King Charles Calls Kate Middleton His ‘Beloved Daughter in Law’ as He Recalls Prince William’s Marriage Proposal
Prince William and Kate Middleton have been together for more than two decades. The Prince and Princess of Wales first met at the University of St. Andrews, where they dated for about eight years before William finally proposed in 2010.
King Charles is on a visit to Kenya, and he happened to be near the same spot where William popped the question to Charles’ daughter-in-law. And the king couldn’t help but reminisce on the proposal as he showed his love for William’s wife.
King Charles called Kate Middleton his ‘beloved daughter-in-law’
It was clear from the moment Kate met the royal family that she fit in well. Kate and William first took their relationship public in 2004, where Kate attended a ski trip with William, Charles, and Harry. From there, William and Kate dated for six more years before William proposed to his wife at a beautiful spot while on a trip with friends to Kenya.
In October 2023, Charles and his wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, visited Kenya on a royal engagement, and during his speech, Charles brought up William’s proposal. “It was here, in sight of Mount Kenya, that my son, the Prince of Wales, proposed to his wife, now my beloved daughter-in-law,” Charles said to the crowd. Of course, the proposal happened 13 years ago, and since then, William and Kate have welcomed three of Charles’ also-beloved grandchildren: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.
While the public has grown to love Kate, there were whispers among the people when so many years had passed, and William still hadn’t proposed. She even earned the nickname “Waity Katie” for allowing William to drag his feet for so long.
Prince William explained why he proposed to Kate Middleton in Kenya
During the couple’s engagement interview, William and Kate sat down together in front of cameras for the first time. It was Kate’s first sit-down interview, and William appeared to help her through some of the nerves. But William also went into detail about why Kenya felt like the best place to ask Kate to be his wife.
“It is the place my father took my brother and me shortly after our mother died,” William said, referring to the late Princess Diana’s tragic car accident. “And when deciding where best to propose to Catherine, I could think of no more fitting place than Kenya to get down on one knee.” William also added that he had been planning the proposal for a while but was waiting for the right moment.
William and Kate had a fairly short engagement. They announced the proposal back in November 2010 and took just five months to plan their royal wedding. The couple wed in a publicly-televised ceremony at Westminster Abbey in April 2011. Kate, who was raised a commoner, broke royal protocol by wearing her hair down and also asking her younger sister, Pippa Middleton, to be her maid of honor. The wedding was watched globally by millions of people and broke records as a televised event.
