A Royal Love Story

Posted by Kensington Palace | @kensingtonroyal

Congratulations are in order for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, as they recently announced they are expecting their third baby. The pregnancy announcement has made all of us at Valley fall in love with the pair’s beautiful journey together all over again. We thought we would take a stroll down memory lane and recap the picture-perfect love story of the royal couple.

Once upon a time in a land far, far away—more specifically, in St. Salvator’s Hall at the University of St. Andrews in 2001—a handsome young man met a beautiful young woman. But this wasn’t just any young man—this was a prince. And although the young woman was a common citizen, she was anything but ordinary in his eyes.

William and Kate had quite a bit in common right from the start. They were both majoring in History and both living in the same hall—it was meant to be! As Kate said in a public interview that she later gave with Will, she was very shy around the prince at first. When she was first near him, she “went bright red and scuttled off.” I mean, who wouldn’t?

As Will and Kate got to know each other better, the awkwardness melted away, and they became good friends. It wasn’t until 2003 that the couple became romantically involved.

Even though William and Kate were deeply in love with each other, the realities of William’s fame began to impact their relationship. The intense amount of press and media attention that was thrown relentlessly at Kate was likely the cause of the couple’s brief split in 2007.

Thankfully, the couple reunited, and the rest is history. William proposed in October of 2010 during a trip to Kenya, and, of course, Kate said yes. “We are both very, very happy,” William told the BBC following the engagement.

Next came the most fairy tale-esque part of all – The Royal Wedding. According to The Telegraph, more than two billion people in over 180 countries worldwide saw coverage of the wedding, and the ceremony was covered by over 8,500 journalists in London alone.

The entire wedding day, April 29, 2011, was absolute perfection, complete with the classic Alexander McQueen dress that influenced the bridal industry worldwide. Kate was poised and full of elegance as gracefully glided down the aisle to meet her beaming prince. It was magical.

And of course, what would a magical fairy tale be without a “happily ever after”? William and Kate welcomed their first child, Prince George of Cambridge, on July 22, 2013, followed by Princess Charlotte on May 2, 2015.

Now the royal family is gearing up for the birth of their third child, all the while remaining one of the most stylish, elegant, down-to-earth families of all time.

What has been your favorite moment from William and Kate’s love story? Share it on social media and tag us @ValleyMag.