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Royal Wedding: Kate Middleton’s Role Revealed

The Fab Four that is Kate Middleton, Prince William, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle may be reuniting at the upcoming royal wedding, but expect Kate to take a backseat to the action that occurs at the front of St. George’s Chapel.

While Prince William is widely expected to be Harry’s best man, Kate—who is due to give birth to baby number three any day now— has been told there is “no pressure” on her to do anything at next month’s wedding in Windsor. While there has been speculation in the press that Kate might have been asked to be a bridesmaid, Vanity Fair has learned that the post-partum Duchess has been relieved of any duties on the day.

“Frankly Harry and Meghan are just happy that Kate will be there given she will only just have given birth,” said a source. “They have told her there is no pressure on her to do anything, they just want her to enjoy the day.”

Harry and Meghan are said to want “small people” in the bridal party, and as Vanity Fair reported yesterday Prince George is set to be a page boy while Princess Charlotte will likely be a flower girl.

The couple are being helped behind the scenes by Meghan’s best friend Jessica Mulroney, whose daughter Ivy is also expected to be a bridesmaid. Jessica may also have been given the role of Maid of Honor, although Palace sources have not confirmed who will be in the bridal party, andsay further details will be released in due course.

The couple’s decision not to ask Kate to take a formal role at their nuptials shouldn’t be seen as a snub, however, according to the source. “They just want Kate to be able to enjoy the day and not worry about anything. Harry has said there’s no pressure on her to do anything. They know Kate will have her hands full.”

At her sister Pippa’s wedding last May Kate was in charge of looking after Pippa’s bridal party, and she was pictured keeping George and Charlotte in check and at one point having a stern word with the little Prince when he was acting up. This time she will be taking care of a newborn and enjoying a breakfrom wedding duties.

It has been reported that Kate is due to give birth on Monday, April 23, which is St. George’s Day, but Kate has been late with her two previous pregnancies. The new prince or princess could even arrive on the couple’s seventh wedding anniversary on April 29th. Princess Charlotte turns 3 on May 2 so it’s going to be a busy time in the Cambridge household no matter what.

The Famous and Controversial Guests of Queen Elizabeth, Princess Diana, and Kate Middleton’s Weddings

Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine, in fur, at the wedding of the newly titled Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and then-Princess Elizabeth. Please refer to season one of Netflix’s The Crown for the underlying dramas that this picture does not convey.
Margaret Thatcher had only served two years as Britain’s prime minister when she attended Princess Diana and Prince Charles’s wedding in July 1981.

Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher had only served two years as Britain’s prime minister when she attended Princess Diana and Prince Charles’s wedding in July 1981.
By Serge Lemoine/Hulton Archive/Getty Images.
The other member of conservative royalty, U.S. First Lady Nancy Reagan, was in attendance as well.

Nancy Reagan

The other member of conservative royalty, U.S. First Lady Nancy Reagan, was in attendance as well.
From Bettmann Collection.
Princess Diana once recalled how kind Grace Kelly had been to her during a public event after she and Charles were engaged. Princess Grace would pass away in a car accident a year after the wedding, and Diana requested to attend the funeral, since they had had so much in common.
Elton John was a close friend of Prince William’s mother, Princess Diana (despite a brief falling out). The “Candle in the Wind” singer reportedly got misty-eyed as the couple walked down the aisle.
A pop star, a footballer, and their hats. Victoria Beckham was pregnant with their fourth child, Harper, when she attended Prince William’s wedding, and paired the famous milliner Philip Treacy design with one of her own. David wore Ralph Lauren and majorly goofed by wearing his O.B.E. medal on the wrong lapel. The horror!
British tabloids did a double take at singer Joss Stone’s conservative look for Will and Kate’s day. They were used to more of a “hippie” vibe.
Ah yes, the most famous couple of all at this particular wedding: the father and stepmother of the groom.

Prince Charles and Camilla

Ah yes, the most famous couple of all at this particular wedding: the father and stepmother of the groom.
By Odd Anderson/AFP/Getty Images.
Hello! magazine readers voted the princess as “The Most Elegant Guest,” so!
Philip Treacy strikes again on the head of Princess Mathilde.

Crown Princess Mathilde and Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium

Philip Treacy strikes again on the head of Princess Mathilde.
By Tim Rooke/REX/Shutterstock.
The hats heard round the world! (Two more Philip Treacy originals.)
The biggest V.I.P. of all, Her Majesty Elizabeth II, Queen of England, in a buttery yellow.

Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip

The biggest V.I.P. of all, Her Majesty Elizabeth II, Queen of England, in a buttery yellow.
By David Hartley/REX/Shutterstock.
Palmer-Tomkinson, an English socialite who once appeared on I’m a Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here!, was a vision in blue at Prince William and Kate’s wedding. (She was also in attendance at Prince Charles and Camilla’s wedding in 2005.) She died in 2017 at the age of 45.
Enterprising genealogists made a tenuous link between British filmmaker Guy Ritchie and Kate Middleton at the time of the wedding, but he was likely invited as a friend of the royal family.
And now the Spanish Inquisition! Queen Letizia of Spain was merely the humble Princess Letizia of Asturias in 2011, but attended the festivities with her husband and mother-in-law.
Marina Fogle and her husband Ben, the British broadcaster and explorer, with bleached tips and tails.

Ben and Marina Fogle

Marina Fogle and her husband Ben, the British broadcaster and explorer, with bleached tips and tails.
By Jasper Juinen/Getty Images.
These two would tie the knot three months after Kate and William, though there were reports that Charlene had attempted to run away. (Both parties denied the allegations.)