The Princess of Wales leaned on the support of the Duchess of Edinburgh during the intensely emotional Remembrance Day events. At the sombre Sunday service at the Cenotaph, Kate Middleton was present for a rare outing indicating her gradual resumption of royal commitments after battling cancer.
She observed the wreath-laying from the Foreign Office balcony. With Queen Camilla absent due to illness, Kate was originally slated to be alone on the central balcony but found companionship in Sophie, who joined her, showing unity and support.
Their interaction began with smiles, according to lip reader Kayleigh Harris who spoke to The Sun, revealing that Kate mentioned to Sophie: “She will be supported in this.”
Sophie’s response was: “Yes, and especially…” However, which individual they were discussing remains unknown. This conversation follows observations by a body language expert who suggested that Sophie’s gesture of resting her hand on Kate’s back as they left the balcony sent a covert supportive signal to Prince William.
Body language expert Judi James said: “Sophie was clearly in the role of temporary stand-in for William. She chatted to Kate on the balcony as the two women stood side-by-side and despite Kate’s impeccable appearance of confidence as she stood in the spot that used to belong to the late Queen, Sophie appeared to be keeping a watchful eye over her as Anne has clearly been keeping over brother Charles,” reports the Mirror.
“It was the small touch or even pat on the back as Kate walked ahead inside the building that seemed to not only offer a form of maternal affection, caring and reassurance or even congratulation to her niece-in-law, but it also looked like the visible proof to William that Kate is in very safe and caring royal hands when he is not there by her side.”
During the service today, Kate wore three red poppies, often rumoured to be in honour of her great-grandmother’s three brothers, who all lost their lives in the First World War. Her diamond and pearl drop earrings belonged to the late Queen, and she also wore her silver Queen’s Dragoon Guards brooch – in a nod to her role as the regiment’s Colonel-in-Chief – beneath her poppies.
The princess made her first ever appearance at the service as the Duchess of Cambridge 13 years ago, seven months after she married William, joining the Royal family and becoming an HRH.
In 2011, she was photographed wearing a black double-breasted coat by Diane von Furstenberg and a small-brimmed hat adorned with a large bow by couture milliner Jane Corbett. Kate has been present every year since then, including in 2020 when she appeared on the balcony, maintaining social distance from Camilla, during the Covid pandemic.
The increasingly frail late Elizabeth II missed the service due to a sprained back.
