Kate (17 page)

Kate (
top row, fourth from left
) was a skilled hockey player and made the school's top team together with her younger sister Pippa. (© ExclusivePix)

Kate's first boyfriend Harry Blakelock was in the year above her at Marlborough School. When they split up, Kate was heartbroken. (© Rob
Rich/SocietyAllure.com
)

Kate spent three months in Chile working for the voluntary organization Raleigh International just like Prince William. She is remembered for being a team worker and a competent sailor.

It was at St. Andrews University in Scotland where Kate, who was voted the prettiest fresher in her year, first caught William's eye. He invited her to breakfast and their friendship grew from then on.

Having discovered a passion for pasta in Florence during her gap year, Kate and her friend Laura Warshauer enjoyed pasta parties in St. Salvator's Hall.

Kate and her friend Olivia Bleasdale, one of the “Glosse Posse,” dress as schoolgirls for a Harry Potter themed party in their first year at St. Andrews.

Fresh faced and make-up free Kate was nicknamed “beautiful Kate.” Some girls were jealous of her close friendship with William and were unkind to Kate.

Kate dated Rupert Finch, a popular rugby player and third year law student, when she was a fresher. They were known as the golden couple at St. Andrews.

Kate and William enjoy a day out at the Beaufort Polo Club in June 2005. They didn't know if their relationship would survive post-university, but they were determined to make it work. (© Rex Features)

Kate caught Prince William's eye when she took part in a charity fashion show. She daringly decided to turn her see through skirt into a dress moments before she strutted down the runway. (© Malcolm Clarke/Daily Mail/Rex Features)

The hard work pays off and Kate receives a 2-1 degree in the History of Art. Her proud parents, Carol and Michael, were in the audience along with the Royal Family, who had come to see Prince William graduate at the same ceremony. (Kate © Newsphoto/Alamy; William © Anwar Hussein/WireImage/Getty Images)