Some bonds are unbreakable, and that's definitely the case when it comes to Kate Middleton's
relationship with her younger sister, Pippa Middleton.
Here's why the siblings have remained so remarkably close throughout the years.
Kate and Pippa Middleton have spent much of their lives in the spotlight, but they've
battled the ups and downs of that high-profile life together.
Kate, the older of the two sisters, was born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton on January 9,
1982.
Just two years later, her parents welcomed another daughter, Philippa Charlotte Middleton
on September 6, 1983.
While the girls have one younger brother, James Middleton, their sisterhood has been
a focal point of fans' adoration of the royal family.
Because they are close in age, Pippa and Kate went through many of life's milestones together.
From their early childhood days to the most lavish royal affairs, they've stayed incredibly
tight-knit.
In fact, the siblings say they care deeply about each other's well-being.
As Pippa told Today in 2014,
Details about Pippa and Kate Middleton's early life aren't actually much different from the
average family, as royal biographer Katie Nicholl explained in her 2013 book "Kate:
The Future Queen."
The Middleton family shared nightly dinners, with the sisters helping set the table.
They would also embark on family trips together, and even as the sisters got older, they lived
parallel lives.
Additionally, Kate and Pippa both joined the same Brownie troop, opting to stick together
as much as possible through early adolescence.
When it eventually came time for the siblings to go their separate ways, they still opted
for similar lifestyles.
Pippa and Kate both went to boarding school, which marked the first time they spent significant
time away from each other.
As Nicholl wrote in her book,
"The Middletons were an exceptionally close family."
Nicholl also revealed that there was a lot of "noise and laughter" in their upbringing.
Pippa and Kate Middleton were both very active growing up, and they wound up playing a variety
of different sports.
According to excerpts from Katie Nicholl's book "Kate: The Future Queen," Pippa was a
bit more athletic than her older sister, but both ladies made sports a big part of their
lives.
As their former coach told Nicholl,
"They had such drive and were very competitive, particularly Pippa.
[...] They were very much a team."
Kate highly preferred field hockey over other sports, according to Nicholl, so when both
sisters wound up attending Marlborough [MARL-bruh] College on full sports scholarships, it didn't
take long for them to get involved with the school hockey team.
Both Kate and Pippa Middleton are happily married, and while their weddings occurred
six years apart, there were some very similar moments in each ceremony.
Particularly, the moment they both helped carry each other's wedding dress trains captured
royal fans' hearts.
As People pointed out, for her 2011 wedding, Kate asked her sister to stand behind her
as she walked down the aisle and to hold her lengthy train.
Six years later, Kate did the same for her younger sister.
The duchess returned the favor and ensured the stunning Giles Deacon designed gown her
younger sister wore was in good hands.
Ironically enough, years after Pippa was accused of stealing the spotlight at her sister's
wedding, Kate was said to have done the same, according to Vogue.
Kate and Pippa Middleton have lived life under the public lens since their early twenties,
but they've managed to handle it with grace every step of the way.
It's clear in Pippa and Kate's respective interviews that they have nothing but the
utmost respect for each other.
As Pippa told Today during a 2014 interview,
"We spend a lot of time together.
We still do a lot together as a family."
She went on to explain that maintaining a semblance of normalcy is important to the
Middletons, saying,
"I think that's really the heart for all of us is having a really family that we can sort
of be normal with each other, treat each other normally.
And that's sort of kept us all, you know, affixed to the ground."
According to E! News, who shared excerpts of Katie Nicholl's biography, "Kate: The Future
Queen," the sisters grew up taking nature-centric excursions with their family.
Oftentimes they stayed local, embarking on countryside picnics.
However, as the Middleton sisters got older, the excursions became more elaborate, including
trips to tropical islands or adventures to the snowy French Alps.
There's no doubt that Kate's role as the Duchess of Cambridge has changed her and Pippa's lives
immensely, but the sisters' affinity for joint vacations reportedly hasn't changed.
No family is without at least some problems, and Pippa and Kate Middleton have certainly
faced theirs.
For instance, when Kate got married to Prince William in 2011, her younger sister was accused
of stealing the show.
Pippa looked drop-dead gorgeous at the royal wedding, and her beautiful dress commanded
attention around the world.
Reports soon started surfacing about a long-standing rivalry between the sisters.
The Scotsman reported per a source in 2008,
"[T]here is, allegedly, some jealousy between the pair.
[...] Kate was always quite jealous of Pippa.
I sensed that she feared being eclipsed by her."
Meanwhile, The Things aired out dramatic details of an alleged feud between Pippa and Kate.
The publication posted a video claiming the sisters have always had a rivalry which has
continued into adulthood.
But all in all, Pippa and Kate aren't unlike most families.
After all, no one is perfect.
For as much as Kate and Pippa Middleton have in common, they also have their fair share
of differences.
For starters, they lead very different lives, particularly when it comes to how much their
actions are filtered through the public lens.
As Prince William's wife, Kate is constantly being watched by people all around the world,
scrutinizing every move she makes.
Sure, the same could be said for Pippa, but the scrutiny isn't quite as intense, especially
as she technically isn't a royal.
Personality wise, Kate and Pippa are also very different.
As a source told The Scotsman in 2008,
"Pippa has more natural effervescence, she is socially much more at ease and was always
popular with everyone."
Pippa was also much pickier when it came to choosing her friendship circle, with the source
adding,
"She was very charming about it, but quite ruthless in cultivating the 'right' friend."
As Kate and Pippa Middleton grew older and started families of their own, they were still
super supportive of one another.
Kate welcomed her first child with Prince William on July 11, 2013 and named him Prince
George.
George's sister, Princess Charlotte, arrived in 2015, and three years later, Prince Louis
was born in 2018.
On October 2, 2018, when pregnant with her first child, Pippa was photographed at the
very same hospital Kate welcomed her children in.
Pippa would go on to give birth at that hospital on October 15, 2018, welcoming a healthy baby
boy.
Three years later, Pippa welcomed a baby girl.
Naturally, Pippa's older sister couldn't have been happier to see Pippa's family add a new
edition.
A source close to the Cambridges told Hello!,
"The Duke and Duchess are absolutely overjoyed by the happy news."
Life as a royal doesn't mean everything goes swimmingly all the time.
In 2007, Prince William broke up with Kate Middleton after five years of dating.
As Showbiz CheatSheet reported,
"Kate didn’t handle things . But it was her younger sister, Pippa, who helped her
pick up the pieces — and ended up playing a large role in the exes rekindling their
relationship."
Kate and William later reconciled and announced their engagement in November 2010, but the
happy ending may not have come to fruition without Kate's little sister.
Pippa reportedly encouraged her sister to get out and hit the town, distracting her
from the devastating breakup.
The photos of their fun-filled nights reportedly got back to William, who was allegedly sad
to see his ex living life without him.
Kate and Pippa Middleton are total tennis fanatics, and it's one of the many things
they've bonded over throughout their life.
A family friend told GQ in August 2012,
"The whole family are mad about tennis and they hate losing."
Not only do they enjoy hitting the courts, but Kate and Pippa have also been seen watching
pro tennis championships together.
In July 2019, they enjoyed a girls day out with Meghan Markle at Wimbledon . Additionally,
their love of tennis seems to have been passed on to their brother.
According to GQ, James Middleton grew up playing rounds of tennis with them in Chelsea.
The Middleton sisters and tennis have become so synonymous with one another that Kate made
a video about the cancellation of the 2020 Wimbledon tournament.
She explained,
"This year sadly though things are very different, but we will bide our time until we sit on
the edge of our seats again and celebrate again.
[...] So, when the time is right and we open the gates, we will be back again and it will
have been worth the wait."
As with any siblings, the dynamic between Kate and Pippa Middleton had shifted over
the years.
After years of playing on the same sports teams and joining the same Brownie troops,
Pippa and Kate's paths "diverged," as E! News reported.
Even as adults the Middleton sisters live parallel, though separate, lives.
After all, they both wound up attending Marlborough College, but it wasn't long after that the
sisters' lives both changed drastically.
When Kate enrolled at St. Andrews University in Scotland, she met Prince William and set
things on an entirely different course.
In the end, both Kate and Pippa have gained a sense of independence as they began their
own families.
They also battled fame that came with Kate's marriage together, but the sisters continue
to stick together through thick and thin.
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