Kate, Pippa and James: A look back at the Middletons’ childhood – 9Honey

When the Duchess of Cambridge married Prince William in 2011, her close-knit relationship with her younger sister and brother was hard to miss. 
Pippa served as Kate’s maid-of-honour, standing by her side as she took her vows in front of the world in what was the wedding of the year.
Their younger brother James overcame dyslexia to give a reading at the ceremony, later recalling: “It was me, as a brother, doing a reading for my sister I wanted to do it right.” 
Pippa Middleton carries sister Kate’s train at her 2011 wedding to Prince William. (Getty)
Kate’s closeness with her siblings and parents Michael and Carole Middleton has been an important foundation in her royal life.
Here, 9Honey takes a look at the Middleton family and the childhood that saw Catherine Middleton become the future Queen of England
The beginning
Catherine, Philippa (Pippa) and James Middleton were each born at Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading, UK in 1982, 1983 and 1987 respectively.
They were baptised at St Andrew’s Bradfield, a local parish church, and lived in West Berkshire in Britain until May 1984 when Michael and Carole moved the family to Amman in Jordan.
There, Michael worked for British Airways until September 1986, with Kate and Pippa attending an English-speaking nursery school.
Carole Middleton holding infant Catherine in a photo shared by the Duchess for Mother’s Day. (Instagram @kensingtonroyal)
The girls were aged four and three when the family returned to the UK to live in West Berkshire once more in September 1986.
That same year, Carole – a former flight dispatcher and flight attendant – founded Party Pieces, a mail-order company that sells party supplies and decorations.
In 1990, Catherine and Pippa joined the local Brownies club which saw them participating in activities such as field trips to earn badges, sport and needlework.
School days
Michael Middleton’s family has ties to the British aristocracy, and it is understood that this included a trust fund for the family established over 100 years ago. It is also understood that their ancestors mixed with royalty all that time ago.
Michael Middleton with Catherine at the family home. (Kensington Royal)
Carole’s business took off and is now worth an estimated £30 million (AUD $54 million), which enabled the Middletons to send their children to the best schools Britain had to offer.
Kate and Pippa both attended St Andrew’s Preparatory School, a private school near Pangbourne in Berkshire where they boarded part-weekly in their later years.
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It was here Catherine became interested in theatre, playing Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady at the age of 11 and starring in Murder in the Red Barn at the age of 13.
Catherine went on to attend Downe House School, but said she was bullied by other girls so moved to Malborough College in Wiltshire, where she did much better, studying chemistry and biology and playing sports on behalf of the school including tennis, hockey and netball as well as athletics.
Catherine, Pippa and Carole Middleton pictured in the leadup to the 2011 royal wedding. (Getty)
Before university Catherine took a gap year during which she travelled to Chile and participated in a Raleigh International Program. She also studied at the British Institute of Florence in Italy.
When she returned to the UK Catherine attended the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland where she met her future husband, Prince William.
Pippa also attended St Andrews Preparatory School and then Downe House School before moving to Marlborough College, where she held a sports/all-rounder scholarship. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh with an English degree.
James also attended St Andrew’s School and Marlborough College before attending the University of Edinburgh for a year in 2006 before dropping out.
James battled dyslexia, a learning disorder characterised by difficulty reading, from a young age. He told Daily Mail that as a boy even reading in class “terrified him”, but he was able to overcome the condition to do a reading at Catherine and William’s 2011 wedding.
A ‘very happy’ childhood
Catherine, now a mother to Prince George, six, Princess Charlotte, five and Prince Louis, two, spoke glowingly about her childhood on Giovanna Fletcher’s podcast ‘Happy Mum, Happy Baby’ earlier this year.
“I had an amazing granny who devoted a lot of time to us, playing with us, doing arts and crafts and going to the greenhouse to do gardening, and cooking with us,” she said.
“And I try and incorporate a lot of the experiences that she gave us at the time into the experiences that I give my children now.”
She described her childhood as “happy” and “fun”, telling the podcast she had “a very happy childhood”.
Catherine Middleton, aged three and a half, on holiday in the Lake District. (PR IMAGE)
“It was great fun and I’m very lucky I come from a very strong family,” she said.
“My parents were hugely dedicated. I really appreciate now as a parent how much they sacrificed for us. They came to every sports match, they’d be the ones on the sideline shouting, and we’d always have our family holidays together.”
RELATED:James Middleton shares beautiful post about Kate
All three of the Middleton children were heavily into sports, with Catherine participating in athletics and swimming, and were also encouraged to study languages. The Duchess chose French and German.
The Middleton children also spent a lot of time outdoors, with Catherine telling the ‘Happy Mum, Happy Baby’ podcast the family would go on walks together.
Pippa and Kate pictured while out clubbing in 2007. (Getty)
“As children, we spent a lot of time outside and it’s something I’m really passionate about,” she said of raising her own children.
Raising a future queen
Speaking about raising Catherine, Pippa and James, Carole Middleton told The Telegraph she believed the most important quality of a good parent was “discipline”, adding that for her, that meant giving children structure and teaching them manners from a young age.
“That doesn’t mean you’re strict, but routine is vital,” she said.
“Maybe structure is a nicer word. You can’t suddenly start teaching them about politeness at 13. You have to do it from the start.”
Pippa and James Middleton in 2018. (AP)
The next generation
Kate and Pippa are now parents themselves, and if outward appearances are anything to go by, they are giving their children the same loving and dynamic childhoods they enjoyed.
Kate and William have focused on raising their children away from the public eye as much as possible, with photos of the family spending time outdoors being shared online.
Pippa married James Matthews in 2017 and has one child – Arthur, two.
James announced his engagement to Alizée Thevenet last year, however their wedding has been delayed by the coronavirus crisis.
In recent years, he has spoken openly about his battle with depression and the support his family has provided throughout which goes some way to explaining his big sister’s focus on mental health through patronages including Heads Together.
Kate and William now have three children of their own. (Getty)
In fact, James says his family, including big sister Catherine, came to therapy with him.
He wrote in Daily Mail: “My family were proactive in helping me enormously it has been an education for all of us to understand the complex nature of depression.”
One thing is for sure. When Kate does become Queen, she will have the unflinching support of her devoted family to help her meet all of the expectations of the role.
Sources for this article include Vanity Fair, Hello!, The Telegraph, Daily Mail and Press Association.
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