5 Times Princess Kate Put Her Foot Down With Prince William

Princess Kate may be known for her calm nature, but that does not mean she always agrees with Prince William. From decisions about their children's upbringing to setting boundaries before their wedding, the Princess of Wales has reportedly made her opinions clear. Over the years, there have reportedly been several instances where Kate has even challenged royal traditions, standing firm on what matters to her.

Kate reportedly drew a line when it came to the royal hunting tradition known as “blooding.” The practice involves smearing the blood of an animal's first kill on a hunter's face. According to royal expert Tom Quinn's book Yes, Ma'am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants, Kate did not want Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis to take part in the ritual. “[King] Charles’ daughter-in-law, Catherine, Princess of Wales, has put her foot down and insisted there will be no blooding for her children," Quinn wrote in his book. He stated that while William and Prince Harry experienced the tradition when they were younger, Kate reportedly put her foot down when it came to her children.

Kate never wanted any of her kids to go to boarding school despite it being a royal tradition. Prince George may have moved to Eton College, but Charlotte and Louis may not attend boarding school. Kate reportedly put her foot down, stressing that sending “one child at boarding school is enough.” In a conversation with Closer, an insider revealed that owing to her own bad experience at boarding school, where she was bullied, Kate did not want her kids to go away. She allegedly had multiple fights with William over it, but with George gone, she has now reportedly decided that Charlotte and Louis will not have the same fate. "Neither of them will be King nor Queen, so she doesn't want their childhoods to be burdened by a sense of duty," the source added.

In 2006, William reportedly invited Kate to spend Christmas with the Royal Family at Sandringham, even though they were not engaged. However, Kate chose to spend the holiday with her own family instead. According to royal historian Robert Lacey, as shared in his book, Battle of Brothers, Kate had insisted she would only join the royal family for Christmas once she had “a ring on her finger.” Lacey explained, "It was the first time the Queen had extended such an invitation to an unregistered 'girlfriend', but Kate had her own take on that break with tradition: she would go to Sandringham on Christmas Day only when she was engaged and had a ring to prove it." The decision showed that Kate wasn't going to enter the royal fold before she and William had formally committed to marriage.

Kate reportedly made it clear before her 2011 wedding that she did not want to be restricted to a traditional royal role. In his book Catherine, the Princess of Wales, royal author Robert Jobson discussed how she was determined not to be “pigeonholed” within the House of Windsor. Jobson explained, “[Kate] established some fundamental life rules that she would stick to when she joined The Firm. Her ‘terms’ were, in fact, presented to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles.” He continued, “She was clear from the outset that she would not be pigeonholed into carrying out particular duties. Her priority, she emphasized, would always be her family."

Kate and William started living together after the Prince began his search-and-rescue pilot training at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales, and eventually moved into a cottage together on the Bodorgan Estate in 2010. The decision had reportedly come after Kate put her foot down against enduring another long-distance separation following their past breakups and insisted on living together. Robert Jobson, in his 2024 book Catherine, The Princess of Wales: The Biography, revealed that the couple decided on a four-bedroom farmhouse near his base where they could live together to avoid long-distance.