Prince William was reportedly left 'seething' after King Charles and Queen Camilla made an unexpected request involving Kate Middleton, which a royal biographer claims sparked a private family disagreement behind palace walls. The alleged dispute was not over royal duties or protocol, but over the spelling of the Princess of Wales' name.
According to royal biographer Christopher Andersen, Charles and Camilla wanted Kate, born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton, to change the spelling of her first name from 'Catherine' to 'Katherine' as part of a royal branding effort. William reportedly viewed the suggestion as deeply personal and refused to consider it, while Kate is said to have been equally opposed to altering the name her parents gave her.
Why Prince William Was 'Seething' Over a Name Change Request
Royal biographer Christopher Andersen claims Charles and Camilla privately pushed for 'Catherine' to become 'Katherine', swapping her initial from 'C' to 'K.' With King Charles and Queen Camilla already sharing the family's two most senior 'C' names, Andersen claims some within the royal household felt a third 'C', for Catherine, was one letter too many.
A royal source claimed Catherine found the suggestion 'incredibly personal', given that her parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, had chosen that spelling for her at birth. One insider went further, calling the request 'needless interference' and 'disrespectful to the Middleton family', adding that altering the spelling merely for 'a neat set of royal initials' was unacceptable.
Prince Harry later referenced the alleged exchange in his memoir, 'Spare.' He wrote that Prince William's 'face was blank' when the idea was raised. Another insider said William made it clear 'there would be no alteration', and the conversation reportedly ended there. Kate ultimately kept both the spelling of her name and her initials unchanged.
Camilla's 'Snobbery' and the 2007 Split, According to Andersen
The alleged name dispute is not the only source of friction said to have affected William's relationship with his stepmother. Andersen has also claimed Camilla played a role in William and Kate's brief split in 2007.
'I was in London when the breakup occurred,' Andersen said. 'I was shocked, completely stunned. Everyone thought it was only a matter of time before William was going to ask Kate to marry him. And then people started telling me that Camilla was behind it.'
Andersen described Camilla as 'a bit of a snob' who did not initially view Kate as a natural fit for the family. He claimed Camilla looked down on Kate's non-aristocratic background, noting that while the Middletons became wealthy through their business, the family lacked traditional aristocratic roots.
How Queen Camilla and Kate's Relationship Has Since Thawed
Whatever tension existed early on appears to have eased since. In 2022, then-Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton photographed the then-Duchess of Cornwall for the cover of Country Life, marking the then-Duchess of Cornwall's 75th birthday.
Editor Mark Hedges recalled asking Camilla who she had in mind for the shoot. Camilla reportedly replied, 'Oh I'd quite like Catherine to do it.' Hedges admitted that it took him a moment to realise Camilla meant the Duchess of Cambridge rather than a professional photographer he was trying to place.
Hedges called Kate's portrait of Camilla 'one of the easier things to nod my head at' and said the magazine was 'thrilled' with the images. 'We understand this is the first time a formal portrait of the Duchess of Cornwall has been taken by the Duchess of Cambridge for a magazine,' he said, 'and we are honoured to have been chosen to be the first to publish this beautiful photograph.'
Neither Kensington Palace nor Buckingham Palace has publicly commented on Andersen's claims. While reports of tensions between Camilla and the Waleses have circulated for years, many remain unverified.
