<p id=”par-1_62″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/kate-middleton/”>Kate Middleton</a>‘s bravery upon announcing her cancer diagnosis proved that she appeared to be <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/kate-middleton-heartbreaking-cancer-video-no-easy-feat-introverted-royal-expert.html/?swcfpc=1″>strong and confident</a> enough to lead the United Kingdom as its eventual queen. However, there was once when Kate wasn’t as sure of herself in the royal sphere, leading Prince William to install a secret emergency royal hotline to the palace to protect her if she needed assistance.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-kate-middleton-s-emergency-link-to-the-palace”>Kate Middleton’s emergency link to the palace</h2>
<p id=”par-2_51″>In the early days of her relationship with Prince William, Kate Middleton was still a college student, insulated by St. Andrews University in Scotland from the press. However, once she and William graduated, Kate became a subject of interest from the paparazzi, who wanted to know about the future king’s girlfriend.</p>
<p id=”par-3_27″>The stress this interest placed on Kate was insurmountable. To an outsider, the press’ treatment of Kate rang similar to that of William’s late mother, Princess Diana.</p>
<p id=”par-4_23″>According to royal author Katie Nicholl, William sensed that as well. <a href=”https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/royals/prince-william-set-kate-middleton-32553155″ target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>The Mirror</a> shared an excerpt from Nicholl’s book, <em>Kate: The Future Queen</em>.</p>
<p id=”par-5_35″>“William was aware of the situation and anxious about it. He had seen firsthand how his mother had been harassed by the paparazzi and was determined that Kate not be subjected to the same treatment.”</p>
<p id=”par-6_28″>Therefore, William set up an emergency hotline number for Kate to use if she needed assistance. The calls were directed to King Charles’ former press secretary, Paddy Haverson.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-how-did-a-royal-hotline-help-kate-middleton-navigate-life-in-the-spotlight”>How did a royal hotline help Kate Middleton navigate life in the spotlight?</h2>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” fetchpriority=”high” width=”1800″ height=”900″ src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/kate-middleton-17.jpg?strip=all&quality=89″ alt=”Drama surrounding Kate Middleton’s health felt similar to ‘The Crown’ on Netflix says commentator” class=”wp-image-3645465″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Drama surrounding Kate Middleton’s health felt similar to ‘The Crown’ on Netflix says commentator | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-7_41″>Katie Nicholl cited several unnamed royal sources in her book, which gave insight into the early days of Kate Middleton and Prince William’s relationship. They said the future Princess of Wales was given the “support” she needed to navigate royal life.</p>
<p id=”par-8_41″>“We had been introduced to Kate early on, and we were instructed from the outset to give her every support possible. She was obviously the subject of much press interest and intrusion from the paparazzi,” said a palace source to Nicholl.</p>
<p id=”par-9_60″>The source continued, “William said we had a duty of care to her and her family, so we advised her on how to deal with the cameras. We told her to smile at the photographers so that there would be a better picture. She was advised on managing the media, and we were there to support her in a crisis.”</p>
<p id=”par-10_29″>However, William’s mother, Princess Diana, had a very different experience than Kate. This led William to try and ensure his girlfriend and later wife, didn’t experience the same heartache.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-kate-middleton-s-royal-initiation-was-different-from-that-of-princess-diana”>Kate Middleton’s royal initiation was different from that of Princess Diana</h2>
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<iframe title=”ITN Exclusive: “Whatever ‘in love’ means” – Charles and Diana Engagement Interview in Full (1981)” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/6lSmizRAe6A?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<span class=”related-article-flag”>Related</span>
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<p id=”par-11_28″>Although the former Lady Diana Spencer ran in royal circles, she was not an official royal family member. Therefore, she was always afforded privacy regarding her everyday life.</p>
<p id=”par-12_28″>However, once the then 19-year-old became involved with and engaged to Prince Charles, interest in her peaked. Paparazzi became intrusive as they followed the young woman throughout London.</p>
<p id=”par-13_36″><a href=”https://www.historyextra.com/period/20th-century/prince-charles-princess-diana-meet-marriage-children-divorce-bulimia-childhood-camilla-royal-tour/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>History Extra</a> reported that once Charles showed a romantic interest in Diana, the press picked up on it immediately. As Charles was pushed toward marriage, any woman he dated was a prime target for the media.</p>
<p id=”par-14_18″>Paparazzi camped outside her London flat. She was followed to her teaching job at the Young England Kindergarten.</p>
<p id=”par-15_48″>However, after their engagement, after only 13 meetings, Diana was moved into a suite of rooms at Buckingham Palace. Historically, it has been reported that she was <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/prince-william-breaks-massive-royal-cycle-thoughtless-selfish-behavior-kate-middleton-correspondent.html/?swcfpc=1″>left alone</a> with little instruction on how to navigate her new world as she prepared to marry the Prince of Wales.</p>
<p id=”par-16_16″>Prince Charles and <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/princess-diana-never-before-seen-backup-wedding-dress-unveiled.html/”>Diana Spencer married</a> on July 29, 1981, at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.</p>