While Prince William has reportedly never been more protective of Princess Kate following her cancer diagnosis and ongoing, preventative treatment, it wasn't always rainbows and sunshine for the married couple.
According to royal expert Robert Jobson, who is preparing to release a new biography covering the Princess of Wales aptly titled Catherine, the Princess of Wales, Prince William once broke up with Kate Middleton...over the phone.
Prince William called Middleton to break things off in 2007 and after canceling New Year's Eve plans, US Weekly reports and according to the forthcoming biography.
"Seemingly out of the blue, William telephoned to initiate a split, telling her that he felt they needed ‘a bit of space’ to ‘find our own way,’” Jobson writes, while adding that at the time both Middleton and Prince William “acknowledged being on ‘different pages’” when it came to their relationship.
“William admitted his inability to commit to marriage, deepening Catherine’s sense of disappointment and loss,” Jobson writes in the book. “It was a devastating blow to her, after all their years of companionship. She also felt let down by William’s decision to handle the situation over the phone rather than face-to-face."
Jobson claims that the 2007 phone call and subsequent split was "not the first time William had brought their relationship to an end, but this time it felt different, more definitive."
The pair first met and started dating in 2001. In 2004, they "parted ways briefly," according to Jobson, as a result of their "youthfulness."
Jobson claims that the 2007 split was difficult for Princess Kate, who was "not anticipating an immediate marriage proposal or engagement ring" but was hoping for "some form of greater commitment."
Prince William eventually proposed to Middleton on November 16, 2010 and the pair walked down the aisle on April 29, 2011.
According to a recent report from The Mirror, the Prince of Wales waited to propose because he “was acutely aware of the stresses of being tied to a royal and wished to give her a chance to ‘back out’ if she felt she wouldn’t have been able to cope with life as a Queen."
“I wanted to give her a chance to see in and to back out if she needed to before it all got too much,” Prince William said in an interview ITV’s Tom Bradby shortly after his engagement.
“I’m trying to learn from lessons done in the past,” he continued, “and I just wanted to give her the best chance to settle in and to see what happens on the other side.”
