A viral Facebook post has sparked confusion recently after claiming that Kate Middleton was awarded a never-before-seen royal honour, titled the “Order of the Royal Heart”, by King Charles.
The post included a series of images seemingly from the royals’ French state dinner in July. However, it has since been confirmed to be entirely fake.
A Facebook post falsely claimed that Kate Middleton had been awarded something called an “Order of the Royal Heart” (Credit: Cover Images)
Kate Middleton did not receive Order of Royal Heart from King Charles
The post features AI-generated images of King Charles appearing to pin a badge onto Kate’s red state dinner gown.
The caption dramatically claimed: “This Changes Everything!: King Charles Defies Tradition and Revives Order of the Royal Heart for ‘Daughter’ Catherine.”
It went on to say the fictitious honour had “lain dormant since Queen Elizabeth bestowed it upon her in 1961,” and that Charles’ gesture left royal advisors “in a state of shock”.
However, there is no such honour as the Order of the Royal Heart. This is a completely fabricated story.
The Princess of Wales with husband, Prince William, during the July state visit (Credit: SplashNews.com)
What royal honour did Kate debut at the French state dinner?
The “Royal Heart” may be fake. However, Kate was seen wearing a new and meaningful decoration during the July 8 state banquet at Windsor Castle.
Making her first appearance at a state banquet since 2023, she debuted the Royal Family Order of King Charles III.
This is a genuine honour bestowed personally by the monarch to female royals in recognition of their dedicated service.
She wore it pinned to her sash just above the Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II.
“The tradition of commissioning a Family Order… was established by King George IV over 200 years ago,” Buckingham Palace confirmed. “Family Orders have since been instituted by Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, King George V, King George VI, and Queen Elizabeth II.”
Queen Camilla was the first to wear King Charles’ new Royal Family Order during the Japanese state visit in June 2024.
The Princess of Wales has received many honours during her time as a working royal (Credit: SplashNews.com)
Kate Middleton’s royal honours
The Princess of Wales has many royal honours under her belt.
Earlier this year, Kate and Prince William became official grantees of Royal Warrants.
The move allows the Prince and Princess of Wales to grant Royal Warrants, which are a “mark of recognition to people or companies who have regularly supplied goods or services to the Royal Household”, according to the royal family’s website.
Meanwhile, in 2024, Princess Kate made history once again when King Charles appointed her as the Royal Companion of the Order of the Companions of Honour. The role was specially created for her.
The honour recognises the princess’ service as a member of the royal family. It’s the first time a member of the royal family has been granted this position.
The honour came as Kate underwent preventative chemotherapy following her cancer diagnosis last year.
This highly exclusive order was founded in 1917. It recognises outstanding achievements in the arts, sciences, medicine, and public life.
Honours Queen Elizabeth II granted Kate
Meanwhile, before King Charles’ reign, Queen Elizabeth II also personally recognised Kate’s loyalty and dedication as a senior working royal.
In 2019, the late monarch granted her to become Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO).
This is the highest rank in the order, awarded for personal service to the sovereign. Kate debuted the insignia (a blue sash, silver star, and cross) at a U.S. state banquet in June 2019.
In 2017, Kate was also given the Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II, a personal gift worn by working female royals.
Kate became the first royal to wear a version made of glass instead of ivory, aligning with Prince William’s conservation work.
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