The truth is, nobody would have expected Kate Middleton to become one of the subjects of the craziest conspiracy theories on the internet, but here we are today, wondering why the royal family is having such a hard time communicating details of the situation.
Everything happened when the Princess announced a “planned abdominal surgery” in mid-January. Then, people started noticing the lack of information, pictures, and updates about Kate.
It all exploded when Kensington Palace posted an uncanny picture of Kate and her children. People were quick to notice it was photoshopped and started pointing out the errors in the photograph, such as blurry edges, Kate’s missing wedding ring, and distortion on the bodies. Later, Kate wrote on X: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.” This started a chain of conspiracy theories about the whereabouts of Kate and the mysterious way the Royal Family was addressing the concerns of the people.
If you want to keep up with the details about this controversy, here is a timeline of the events that led to this Royal Crisis.
December 2023
Dec 25. Kate Middleton attended the royal family’s annual church service at Sandringham. This is the last time we saw the princess for months.
January
January 17. Kensington Palace announces Kate Middleton is having abdominal surgery. A statement was released saying she was admitted to the hospital on January 16 and she would not return to royal duties until Easter. A few weeks later, Kensington Palace released a statement that the Princess of Wales was admitted to the hospital for “abdominal surgery” on January 16. Due to medical advice, she would not return to public duties until Easter. They also asked for privacy: “The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate,”. “She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normalcy for her children as possible.” A representative wrote.
The Princess of Wales is in hospital after planned abdominal surgery.
She’ll remain there for 10-14 days and is unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter, which is March 31 pic.twitter.com/daXkMt4478
— Patricia Treble (@PatriciaTreble) January 17, 2024
January 17. On the same day, King Charles announced he was seeking treatment for an enlarged prostate.
January 29. The Princess returned from the Hospital. There were no pictures of her leaving the London clinic, but this could be due to her desire for privacy.
February
February 5. On this day, King Charles announced he had cancer, and was seeking treatment. The Buckingham Palace shared that he remained positive and that he was looking forward to returning to full public duty as soon as possible.
A statement from Buckingham Palace: https://t.co/zmYuaWBKw6
📷 Samir Hussein pic.twitter.com/xypBLHHQJb
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) February 5, 2024
February 27. In late February, Prince William made the decision to withdraw from attending a memorial service for his godfather, King Constantine of Greece, citing personal reasons. Although anonymous royal sources clarified to news outlets such as CNN that the cancellation was unrelated to any health issues concerning the princess, speculation quickly arose.
February 29. Kensington Palace reasserted their statement; “We were very clear from the outset that the Princess of Wales was out until after Easter and Kensington Palace would only be providing updates when something was significant”. They also added the Princess was “doing well.”
March
March 4. New pictures published by TMZ showed Kate and her mother driving around Windsor Castle. “The Princess of Wales was seen riding as a passenger Monday in a vehicle driven by her mother, Carole, near Windsor Castle in the UK … and as we said, this sighting is a big deal considering we haven’t seen her at all since December.”
March 10. The last straw was when Middleton posted a photograph of herself and her children. The picture was allegedly taken by William. The Associated Press issued a “kill order” as they detected that the image was manipulated. The very next morning, she addressed the mistake via X.
Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 11, 2024
March 18. More than a week after the Photoshop controversy, The Sun claimed Kate and William were spotted at a farm shop in Windsor. Then, TMZ published photo evidence and a video of the couple walking and smiling. Many people claimed Kate looked different. Additionally, some people spotted what appeared to be “Christmas ornaments” hanging in the background.
March 19. Finally, rumors emerged on social media, saying that the BBC has been told to be on high alert for an announcement from the royal family. Of course, people speculated wildly as a lot of things could be announced: King Charles’ health, Kate Middleton’s health, a divorce, or that Kate is stepping down from Royal duties. What do you think it could be?
bbc standing by for a royal announcement….. pic.twitter.com/fI5TbYOYj8
— bia 🪐 (@nancysglock) March 17, 2024
