Little known royal rule stopped Prince William giving Kate Middleton special title

Prince William's hopes to give his wife Kate Middleton a special title was rejected by the late Queen Elizabeth II due to a little known royal rule.

William, the Duke of Cambridge, married Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, in 2011 at a televised ceremony watched by 162 million people across the globe.

William is next in line to the throne, and together with Kate has three children; Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

The royal couple met at the University of St Andrews, with William proposing with his late mother Princess Diana's engagement ring.

When the two were wed, William had hoped to give Kate a special title but was refused.

In 2010, a courtier told the Daily Telegraph: "He says he was born Prince William and wants to continue to be known as that. William also had views on the name Kate should have taken on. He wants Kate to become Princess Catherine."

Ultimately, the Queen rejected the plea, reportedly due to a belief that people become princesses as a result of birthright rather than through marriage.

Kenneth Rose, a royal historian, added: "Kate is a commoner and could not be known as 'Princess Catherine'.

Prince William and Kate married in 2011 (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

"However, it is up to the Queen Elizabeth II what title she gives her and there have been one or two exceptions.

"When Prince Henry, the Duke of Gloucester died, the Queen gave the Duchess of Gloucester the title Princess Alice. This was, though, to reward her for years of loyal service."

Of course, the Duchess also now uses the title of Princess Kate - but it is thought that the idea was rejected at the time because it was, in a sense, too soon - and could potentially lead to further members of the royal family making similar requests.

Following the marriage between the pair, Kate became known as Princess William of Wales - the feminine iteration of William's title.

Kate and William have three children (Comic Relief/BBC Children in Need/Comic Relief via Getty Images)

After Queen Elizabeth II's passing in 2022, Charles became King - and Kate became Catherine, The Princess of Wales, as a result of her husband receiving his father’s title of the Prince of Wales.

Princess Kate is now starting to return to the spotlight having completing chemotherapy and being declared cancer-free.

Kate accompanied a family video with the news on 9 September, writing: "Doing what I can to stay cancer-free is now my focus. Although I have finished chemotherapy, my path to healing and full recovery is long and I must continue to take each day as it comes.

"I am however looking forward to being back at work and undertaking a few more public engagements in the coming months when I can.

"Despite all that has gone before, I enter this new phase of recovery with a renewed sense of hope and appreciation of life."