The Shadiest Things Kate Middleton Has Ever Done

Catherine, Princess of Wales — known to most of us simply as Kate Middleton — is one of the most famous royals in the world, and that means pundits and the press are always watching her every move, something that must surely be maddening at times. Catherine might be the future queen of England, but she's only human, and she's done some questionable things in the past (who hasn't?). Many of her most memorable shady moves have to do with her feud with Prince Harry's wife, Meghan Markle. In fact, Catherine was heavily criticized for her dress choice at Harry and Meghan's wedding. In photos, it appeared Catherine was wearing the exact same white Alexander McQueen coat dress she donned to her daughter, Princess Charlotte's christening ceremony. X, formerly Twitter, was soon ablaze with criticism over Catherine's choice of dress. "Kate Middleton in white ... she just can't take that it's someone else's day," one royal fan opined. "Btw didn't anyone tell Kate Middleton that you shouldn't wear white to other people's wedding?" another added.

It later turned out that the dress was, in fact, not white, but a pale yellow, which the palace confirmed in a statement prior to the wedding. The bright sunlight, however, made Catherine's outfit appear white. Still, some thought wearing a replica of the dress she wore at Charlotte's christening was a subtle way of throwing shade at Meghan. The Sydney Morning Herald noted that Catherine recycling the dress for the royal wedding created the impression that she hadn't been in the mood to go to a lot of trouble for the big day. On the flip side, it might just have been her attempt at not stealing the spotlight, but if that had indeed been her intention, it backfired terribly.

Prince Harry dropped several royal bombshells in his memoir, "Spare," some of which left pundits reeling for weeks. One of these startling revelations was Princess Catherine's reported reaction to Meghan Markle asking to borrow her lip gloss. Apparently, the queen-to-be wasn't very keen to share, and while some might agree that sharing a personal item like lip gloss isn't always a good idea, others thought Catherine was being rude.

The incident occurred right before Prince William, Harry, Meghan, and Catherine made their way onto stage for the Royal Foundation summit in 2018. Per the prince's book, Meghan's request to borrow some lip gloss led to a very awkward moment between the two women. "Meg asked to borrow Kate's lip gloss. An American thing. Meg forgot hers, worried she needed some, and turned to Kate for help," Harry wrote. "Kate, taken aback, went into her handbag and reluctantly pulled out a small tube. Meg squeezed some onto her finger and applied it to her lips. Kate grimaced. Small clash of styles, maybe? Something we should've been able to laugh about soon after. But it left a little mark." Harry added how the awkward moment between the two women followed them onto the stage. The media, always looking for a scoop, noticed something was amiss, and soon rumors were flying that Catherine and Meghan weren't getting along as well as everyone thought.

The two women clashed again when Meghan told Catherine she had "baby brain," Harry revealed in his book, with the princess later telling the duchess, "We're not close enough for you to talk about my hormones." Meghan threw some shade of her own, apparently, refusing to refer to the Princess of Wales by her given name (Catherine) and instead calling her Kate, unlike the rest of the royal family.

While Princess Lilibet's first birthday occurred a few years after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left the royal family, the couple happened to be in the U.K. for Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee during this milestone. They hosted a party for their daughter at Frogmore Cottage, but Prince William and Princess Catherine didn't as much as pop in to wish Lilibet a quick happy birthday, a move that evoked widespread criticism. In fact, Meghan's friend, "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Garcelle Beauvais, pointed out that Catherine and William missing this special event was "shady" (via The Sun).

The Prince and Princess of Wales happened to be out of town that day, spending time with their three kids at Cardiff Castle in Wales, but many weren't buying the commentary from palace insiders that the trip and Lilibet's birthday falling on the same day was a coincidence. "There was no intended slight," an insider insisted to Entertainment Tonight. Beauvais wasn't convinced, telling E!'s "Daily Pop" segment that the Wales' had a lame excuse. "There's a little shade there, come on now?" Beauvais argued. "They can't hold back the flight a couple of hours to meet Lilibet and Archie?"

For years, speculation was rife that Meghan Markle had Princess Catherine in tears shortly before her royal wedding to Prince Harry, but once the Sussexes left the royal family behind, Meghan claimed the tabloids had it all wrong, and it had been the other way around. Prince Harry reiterated this in his memoir "Spare."

Meghan first touched on the subject during an interview with Oprah Winfrey, explaining, "It was a really hard week of the wedding, and she was upset about something" (via Harper's Bazaar). This "something" was the size of Princess Charlotte's bridesmaid dress. Meghan hinted that Catherine wasn't being as supportive as others, who were trying to be there for her in light of her father's shenanigans ahead of her wedding.

Harry rehashed the story in his book, saying that, even though Catherine hadn't denied that she'd been at fault privately, she also didn't want the record to be set straight publically. Being the future queen meant she wanted to keep her public persona as spotless as possible, the prince claimed.

When Princess Catherine and Prince William went on a second honeymoon in 2014 sans Prince George (who was yet to turn one), they received heavy criticism from the public and the press alike. Catherine and William were set to spend a week in the Maldives, a trip that followed shortly after the princess enjoyed a getaway in Mustique. It appeared that no expense was spared for the getaway — Catherine and William reportedly flew first class, stayed at one of the most expensive resorts, and had a security detail paid for by British taxpayers. Naturally, this left some red under the collar.

Upset folks took to social media sites like Mumsnet to air their grievances, arguing that Catherine was enjoying way too lavish a life. "Seriously? Think this might turn public opinion against them .  .  . seems it's just one long holiday for the D and D of Cambridge," one disgruntled fan wrote (via the Daily Mail). Others argued Catherine was hardly working and therefore shouldn't even need a vacation. Another noted, "Can't imagine choosing to be so far from my baby for so long."

Alas, when it comes to the list of shadiest things Princess Catherine has been accused of over the years, her behavior towards Meghan Markle is usually at the top. Pundits, media outlets, and body language experts have spent countless hours analyzing the relationship between the two royals and have more often than not come to the conclusion that Catherine is cold and distant towards the duchess.

According to royal biographer Omid Scobie's book, "Endgame," Meghan wanted to befriend Catherine when she first became a member of the royal family, but the latter was reportedly never very interested in building a close friendship with her. A source told Scobie that, not only was Catherine not particularly fond of Meghan, but she also didn't exactly try to hide it. [Catherine] can be cold if she doesn't like someone," the source alleged.

Some experts seemed to confirm this. Speaking to 7 News, body language expert Katia Loisel commented on the unspoken signals she observed between the duchess and the Princess of Wales during Queen Elizabeth II's funeral, noting that Catherine didn't make an effort to connect with Meghan, despite her husband, Prince William, attempting to do so. "On numerous occasions Meghan looked over at Kate, however, the gaze wasn't reciprocated," Loisel noted. "Rather, Kate appeared to look through her, suggesting underlying tension between the pair." Per one of the sources who spoke to Scobie for his book, Catherine had a habit of spending "more time talking about Meghan than talking to her." Ouch.