Kate Middleton is wearing red more frequently, and the reason why involves Princess Diana, the late Queen and… science

Catherine, Princess of Wales has been wearing red more frequently in recent high-profile appearances – and it’s not a coincidence. Royals are famous for sending messages through their clothing, and the bold, vibrant color chosen by the Princess is her way of establishing herself in her current role, whilst looking ahead to her future.

• Kate Middleton’s latest red outfit wowed audiences at Ascot, and she’s been wearing different hues of the bold color a lot lately
• Kate opting for red has powerful symbolism – with connections to the history of Wales, as well as taking style cues from the late Queen Elizabeth
• In other royal news, the super affordable secret ingredient behind Queen Elizabeth's favorite sandwiches at Buckingham Palace

The more observant royal fans might have been seeing red a lot lately – and it’s got nothing to do with being angry at any of the more controversial royals.

Catherine, the Princess of Wales, has slowly but surely started to turn away from the classic blue the family historically opt for when it comes to prominent, public events.

The blue has been replaced for various hues of the bold, vibrant red.

Some moments where the Duchess of Cambridge and Cornwall has stepped out wearing red lately include the eye-catching coat dress by Eponine she donned as her and Prince William rode the Elizabeth Line and visited a Soho pub ahead of coronation celebrations in early May.

Then there was the gorgeous red outfit she sported at Royal Ascot earlier this week, a look that helped her stand out from the crowd.

So, what’s with painting the town red?

The first explanation has a connection to the late Princess Diana, Kate’s late mother-in-law.

The color has a specific significance in Wales.

Not only does it appear as the central red dragon on the country's flag, the bright scarlet hue shows up in Welsh fabrics throughout history and forms part of the national Welsh dress, making the red hue subtle tribute from Kate to the host nation on a number of occasions.

Princess Diana made red one of her most worn colors for this very exact reason. She’d often wear ensembles made entirely of the colour, including hats and accessories.

For some of her most high profile appearances, such as a 1989 banquet held by the ruler of the United Arab Emirates, Diana wore a showstopping sequin red number, representing her title as Princess of Wales with aplomb.

There’s perhaps another reason Catherine has carried on the tradition of rotating red in her attire – and the explanation could be to do with equal parts science and the late Queen Elizabeth.

Getting scientific about it, red is the most eye-catching color because it has the longest wavelength of all the colors in the visible spectrum.

This means red literally hits our eyes before we process any other colors on the spectrum.

By standing out in such a way, Kate could be carrying on the lessons taught by the late Queen Elizabeth who famously donned the brightest colors possible so that fans could actually see her.

Her Majesty famously used to say she had “to be seen to be believed” and she wanted fans to be able to say they actually saw her amid the throngs of crowds, so she always wore attention-grabbing outfits – and, yes, this often included various shades of red.