The internet has decided that four words from Kate Middleton were apparently enough to reveal the state of her marriage to Prince William.
A viral tweet online has viewers comparing the royal couple’s birthday tributes and noting that one was short and affectionate, while the other was longer and more sentimental.
“She only sees him as a wallet or dad, not as a husband,” one commented after the differences were pointed out.
The internet has decided that four words from Kate Middleton were enough to reveal the state of her marriage
Ian Vogler – WPA Pool/Getty Images
An X user put the two birthday tributes side by side to highlight the differences in how Prince William and Kate Middleton publicly celebrated each other for their birthdays.
On the left was Kate’s birthday shoutout to her husband when he turned 42 in June, 2024.
She shared a sweet picture of the future King jumping with their three kids, Prince George, 13, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, 8.
Stefan Rousseau – WPA Pool/Getty Images
“Happy birthday Papa, we all love you so much! Cx,” she wrote alongside the snap.
The second picture in the side-by-side comparison was William’s birthday tribute to Kate in January, 2025, which included a monochrome picture of her after her tumultuous cancer diagnosis and recovery.
“To the most incredible wife and mother,” the caption began.
An X user compared the couple’s birthday posts and and sparked speculation about their relationship
how she posted him how he posted her pic.twitter.com/wdMOLrZ7f4
— 𓆩Mrs.W𓆪 (@Katrnish) August 10, 2026
“The strength you’ve shown over the last year has been remarkable. George, Charlotte, Louis and I are so proud of you,” the message continued. “Happy Birthday, Catherine. We love you. W.”
Netizens took the two birthday messages as windows into Kate and William’s marriage and claimed her tribute didn’t feel as affectionate as his.
“Clearly one of them doesn’t value the other a lot,” one said.
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Another wrote, “The man is clearly being told that he doesn’t matter very much and can go to hell.”
“Yea she hates him. She only sees him as a wallet or dad, not as a husband,” said one. “I’m so tired of seeing men participate in the marriage humiliation ritual.”
Others claimed they were “both showing their love in their own special way.”
“Golden retriever energy vs. high-fashion editorial. 😂 Perfect balance!” one said.
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Another wrote, “She captures the fun, he captures the strength. Beautiful.”
Many also pointed out the likelihood of both birthday posts possibly being the outcome of a PR team’s strategy.
“Are we forgetting they don’t manage their accounts?” one commented, while another wrote, “I doubt either one of them took either photo or uploaded them.”
“She hates him. She only sees him as a wallet or dad, not as a husband,” one commented online
“Do people really think royals manage their own social media pages?” one asked.
As standard practice, it is understood that William and Kate’s official social media accounts are not personal accounts that the couple manages themselves on a day-to-day basis.
The Prince and Princess of Wales have their own communications team, based at Kensington Palace, which also likely handles their digital presence.
This would mean posts can be planned, drafted, edited and published by members of their team.
princeandprincessofwales/Instagram
However, Kate has publicly acknowledged personally contributing to social media content in some ways.
She apologized in 2024 after her Mother’s Day photograph sparked controversy over being digitally manipulated.
“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” she said on social media following the backlash.
“I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused,” she continued. “I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.”
Although she said she personally edited the photograph at the time, it doesn’t necessarily mean she uploaded it or captioned it herself.
Others defended the couple, saying they simply express their love in different ways
The Prince and Princess of Wales
William and Kate’s love story began when they were college students at Scotland’s University of St. Andrews.
Their friendship blossomed into romance when they became roommates, living off campus with their friends in their second year of university.
He proposed to her in 2010, and they tied the knot in 2011.
“The secret to the Prince and Princess of Wales’ marriage is support for one another throughout their roles as working royals and as parents to their three young children,” author Russell Myers told the Mirror this week.
princeandprincessofwales/Instagram
The William and Catherine: The Monarchy’s New Era: The Inside Story author said the couple does “everything” in “tandem.”
“What many people aren’t aware of is how invested Catherine has always been, not only in her role and the effect she can have as the Princess of Wales and as a future queen, but also in the monarchy’s future direction,” he told the outlet.
“Plot twist. She posted both,” one commented online
