3 September 2026
Catherine, Princess of Wales reportedly had to teach Prince William how to give his children a piggyback because the future king had never experienced one himself as a child.
Catherine, Princess of Wales taught Prince William an everyday parenting skill that was missing from his own royal childhood
The unusual insight into the Prince and Princess of Wales’ parenting relationship comes from former royal household staff quoted in author Tom Quinn’s book, Yes Ma’am: The Secret Life of Royal Servants.
According to a former Kensington Palace maid, Kate helped William understand some of the everyday ways parents interact with their children after his very different upbringing within the Royal Family.
The maid reportedly told Quinn: “Kate had to explain many of the things that parents outside the royal family do with their children as a matter of course.
“She had to show him how to give the children a piggyback, for example. William said very quietly, ‘My father never gave me a piggyback.’”
William and his younger brother Prince Harry grew up under intense public scrutiny as the sons of King Charles III and the late Princess Diana.
Despite the privileges of royal life, their childhood was very different from that experienced by many other families.
Former palace employees have also claimed Kate plays a calming role within her marriage.
One former member of staff told Quinn: “I don’t know where William would be without Kate – she hasn’t had everything done for her throughout her life, so she calms him down when he gets a bit fractious.
“She said he sometimes has to be treated as her fourth child.”
Kate and William have three children together: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
The couple married at Westminster Abbey in London on April 29, 2011, after meeting while studying at the University of St Andrews.
Kate reportedly also faced a learning curve of her own when she entered royal life, with former staff claiming she carefully observed palace customs and was willing to take advice.
A former Kensington Palace employee said: “Kate was always happy to accept advice both from the lower staff, with whom she got on very well, and from the courtiers, even though some of them were initially very snooty about her.”