Kate Middleton and Prince William's Wedding Anniversary – Why Queen Elizabeth Was Uncharacteristically Overjoyed on Wedding Day

Kate Middleton And Prince William's Wedding Day

Queen Elizabeth was delighted to watch Kate Middleton and Prince William get married in 2011.

However, she was even more emotional than expected. Courtiers have told that the monarch was uncharacteristically overjoyed on the couple's wedding day, content in the knowledge that the line of succession, so fraught in the years following the checkered marriages of three of her children, was secure.

Hearing from the Queen that you are doing a great job, along with getting support from your husband and confidence, a close royal insider tells of Kate in this week's cover story.

There was much that the Queen saw in Kate that day and in the years that have followed that reminds her of herself.

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Although they are in age by 56 years, the Queen, 96, and Kate, 40, share key qualifications for the job: quiet stoicism, unerring discretion, and firm loyalty. Their opinions on contentious political issues are never heard; their commitment to the throne is unwavering, and their public images are tightly controlled.

They also married strong partners in life. Kate has said she's in good hands with William, while the Queen called her late husband, Prince Philip, her "strength and stay."

Before she wed, Kate had tea with ladies-in-waiting and briefings from private secretaries. People wanted it to work, a royal insider. And everyone has been rewarded with efforts.

Alongside her husband, second-in-line Prince William, Kate is poised to enjoy a long reign in which she and William will carve their path while honoring past traditions.

And she's doing so with the best role model available: the record-breaking monarch, 96-year-old Queen Elizabeth.

Catherine has learned by observing, says the Queen's biographer Sally Bedell Smith. She knows what resonates. She will have absorbed a lot from this Queen.