The Prince and Princess of Wales announced their engagement during a photo call at Clarence House 14 years ago on November 16, 2010. It emerged that Prince William had asked the all important question a few weeks earlier during a private holiday to Kenya – but he chose to stray from convention in a surprising way.
During their engagement interview with journalist Tom Bradby, the couple were asked many questions and one answer revealed that Prince William had broken a major tradition when he proposed. The Prince was asked if he had spoken to Michael Middleton before he asked for his daughter’s hand in marriage. William confessed that he hadn’t asked as he feared what he might say.
He said: “Well, I was torn between asking Kate’s dad first and then the realisation that he might actually say ‘no’ dawned upon me. So I thought if I ask Kate first then he can’t really say no. So I did it that way round. I managed to speak to Mike soon after it happened really and then it sort of happened from there.”
The couple had become engaged during a private holiday to Kenya a few weeks earlier and had travelled around the country before heading to Lake Rutundu, which William had decided was the perfect place to pop the question.
According to royal expert Katie Nicholl, he booked a log cabin for their stay and the couple spent the day fishing for rainbow trout. She claims that when they returned to the lodge, William took Kate out onto the veranda, got down on one knee and proposed.
The following morning it was time to check out and head home – but not before they both wrote a goodbye message in the lodge’s guestbook. Kate wrote: “Thank you for such a wonderful 24 hours! Sadly no fish to be found but we had fun trying. I love the warm fires and candle lights—so romantic. Hope to be back soon.”
William then wrote: “20th-21st October 2010. Such fun to be back! Brought more clothes this time! Looked after so well. Thank you guys! Look forward to next time, soon I hope.”
Not being able to ask the Princess’ father for his permission is not the only major break with tradition that took place at William and Kate’s 2011 wedding.
It is well-known that the couple have an incredibly close knit circle of friends who have been in their lives ever since their school days and time at university and so it is understandable that they wanted to invite as many of them as possible to their big day.
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One of the key rules of any large-scale royal celebration is that several foreign heads of state and dignitaries must be invited. As a result, there were very few seats remaining for guests of the couple’s choosing which is said to have angered William and prompted him to speak with his grandmother, the late Queen.
Speaking on BBC’s documentary Royal Wedding: A Day to Remember, royal expert Roya Nikkhah says that the prince was confused when he was handed the suggested guestlist and realised he and Kate didn’t really know anyone on the list. She explained: “When the guest list was drawn up [William] was very bemused and had a conversation with the Queen to say ‘I don’t know any of these people’.
“He wasn’t very happy about it. The Queen just said to him, rip that list up and start where you want to start from and invite who you want – and that’s what they did.” Instead, they filled Westminster Abbey with their friends, family, old colleagues, school pals and people who had supported them over the years.
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