Prince William’s life-altering chat with Charles changed Kate Middleton romance (Image: Getty)
and love story famously began at St Andrews University, where they met and eventually fell for each other – their relationship almost didn’t take off, until King Charles stepped in.
William enrolled at the university in September 2001, but after just a single term, he began to have second thoughts.
Royal author Robert Lacey reveals that life at St Andrews wasn’t quite living up to William’s expectations. According to Lacey, the Prince “had not anticipated quite how ‘boring’ – his word – life in a small Scottish seaside town could be.”
In his book, Battle of Brothers, Lacey points out that for William, the most exciting moments were “shopping in the local Tesco,” and his social outings were “clouded” by the constant attention from other students, all captivated by his royal status.
William was also struggling to enjoy his history of art course.
Prince William and Kate wed in 2011 (Image: Getty)
Feeling dissatisfied, he spent nearly every weekend of his first term back at home, only remaining at university for two weekends. By the time Christmas arrived, he was seriously considering leaving St Andrews altogether.
When William returned to London for the holiday season in 2001, he had a heart-to-heart with his father, King Charles, sharing his desire to quit. Lacey explains that William asked his father to help him plan a way to withdraw from St Andrews and transfer to another university, with Edinburgh being his top choice.
King Charles then consulted with his most trusted advisors, who agreed that leaving so soon would be a mistake. Lacey reports that one of the aides commented: “It would have been a personal disaster for William, he would have been seen as a quitter.”
There were also concerns about how William’s departure could affect the monarchy’s relationship with Scotland, especially after the positive buzz surrounding his choice to study there.
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The pair met at university at St Andrews (Image: Getty)
Mark Bolland, Charles’s communications advisor, explained to Lacey: “It was no different from what many first-year students go through. We approached the whole thing as a wobble, which was entirely normal.”
St Andrews responded positively when they heard that William might be more interested in switching to geography. They ensured the transition would be smooth, with no obstacles in his path. After this plan was laid out, the aides recommended that Charles take a more firm, fatherly stance.
Over the Christmas break, Charles followed that advice, having a sincere conversation with William. This strategy paid off, convincing William to return to St Andrews.
That decision turned out to be a pivotal moment as he met Kate, who he went on to marry in April 2011. Reflecting on that challenging time, William previously said: “I don’t think I was homesick, I was more daunted. My father was very understanding about it and realised I had the same problem he probably had. We chatted a lot, and in the end we both realised – I definitely realised – that I had to come back.”