports and interpretations of photographs.
Kate Middleton and Prince William relationship timeline
2001: William and Catherine meet at St Andrews
William and Catherine met while studying at the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, in 2001. Catherine was studying History of Art and later graduated in 2005 with a 2:1 degree. William studied Geography.
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They lived and socialised within the same circle of students, sharing accommodation with friends during their university years. The university confirms the 2001 meeting and the development of their relationship, but the precise point at which they stopped being friends and began dating is not established by the principal official records.
2002–2003: Their friendship develops into a romance
Later accounts generally place the beginning of their romantic relationship around 2003, while they were still students. It is more accurate to say that they began dating during their St Andrews years than to assign a definitive month or day.
A frequently repeated version of the story centres on Catherine modelling a sheer dress at a student charity fashion show in 2002. The event is widely described as an important moment in their early story, but it should not be presented as officially proven evidence that William fell in love with her at that instant. The secure chronology is simpler: they met in 2001, became close friends, and were later romantically involved.
2004: Their relationship enters the public spotlight
William and Catherine attracted major press attention after being photographed together on a skiing holiday in Klosters, Switzerland, in 2004. The images made their previously private relationship visible to a much wider audience.
This was a change in public exposure rather than the confirmed beginning of the romance. By this point, reporting widely treated Catherine as William’s girlfriend, although the couple continued to protect much of their private life.
April 2007: A publicly confirmed separation
The couple’s split was publicly confirmed on 14 April 2007. Contemporary reporting described the breakup as a difficult period for both of them, but the private reasons for it have never been conclusively established in official documentation.
Later books and entertainment reports have offered different explanations and sometimes disagree about the precise timing or cause. Those accounts are secondary interpretations, not settled facts. The responsible version of the timeline is therefore that William and Catherine separated publicly in April 2007, without presenting speculation about blame or motive as certainty.
June–October 2007: They reconcile
Signs of a reconciliation appeared during the summer of 2007. William and Catherine were seen together at social events, including the Concert for Diana in July. Later reports also described Catherine spending time with William and his family at Balmoral.
No single appearance can be treated as the definitive moment when they reunited. The available evidence supports the more cautious conclusion that they resumed their relationship during 2007.
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2008–2009: Their partnership becomes more established
After reconciling, William and Catherine appeared together more regularly at personal and public occasions. Catherine attended William’s Royal Air Force graduation in April 2008 and was present at the Order of the Garter service at Windsor Castle in June 2008.
These appearances suggested that their relationship had become stable and was increasingly accepted within royal circles. They were not yet a married royal couple with formal joint duties, however. Catherine’s public role remained different from the one she would assume after the wedding.
October 2010: William proposes in Kenya
William proposed during a private holiday in Kenya in October 2010. Clarence House announced the engagement on 16 November 2010, saying that William had informed Queen Elizabeth II and other close family members and had sought permission from Catherine’s father.
The announcement referred to her as “Miss Catherine Middleton” and said the wedding would take place in London in spring or summer 2011. It also stated that the couple would live in North Wales after marrying while William continued his Royal Air Force service.
For readers who want a longer, secondary account of the courtship and engagement, The Making of a Royal Romance by Katie Nicholl is a biography of Kate Middleton and Prince William. It should be read as biographical reporting rather than as an official palace record of private events.
29 April 2011: Westminster Abbey wedding
William and Catherine married at 11 a.m. on Friday, 29 April 2011, at Westminster Abbey. The Archbishop of Canterbury conducted the ceremony.
After the wedding, the couple became Their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. The ceremony was watched by a global audience and marked the transition from a long-running private relationship into a formal public partnership at the centre of the royal family.
2011–2012: Married life and public duties begin
As the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, William and Catherine began undertaking public duties together. Their official role expanded in the period leading up to the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
William, Catherine and Prince Harry served as official ambassadors for Team GB and Paralympic GB. Their appearances during this period showed how their personal partnership was being translated into a shared public role, while also making clear that an official joint appearance does not provide evidence about their private feelings.
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22 July 2013: Prince George is born
Their first child, Prince George Alexander Louis, was born on 22 July 2013. He is the couple’s eldest child and is first in line among their children.
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2 May 2015: Princess Charlotte is born
The couple’s second child, Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, was born on 2 May 2015 at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London. At birth, she was formally known as Princess Charlotte of Cambridge.
23 April 2018: Prince Louis is born
Their third child, Louis Arthur Charles, was born on 23 April 2018 at St Mary’s Hospital. He was formally known as Prince Louis of Cambridge at birth.
September 2022: William and Catherine become the Prince and Princess of Wales
Following Queen Elizabeth II’s death and the accession of Charles III, the new King announced that his eldest son would be known as the Prince of Wales and that Catherine would be the Princess of Wales.
The change ended their use of the titles Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as their principal titles. For current references, Catherine and William should be called the Princess and Prince of Wales. “Kate Middleton” and “Prince William” remain useful historical or search terms, particularly when discussing their years before marriage.
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January–March 2024: Catherine’s medical treatment affects public duties
In January 2024, Kensington Palace said that Catherine had undergone planned abdominal surgery. The statement said she would remain in hospital for 10 to 14 days and was unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter.
In March, Catherine announced publicly that subsequent tests had identified cancer and that she had begun a course of preventative chemotherapy. In her statement, she described William as a source of comfort and reassurance.
These events belong in the relationship timeline because Catherine directly referred to William’s support. They should not, however, be used as a basis for speculation about the private state of their marriage. Medical announcements and documented statements support a limited conclusion: the health crisis affected their public schedules, and Catherine publicly acknowledged William’s support.
15 January 2025: Joint patronage of The Royal Marsden
William and Catherine became joint patrons of The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. The Royal Family said the announcement followed Catherine’s visit to the hospital and her treatment there. William had previously served as the institution’s president from 2007.
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28 February 2025: Joint visit to Pontypridd
The Prince and Princess of Wales visited Pontypridd in south Wales ahead of St David’s Day. They met local residents, market traders, community-garden volunteers and people affected by flooding.
The visit illustrated their continuing use of joint appearances to support community and civic causes. It also reflected the increasingly public-facing role they hold as Wales’s senior royal couple.
29 April 2026: Fifteenth wedding anniversary
The official Court Circular records that the Prince and Princess of Wales visited IntoUniversity Walworth on 29 April 2026 to mark the fifteenth anniversary of their marriage. During the visit, they met recipients of the Royal Wedding Gift Fund.
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How much of the relationship timeline is actually certain?
The major milestones—meeting at St Andrews, engagement, wedding, children, titles and documented public duties—are supported by official royal or institutional records. The early romantic timeline is less precise.
- Secure: they met at the University of St Andrews in 2001.
- Reasonable but approximate: they began dating during their university years, generally placed around 2003 by later accounts.
- Widely reported but not officially proven as a turning point: the 2002 student fashion show.
- Secure as a public event: their relationship became highly visible after the 2004 Klosters skiing photographs.
- Secure as a public separation: the breakup confirmed in April 2007.
- Supported but not tied to one exact reunion date: their reconciliation during 2007.
This distinction matters because photographs, anonymous quotations and later popular biographies cannot establish every private event with the same certainty as an engagement announcement, Court Circular entry or official birth record.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Were William and Catherine ever divorced or permanently separated?
The documented relationship history includes a separation in 2007, followed by reconciliation and marriage in 2011. As of 12 August 2026, the authoritative information used for this timeline records them as married and carrying out public duties as the Prince and Princess of Wales. It does not support claims of divorce, a current separation or marital breakdown.
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Titles at a glance
| Period | Principal titles |
|---|---|
| Before their wedding | William was Prince William; Catherine was Miss Catherine Middleton |
| After 29 April 2011 | The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge |
| From September 2022 | The Prince and Princess of Wales |
In summary
William and Catherine’s story is best understood as a long progression rather than a single dramatic event: university friends in 2001, a developing relationship around the middle of the decade, a public breakup and reconciliation in 2007, an engagement in 2010, marriage in 2011, three children, and an increasingly prominent shared royal role.
The official record is strongest on the public milestones and more limited on private turning points. That is why the most accurate account avoids treating the fashion show, the 2007 breakup or individual photographs as definitive evidence of feelings or motives that were never formally documented.
Note for readers interested in memorabilia: official wedding programmes, commemorative books and related objects are documented categories, but current stock, edition identity, authenticity and affiliate availability should be checked before purchase. No particular current listing is endorsed here.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did Kate Middleton and Prince William meet?
William and Catherine met while studying at the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, in 2001.
When did William and Catherine start dating?
They began dating during their St Andrews years, generally placed around 2003 by later accounts. The exact month is not established by the principal official sources.
When did William and Catherine break up?
Their publicly confirmed separation was reported on 14 April 2007. They resumed their relationship later in 2007.
When did Prince William and Catherine get married?
They married at Westminster Abbey at 11 a.m. on Friday, 29 April 2011.
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How many children do William and Catherine have?
They have three children: Prince George Alexander Louis, born in 2013; Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana, born in 2015; and Prince Louis Arthur Charles, born in 2018.
When did William and Catherine become the Prince and Princess of Wales?
They became the Prince and Princess of Wales after Charles III became King in September 2022.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Catherine and William met at St Andrews in 2001, began dating during their student years, separated publicly in April 2007, reconciled later that year, married on 29 April 2011 and now serve as the Prince and Princess of Wales. The public record confirms those milestones, but not every private detail often repeated in popular accounts.
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