The Queen makes Kate Middleton a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order on her eighth wedding anniversary
The Queen approves! Kate Middleton has received the Queen's highest seal of approval when she was made a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order on the occasion of her eighth wedding anniversary to Prince William. The announcement was made by Buckingham Palace on Monday, April 29, even as the Royal family prepared to welcome the birth of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's baby.
According to reports, all awards under the Royal Victorian Order are made personally by the Queen, which she bestows for services to the sovereign. It's likely that the Queen granted the prestigious honor on her granddaughter-in-law in recognition of her work as a member of the monarchy.
The Duchess of Cambridge's new designation definitely comes as a boost for her and her royal image even as she continues to be monumental in supporting her own causes such as the early development of children, making her perfect for the role.
Kate has also extensively traveled the Commonwealth on behalf of the monarch and helped to raise awareness about mental health alongside her husband and Prince Harry. However, hours after Kate's new royal role was announced, the supposed "rivalry" between the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Sussex once again made it to the news.
Rumors of a feud between Meghan and Kate emerged for the first time last year, when Meghan and Prince Harry, whose first child is expected to arrive imminently, announced they would move out of Kensington Palace to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor. There were also stories about how Kate was left in tears following Princess Charlotte's bridesmaid's dress fitting, ahead of the wedding of Meghan and Harry in May.
Despite the Palace shutting down these rumors, hundreds of Royal fans took to Twitter to comment on Kate’s new honor and compare the two Duchess' roles in the family. While one Meghan supporter believed that the Hollywood beauty was more eligible for the role than Kate, supporters of the Duchess of Cambridge reminded others that the award is a personal honor from the Queen.
A fan of Meghan said: "She deserves the Royal Order more than Kate. I'm sorry! I expect her to receive one in a year or two. She's done more representing to the Queen than Kate has done in 8 whole years!" To which, a Kate fan replied: "People trying to say Meghan should have gotten the honor due to her working more than Kate omg people. The Queen gave it to Catherine for a reason my god. Must they tear Catherine down every damn time Like RELAX people."
Another wrote: "HM [her majesty] seems to bestow honors when she feels they are earned or helpful to the monarchy or in recognition of some important occasion. This one isn't about the count of engagements. IMO it's recognition of how DoC is doing as a mentee, incl what she's had put up with. A thank you from HM."