As the oldest of parents Carole and Michael Middleton’s children â along with siblings Pippa and James Middleton â Kate Middleton has never had the chance to have an older sister. But these days, it seems like her “sisterly bond” with Sophie, the wife of Prince Edward, is making up for it, according to more than one royal expert.
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Kate and Sophie were most recently spotted together on Remembrance Sunday.
Kate and Sophie were seen chatting at the Remembrance Sunday service that honored fallen members of the British military earlier this month, and they showed all signs of having a close family relationship, laughing and chatting easily with each other. Sophie also put her hand on Kate’s back as they walked back inside after the service.
They have recently become a lot closer.
Royal expert Ingrid Seward told Hello! magazine that they seem to be warmer toward each other than they once were.
“The royals have always shown a human side but there is more warmth now,” Ingrid said. “That gesture of Sophie putting her arm around Kate is something you wouldn’t have seen a few years ago.”
“The royal family are all looking after Kate and there is a protective bubble around her,” royal biographer Robert Jobson added.
They seem to have a 'sisterly' relationship.
“They have a sisterly bond and Sophie is like the older sister Kate never had,” Ingrid said, per the magazine. “They are both incredibly kind girls and have a caring side to them. They are both protective of their children. Sophie has had a young family, so she knows what it’s like trying to protect them while being in the royal world.”
That must be invaluable to Kate, especially amid her cancer battle this year.
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The women have a lot in common.
Ingrid pointed out that Sophie had a scary, life-threatening experience of her own when she nearly died of internal bleeding after her daughter, Lady Louise, was born, and that might help her be especially understanding of Kate’s health crisis. And, like Kate, Sophie also joined the royal family as a commoner.
“They both had really long romances with their husbands-to-be and Sophie lived at the Palace. By the time they got married they had more knowledge than the royal brides before them about what they were getting into,” she added.
They're also both moms.
Kate is still very much in the thick of motherhood, and that’s something else they can bond over.
“The Duchess is not that far ahead in her motherhood journey â her son is still at school. And the two families now live close to one another,” royal author Robert Hardman told Hello! magazine.
It’s good to know that they can count on each other â especially while navigating life in the royal family, something that the vast majority of people will never understand.
