Kate Middleton's 'ultimatum' for Prince William ahead of break-up

Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales arrive to visit Aros Hall, a local community hub on April 29, 2025 — (Image credit: Photo by Oli Scarff - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

This April the Prince and Princess of Wales will be celebrating their 15th wedding anniversary and they’ve cemented a place in history as a royal golden couple. Yet in the early days they faced some tough times like anyone else and briefly broke up in 2007.

William and Kate later addressed this in their engagement interview and now royal author Russell Myers has revealed that the Princess delivered "ultimatum" shortly before the break-up. Writing in his soon-to-be released book, William & Catherine, he suggested it was a turning point for Kate.

Prince William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales arrive for a visit to the National Curling Academy on January 20, 2026

Kate was reportedly very clear with the Prince about what she wanted for the future and a "long-standing friend who she confided in at the time" told Myers that the Princess was "miserable, but she certainly wasn’t desperate".

They added, "She felt as though she had nothing to lose and for the first time she probably relayed her true feelings to William. She wasn’t demanding an engagement, but she wanted a commitment, and if he couldn’t deliver that, well, then she left him in no doubt that it was best they go their separate ways."

Shortly after Kate’s reported "ultimatum", the couple did split up, although only for a matter of months before reuniting. Royal expert Myers believes that Queen Elizabeth was instrumental in bringing them back together after sensing her grandson was "struggling".

Kate, Prince William and Queen Elizabeth II smile as they visit Vernon Park

In William & Catherine he writes that the Queen invited Prince William for Sunday lunch to "judge his mood" and found he was "more than just crestfallen". The future King was said to be "worried about whether he was throwing away the one constant in his life".

Queen Elizabeth, who was married to Prince Philip for 73 years, gave William some valuable advice - "that the only certain path is the one supported by faith". This was apparently "all she had to say" and the Prince and Princess of Wales were soon back together.

Within another three years, they were engaged and sat down with ITV News’s Tom Bradby to discuss the proposal, their goals for the future and plenty more. When they were asked about the break-up, the Princess responded, "I think at the time I wasn’t very happy about it, but actually it made me a stronger person."

Prince William and Kate Middleton pose for photographs in the State Apartments of St James Palace on November 16, 2010

"You find out things about yourself that maybe you hadn’t realised, or I think you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you are younger and I really valued that time for me as well although I didn’t think it at the time," she added.

Her "ultimatum" and the subsequent short separation clearly had a lot of positive impacts although they were challenging. Now the Prince and Princess of Wales are months away from their 15th wedding anniversary and given they shared a video and photos to mark 10 years, I would expect some more new releases to mark this happy occasion.

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Emma is a Royal Editor with nine years of experience in publishing. She specialises in writing about the British Royal Family, covering everything from protocol to outfits. Alongside putting her extensive royal knowledge to good use, Emma knows all there is to know about the latest TV shows on the BBC, ITV and more. When she’s not writing about the latest royal outing or unmissable show to add to your to-watch list, Emma enjoys cooking, long walks and watching yet more crime dramas!

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