• Kate Middleton and Prince William greeted Germany’s President and First Lady on December 3 as they arrived in the U.K. for a three-day state visit.
  • The Princess of Wales wore a royal blue Alexander McQueen coat that she’d previously worn on Christmas Day 2023—just before she was diagnosed with cancer.
  • It is a symbolic testament to what two years can do to a life—and to the future queen’s inner strength.

As she so often does, Kate Middleton waved the flag for British fashion as she welcomed Germany’s President and First Lady to the U.K. for a state visit alongside her husband Prince William.

The Princess of Wales coordinated in blue with Queen Camilla to kick off the three-day state visit on December 3, with Kate wearing a blue Alexander McQueen coat atop a black Burberry dress. She wore a pair of Princess Diana’s sapphire and diamond earrings, a Juliette Millinery fascinator, and the Prince of Wales Feathers Brooch—a nod to William, who carries that title. If that’s not enough, she also subtly switched up her hairstyle, wearing it down and straight as opposed to the soft curls she often wears.

Kate Middleton in Princess Diana’s earrings on December 3, 2025.

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But the future queen’s Alexander McQueen coat and Juliette Millinery fascinator have a deeper meaning than meets the eye—as so often is the case with royal fashion. It’s the last outfit the public saw Kate in before her harrowing cancer diagnosis began; the Princess of Wales wore the ensemble on Christmas Day 2023, just weeks before she underwent major abdominal surgery in January that ultimately detected cancer. Kate was absent from public life until March 22, when she released a video message that she had been diagnosed with cancer; her first public appearance wasn’t until June 2024 at Trooping the Colour, and her public appearances were sparse throughout the rest of the year as she completed cancer treatment.

Leave it to royal fashion writers to overanalyze the situation, but, whether it was intended or not, Kate’s decision to wear this particular outfit carries significance—a symbol of how far she’s come in the last two years. As a source previously told People of Kate’s cancer journey, “You can’t go through something like that and come out the other side unchanged. She is a different person now.”

Prince William and Kate Middleton on December 3, 2025.

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In January, the Princess of Wales announced that she is in remission, which she called “a relief.”

“I remain focused on recovery,” she added. “As anyone who has experienced a cancer diagnosis will know, it takes time to adjust to a new normal. I am, however, looking forward to a fulfilling year ahead. There is much to look forward to.”

“It has been a tough journey—harder than we perhaps thought,” an insider said of the Princess of Wales’s diagnosis and treatment. “She has been through a lot, and it has been a rough road. Serious illness like cancer does change you. She has a young family, and it makes you rethink everything—your purpose and what you want to do with your life.”

Kate Middleton and Princess Charlotte on Christmas morning in 2023.

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According to The Telegraph, Kate’s outfit choice on Wednesday “might just be her most intriguing choice yet,” adding that the McQueen coat “appears to have been dyed to a more muted shade of royal blue” from its first wear two years ago. This particular shade of blue is “considered a symbol of reliability and duty,” the outlet added.

The Princess of Wales wore a pair of Cabochon Sapphire Drop Earrings from Diana’s collection, who received them as a wedding gift prior to marrying Prince Charles in 1981. These were the earrings that Diana wore to her one and only Met Gala in 1996, and Kate has become fond of them, wearing them on a number of occasions, including to Trooping the Colour in 2022 and to the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey in 2023.

Kate Middleton wore a blue Alexander McQueen coat and a black Burberry dress underneath on December 3, 2025.

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Also worth noting is Kate’s Prince of Wales Feathers Brooch, which dates back to 1863, traditionally worn by the woman married to the Prince of Wales. Originally made as a wedding present for Princess Alexandra of Denmark, Kate has previously worn this piece to another state visit—when the royal family welcomed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to the U.K. in November 2022, just two months after Kate became Princess of Wales.