The Ups And Downs Of Kate Middleton's Relationship With Princesses Beatrice And Eugenie

Families, especially in-laws, don't always get along. It's been widely reported that certain members of the British royal family have drifted apart in recent years, even beyond the highly publicized drama between William, Prince of Wales, and his brother Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie are the daughters of Prince Andrew, making them the nieces of King Charles III and the cousins of William and Harry. Reportedly, there's been some tension between the two of them and William's wife Catherine, Princess of Wales.

The truth is that Kate Middleton and Beatrice's relationship may not be all smooth sailing because of a contentious friendship with one of William's rumored exes. There's also the matter of Kate seeming to take the place and unintentionally steal the spotlight from Beatrice and Eugenie at royal engagements. However, it's not all drama. Eugenie and Beatrice have shown their support for William and Kate following her cancer diagnosis and have stepped up for the royal family in a big way. Despite that, their relationship with Kate has been full of ups and downs.

In May 2016, Catherine, Princess of Wales; Princess Beatrice; and Princess Eugenie all attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace. In a photo shared by the Daily Mail, Kate Middleton was seen walking in front of the sisters, while Beatrice and Eugenie seemingly grimaced behind her. At the time, Kate had rumored tension with the royal sisters because they were reportedly friends with Isabella Branson — someone William, Prince of Wales, was speculated to have asked out while he and Kate were briefly broken up. Likewise, Beatrice and Eugenie were also friendly with Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas, two of Prince Harry's exes (Bonas is Branson's half-sister, too). Another point of rumored tension between Kate and the York sisters was that royal watchers seemed to prefer the commoner. 

An insider from the garden party recalled that several people in the crowd scrambled to get a moment with William and Kate, while Beatrice and Eugenie didn't receive the same elated response from fans (though they still spoke with many attendees). "As there were three separate garden parties, it might have been kinder to let Beatrice and Eugenie be the young stars in their own right at one of the other two, rather than go around in the shadow of the Cambridges," the source contended. "Few egos are small enough to cope with this kind of thing." Further, another insider asserted that the sisters felt slighted about the way they were overlooked for other official engagements.

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie were reportedly butting heads with William, Prince of Wales; Catherine, Princess of Wales; and King Charles III as far back as 2022. In an interview with Express, royal expert Neil Sean shared the inside scoop, revealing, "It stems from the deal organized by William, the queen, and Prince Charles to remove their father Prince Andrew from royal duties following his disgrace in recent years." The trio forbade the Duke of York from being an official working royal in 2020, due to Andrew's controversial friendship with convicted sex offender and trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

His daughters were also reportedly unhappy with Charles, William, and Kate Middleton because the king wanted a smaller working monarchy going forward and it seemed there would be no place for them to have official roles. The sisters' upset feelings signaled another potential problem, too. "Moving forward, that could be very tricky indeed because they have retained very close relations with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry," Sean pointed out. The relationship that Beatrice and Eugenie maintained with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was also a rumored cause of tension between them and Kate.

Any rumored tensions between Catherine, Princess of Wales, and the York sisters are obviously nothing compared to the long speculated feud between Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. In April 2023, an anonymous palace courtier informed Radar Online that Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice were still good friends with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex even after their infamous defection from the royal family. "Kate will not tolerate their cousins being all cozy with William one minute, then sneaking off with Meghan and Harry the next. Eugenie, especially, has made a habit out of playing both sides," they divulged. Eugenie has been caught in the crossfire of the brothers' rift before, previously refusing to choose just one to support.

According to the unnamed courtier, Kate didn't want Eugenie and Beatrice sharing things they shouldn't with the Sussexes while they were hanging out with them. However, the insider also clarified that Kate is fond of the royal sisters even though their friendship with Meghan and Harry obviously remains the elephant in the room. As they noted, "Kate's been very forthright in reminding them they must not impart information to Harry and Meghan that's private or sensitive in any way."

In May 2024, following Catherine, Princess of Wales' cancer announcement and break from royal duties, a royal expert disclosed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were quietly growing closer to Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. As Tom Quinn informed The Mirror, "For William and Kate an alliance between Harry and Meghan and Beatrice and Eugenie is a huge worry. They sense that Beatrice and Eugenie feel that, as virtual outcasts themselves, they have far more in common with Harry and Meghan than with any other part of the family." The royal author elaborated that, despite how they feel about Prince Andrew, the Sussexes continue to stay in touch with his daughters since they weren't part of what made Meghan's time as a working royal so hard.

However, the sisters are stepping up where other members of the family cannot, with the spotlight especially being shone on Beatrice during Kate's absence. This shows that they are devoted to supporting The Firm and helping the princess by covering engagements she cannot attend, such as Buckingham Palace's May 2024 garden party. In an Instagram post, Eugenie enthused, "Come rain or shine, I was delighted to support my family yesterday to meet some special individuals at the Buckingham Palace Garden Party who have gone above and beyond to support their local communities and the country."

Another source believed that Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie were fully supporting William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales regardless of their allegiances elsewhere. In an interview with Woman's Day (via Express), a palace insider proclaimed, "Bea and Eugenie can't imagine what William is going through right now, and it was an honour for them to give him some support. The York sisters were determined not to let him down." Although Eugenie invited Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to her house in Portugal in 2023, she was reportedly changing gears and focusing on the rest of the family going forward. "She didn't reach out to Harry when she was in L.A. in February," the source continued. "This confirmed his worst fears that his last line to his family was over." 

In fact, the insider also attested that the royal sisters hadn't reached out to the Duke of Sussex in 2024 at all yet. Despite their demonstrable support of William and Kate, PR expert Grayce McCormick asserted to The Mirror that she doesn't think it would be a good idea for them to become official working royals — even after the success of the garden party. "The emergence of new working royals may fuel comparisons and competition within the royal family," McCormick argued. "It could potentially lead to internal tensions or conflicts that could damage the monarchy's public image." The ongoing speculation about a royal rift has never been confirmed, or even addressed, by Beatrice, Eugenie, or Kate, and hopefully any future drama will be avoided no matter what happens between them.