Here's why Kate Middleton gave Prince Charles' garden party a miss
The newly wed royals, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle, made their first post-wedding appearance at Prince Charles' 70th birthday patronage celebration in Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.
While Prince Harry said a few words at the podium, Meghan stood with Prince Charles and his wife Camilla Parker Bowles. However, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William, and Kate Middleton were notably missing from the event.
Prince William was instead speaking at a tribute to the Manchester Arena bombing victims which took place at the Manchester Cathedral over a year ago. The bomb explosion killed 22 people and injured hundreds of others who were present to see Ariana Grande perform at the Manchester Arena.
William gave a very solemn speech to honor the ones who were tragically killed and also placed a message on the Tree of Hope which is a memorial where people can leave remembrance notes.
Kate Middleton was also not present at Prince Charles' garden party. She is still on her maternity leave after giving birth to birth to her and Prince William's third child, Prince Louis, on April 23.
Duncan Larcombe, author of 'Prince Harry: The Inside Story' and royal biographer, spoke to Harper's Bazaar and said, "It is traditional for new royal mums to take a six-month break from official engagements. The wedding doesn’t count because it was a 'family affair' but other than that, she will pick and choose her engagements."
"If she wanted, Kate could disappear into the background until October!" he added.
According to Larcombe, the next time we will see Kate Middleton will probably be at the Trooping of the Colour, the Queen's official birthday celebration in June.
Historian Marlene Koeing explains that letting Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have their first post-wedding appearance alone could also have been intentional. As reported by Goodhousekeeping, Koeing shared, "The Duchess of Cambridge is on maternity leave, but I believe the idea was to have the newlyweds attend — the Duchess of Sussex’s first engagement as a royal — and accompany the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall."
"This would allow the new Duchess to experience her first royal engagement after her wedding," she continued. Larcombe added that Kate would not have minded sitting this event out at all. "To be honest, the annual garden parties are seen as a chore. Two thousand guests trying to speak to a royal. so I’m not in the least bit surprised Kate has given it a swerve."
