Prince William & Kate Middleton split up when he went on a Greek yachting trip with an all-female crew, new book claims
PRINCE William and Kate Middleton’s early relationship is well-documented, with the couple briefly splitting in 2007 – but a new book claims that’s not the only time they broke up.
Royal author Robert Lacey claims the pair parted ways during a summer break, when The Duke of Cambridge went on an all-boys sailing trip – with an all-female crew.
Robert made the claims in his new book, Battle of Brothers, the Mail reported, outlining details of the split in 2004.
The parents-of-three got together when they both attended St Andrews, and Kate caught Prince William’s eye in a sheer dress – which showed her underwear – at a university fashion show.
Their romance blossomed and the couple, both 38, moved into a flat together for their second year, along with two other friends.
The following year they moved into a “romantic” home, Balgrove House, and Robert says Kate became the “Queen of the Aga”, rustling up meals.
The house quickly earned a reputation as a party hotspot, hosting dinner parties with a covered guestlist.
But with a year to go until they graduated, Prince William’s decision to go on a lad’s holiday put the brakes on his relationship with Kate.
Robert said: “So in the summer of 2004, with just a year to go until his graduation, he rather welcomed the mischievous suggestion of his friend from childhood, Guy Pelly, that he might leave Kate at home and join his friend on a ‘boys only’ sailing trip to Greece.
“And Pelly made another suggestion: that the yacht might be staffed and operated by an all-female crew. Kate was not impressed, and made sure William knew it.”
Kate reportedly went back to her family in Berkshire, but the pair had planned to return to Balgrove for their final year.
Robert added: “But they’d committed to go back to Balgove House for their fourth and final year, so the end of September 2004 found them reunited — and actually stronger, on reflection, for the time spent apart.”
Another book, the ‘The Duchess of Cambridge: How Kate Middleton Became A Future Queen’, reveals how miserable Kate was during the brief split.
One of Kate’s friends is quoted as saying the mum-of-three “let her guard down” one evening.
The book says: “She got quite drunk on white wine and really let her guard down. She was debating whether or not she should text or call him.
“She said how sad she was and how much she was missing William but she never mentioned it after that.”
After getting back together when returning from their summer holidays, the couple split up again in 2007.
This too was short-lived, as the following year the pair were thought to be dating again, and Prince William finally got down on one knee in Kenya in 2010.
The couple wed the year after, welcoming Prince George in 2012, Princess Charlotte in 2015, and Prince Louis in 2018.
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