Buckingham Palace has announced that the Princess of Wales has received three major new military titles from King Charles.
- The King has given various members of the Royal Family new military titles.
- The Prince and Princess of Wales were among the senior members of the family to receive these new roles.
- In other royal news, The title Kate Middleton took from Princess Margaret because of her and William's go-to place for romantic getaways.
Buckingham Palace has just announced that the senior members of the Royal Family will be receiving some major military titles. The Royal Family announced, "Following His Majesty’s Accession, The King is pleased to announce further military appointments for working members of the Royal Family. The new appointments will continue to reflect the close relationship between the Armed Forces and the Royal Family in His Majesty’s reign."
The Princess of Wales was a key recipient of some of these new appointments. The King awarded Catherine with three main titles: the Commodore-in-Chief, Fleet Air Arm, Colonel-in-Chief, 1st Queen’s Dragoon Guards, and Royal Honorary Air Commodore, RAF Coningsby.
The Princess of Wales’s existing military appointments include Colonel, Irish Guards, and Royal Honorary Air Commodore of the Air Cadets. Her Royal Highness is also a Sponsor of HMS Glasgow – the first of the Royal Navy’s new Type 26 Frigates which is currently under construction.
This is a particularly special appointment for the Princess as her grandfather served in the Royal Air Force.
When she served her previous royal military titles, Catherine opted to not wear a traditional uniform. In 2022, the Princess became the Colonel of the Irish Guards, taking over from her husband Prince William. This was highlighted back in 2023 when she attended the 2023 St. Patrick's Day Parade at Mons Barracks in March and opted to forgo a uniform. Instead, Kate Middleton’s St Patrick’s Day outfit side-stepped tradition with a bold turquoise colour palette. This could mean that the Princess will continue this tradition and not wear the corresponding uniform when she is serving in her new roles.
However, perhaps the Princess will wear a uniform as she has been seen wearing official uniforms in the past. For the King's coronation back in May, the Princess wore the Royal Victorian Order uniform at the King’s coronation alongside her Alexander McQueen white gown. Kate Middleton’s unique coronation headpiece paid utmost respect to King Charles as the Princess chose to wear a brand new headpiece designed by Alexander McQueen and London-based milliner Jess Collett. The piece was made from silver bullion and crystal and finished off with silver threadwork in the shape of leaves echoing the ‘nature’ theme of the event. Kate also adorably twinned with Princess Charlotte who wore a mini version of the sparkling leaf tiara.
Her clothing at the coronation could be an indicator of her new comfort when it comes to wearing a specific uniform, but the Royal Victorian Order uniform is non-military, meaning it may just be the one exception to Catherine's decision to not wear traditional uniforms to engagements.