Royal heartbreak: Kate and William forced to ‘question’ relationship after devastating row

KATE, the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William’s marriage is stronger than ever but the royals once suffered a brutal row that caused them to question their relationship, an expert claimed.

Like all couples, Kate and Prince William have faced many tests during their long relationship. Long before the pomp and ceremony of their fairytale wedding at Westminster Abbey – and before Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis were even a twinkle in William’s eye – William and Kate were recent secondary school leavers in the throes of a long-distance relationship after they met at university. During this period the youngsters reportedly had a row after William refused to spend News Year’s Eve with Kate’s family.

The fall out is thought to have been one of the driving factors behind a fleeting breakup, which was heartbreaking for the couple but taught them valuable lessons about themselves and their relationship.

Referring to the tumultuous time for the couple in a discussion on Kate and William’s wedding, amid the couple’s ninth wedding anniversary on April 29, royal expert Angela Mollard explained the brief breakup had given the Cambridges the space they needed to question their relationship.

She told the ROYALS podcast this week: “It felt like a wedding that came not in a hurry.

“They had all those years together.

“They had split up during that time.

“So they had been able to really question if this was a relationship they wanted going forward.”

Referring to more recent images of the Cambridges, Ms Mollard argued the couple now appear stronger than ever.

She said: “And when you look at those pictures they certainly appear more solid than ever.”

Talking about the split, William has previously admitted it gave him the space he needed at the time.

He said: “Well I think, to be honest, I wouldn’t believe everything you read in the paper but in that particular instance we did split up for a bit.

“But that was just, we both were very young, it was at university, we were sort of both finding ourselves as such and being different characters. It was very much trying to find our own way and we were growing up, and so it was just sort of a bit of space and a bit of things like that and it worked out for the better.”

Kate has also shared her views on the temporary break up, revealing it made her stronger.

She said: “I think I at the time wasn’t very happy about it, but actually it made me a stronger person. 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, looking back on it.”