All About Prince William and Kate Middleton's 2007 Breakup, Which Left the Future King "Completely Broken".

 

All About Prince William and Kate Middleton's 2007 Breakup, Which Left the Future King "Completely Broken".

The longtime couple ultimately reconciled before tying the knot in April 2011.

Prince William and Kate Middleton's love story is quite literally what fairytale dreams are made of, but the longtime couple didn't make it this far without a few bumps in the road. Most famously, the Prince and Princess of Wales briefly split twice: in 2005, shortly after graduating from St. Andrew's University, and again in 2007. The latter breakup reportedly happened over the phone and was later undone with the help of none other than Queen Elizabeth II.

"The late monarch could see that Kate had all the qualities of a future Queen," Russell Myers, author of William and Catherine, The Monarchy's New Era: The Inside Story, told People. In an exclusive interview, Myers told the publication that she proved a "catalyst for William changing course" and that, if he "had faith in the relationship...that would be enough to carry them through."

Last year, meanwhile, former royal butler Grant Harrold told InStyle that William was “quiet,” “withdrawn,” and “not himself” during their brief split and that, ultimately, "Kate was always the one." When they did reconcile, Harrold recalled, he was “thrilled."

So, what really happened between the Prince and Princess of Wales back in 2007, and why was Kate, at one point, "miserable"? Ahead, here's everything you need to know about the brief breakup that very nearly changed the future of the British monarchy forever.

The breakup began with an "ultimatum" issued by Kate Middleton.

As legend has it, Prince William pulled the plug on his then-girlfriend because she reportedly gave him an ultimatum. The future princess was hounded by paparazzi on her 25th birthday in January 2007 and "called William in floods of tears." The situation was “incredibly distressing for both of them,” royal expert Myers wrote, with Kate eventually telling William, “I can’t do this anymore.”

“The situation was intolerable and William felt entirely helpless,” Myers recalled, adding that Kate was "deeply unhappy and at a loss to describe how their relationship had faltered in such a short space of time.”

According to a friend in whom she confided, meanwhile, the future princess was "miserable," but she "certainly wasn’t desperate."

"She felt as though she had nothing to lose and for the first time, she probably relayed her true feelings to William," the friend added, per Myers. "She wasn’t demanding an engagement, but she wanted a commitment, and if he couldn’t deliver that, well, then she left him in no doubt that it was best they go their separate ways.”

Prince William ended things over the phone.

Following her so-called ultimatum, Prince William "did not react in the way Catherine expected," wrote Myers, because he was "blinded by his own insecurities." In a 30-minute phone call, the future king explained why he felt they were on “different pages” and “said he could not offer a guarantee of marriage." Kate was subsequently "devastated.”

“The couple agreed to give each other the space they needed,” Myers continued. “Secretly, Catherine wondered whether she would ever see William again.” William, for his part, confided to one senior courtier that, “at least she is free.”

The future king was "completely broken" in the aftermath of the split.

As we now know, the breakup did not go well for Prince William. Indeed, the future king was "completely broken" afterwards, according to Myers, and "more than just crestfallen...[he was] worried about whether he was throwing away the one constant in his life."

Middleton, meanwhile, showed her "inner steel" during the brief split. Richard Eden later recalled a conversation between her and TV presenter Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, who was eager to know how she really felt about the breakup.

"[Kate] made clear with her body language that she didn’t wish to discuss the subject, and the conversation moved swiftly on to happier and less fraught matters," Eden wrote in the Daily Mail. "[That] first encounter with her taught me that she was a tough cookie who wasn’t going to be inveigled into saying something she didn’t want to say by anyone—not even a close friend of the royals."

Queen Elizabeth II reportedly encouraged the ex-couple's reconciliation.

Queen Elizabeth II was famously a fan of Middleton, so it will perhaps come as no surprise that William turned to his grandmother for relationship advice. Per Myers, a private conversation between William and the late monarch proved to be a “catalyst for William changing course” and realizing that “if he had faith in the relationship and his love for her, then that could be enough to carry them through.”

A source likewise told People, “In that moment the Queen advised her grandson that the only certain path is the one supported by faith. It was all she had to say.”

Tags: Queen, Prince Charles, Camilla, Prince Louis, Prince William and Kate Middleton, Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Meghan, Lilibet

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