Kate Middleton and Sophie, Duchess Of Edinburgh, have always had a close bond, but it seems the pair have more in common that many think. The senior royals have both married into the monarchy, and share a special friendship as they have both had ‘ordinary’ upbringings, when compared to their husbands – Prince William and Prince Edward.
The Princess of Wales appears to be one of the Duchess’ key allies, and is a near neighbour in Windsor. “Sophie and Catherine are very close – I think much more so than people realise,” royal commentator Katie Nicholl says. “There’s not a huge age difference between them, and Sophie really welcomed Catherine when she married into the family. She was an outsider and so-called commoner, just as Sophie was, so they had that bond from an early stage.”
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Kate and Sophie, Duchess Of Edinburgh, are said to be ‘much closer than people realise’
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While some, such as Meghan Markle, have struggled fitting into the royal mould, Sophie has seemingly slotted in
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Sophie grew up in Kent to working parents and attended top-notch private schools. However, according to a 2001 BBC report, the Rhys-Jones family, although affluent, didn’t socialise in the highest circles. While Kate was born into an upper-middle class family in Berkshire to flight attendant and flight dispatcher parents.
Photographs of the pair have always hinted at a special friendship, as seen at Royal Ascot in 2017, where they were pictured giggling as Sophie tumbled into their carriage and almost landed on Kate. They have been snapped on joint shopping trips in London and watching Wimbledon together too, while in 2018 they joined forces to host the Commonwealth Fashion Exchange at Buckingham Palace. During the pandemic, the two women also teamed up to make a video call to hard-working nurses in global locations, including Australia, India, Malawi, the Bahamas and Cyprus.
Sophie is known as a widely respected and popular member of the family
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Though others who married into the family, like the late Princess Diana and Meghan Markle, told of their struggles to adapt to the rigorous expectations of The Firm, Sophie – like Kate – appears to be universally respected and liked, and her appeal to younger and older royals has seen her dubbed a “bridge between generations”. As royal commentator Katie says, “Sophie is a very popular member of the family because she’s easy-going, there’s never any drama, and she just gets on with the job, quietly and diligently.”
Sophie is also though to have a close bond with her sister-in-law, Queen Camilla, as both have been key in supporting Charles through his cancer diagnosis in 2024. While she and husband Prince Edward appear to have acted as a pillar of support for her nephew, Prince William, amid his rift with brother Prince Harry.
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