Kate Middleton comes from a “very strong family” – meet her parents and siblings

The Princess of Wales had an example of a happy family before starting one of her own with Prince William. The eldest of three kids, Catherine (née Middleton) was born to Carole and Michael Middleton in 1982, and has credited her parents with providing her with a “wonderful and secure childhood” where she always knew she “was loved, valued and listened to.”

Speaking on the Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast in 2020, the Princess shared: “I had a very happy childhood. It was great fun. I’m very lucky. I’ve come from a very strong family. My parents were hugely dedicated to us, my siblings. I really appreciate now as a parent how much they sacrificed for us.

“They would come to every sports match — I was very keen on sport — they came to every sports match, they’d be the ones on the side-line shouting, and we’d always have our family holidays together.”

And that bond has continued into adulthood. “They’ve been great over the years, helping me with difficult times,” Catherine said following her engagement in 2010. “We see a lot of each other and they’re very, very dear to me.”

While tight-knit, they’ve welcomed new members with open arms over the years, including Prince William, who acknowledged in his 2010 engagement interview that the Middletons are a “very, very close family.”

“I get on really well with them, and I’m very lucky that they’ve been so supportive,” the future King shared. “Mike and Carole have been really loving and caring and really fun and have been really welcoming towards me, so I’ve felt really a part of the family and I hope Kate’s felt the same with my family.”

Though she’s a future Queen Consort, she and her sister Pippa have a “normal sisterly relationship.”

“She has pressures that she’s taken on and things, but we spend a lot of time together,” Pippa shared in 2014. “We still do a lot together as a family and I think that’s sort of the heart for all of us, is having a really close family that we can be normal with each other, treat each other normally and that kept us all fixed to the ground.”

So, just who are the Princess of Wales’ supportive family members? Continue reading to learn about Catherine’s parents and siblings.

Carole Middleton

Carole is the matriarch of the Middleton family. She was born on January 31, 1955 to Ronald John James Goldsmith and Dorothy Harrison, and has a younger brother named Gary Goldsmith, who appeared on Celebrity Big Brother.

She met her husband Michael Middleton while working as a flight attendant for British Airways (BA). The pair tied the knot in 1980. Carole planned the wedding, revealing to The Telegraph in 2018: “I found the venue, organised the wedding breakfast, the bonfire and chilli con carne in the evening.” Her wedding dress was worn years later by her daughter-in-law, Alizee Thevenet, who wore the boho-style dress to marry James Middleton. 

Carole and Michael welcomed their first child, daughter Catherine on January 9, 1982. Their family grew in 1983 with the arrival of their second daughter Pippa, and again in 1987 with the birth of their son James.

Carole founded the business Party Pieces back in 1987. “It was my children who inspired Party Pieces. I was planning Catherine’s fifth birthday party and all I could find were some basic ‘clown’ plates,” the mom of three recalled to Sheer Luxe in 2022. “I realised there was a gap in the market for partyware that wasn’t too expensive, looked good and added a bit of a special touch. Being a mother meant I understood how children’s parties worked from the point of view of the parent organising them, and the children who wanted to enjoy themselves. I wanted to make it as easy as possible for parents to create the perfect party for their children.”

Carole told the Daily Mail in 2021 that her personal and business life were “not two separate things.” “They are both an essential and interwoven part of who I am,” she shared, adding: “My children inspired my business and have been involved from the start, and the success that we’ve had has helped us build the life we have currently. I feel incredibly fortunate to have found the professional [fulfillment] I always wanted.”

It emerged in 2023 that Carole had sold the business.

She and her husband currently have seven grandchildren: Prince William and Catherine’s three kids (Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis), Pippa and James Matthews’ kids (Arthur, Grace and Rose) and James and Alizee’s son, Inigo. Carole’s described herself as a “hands-on” grandmother. 

“I want to run down the hills, climb the trees and go through the tunnel at the playground,” Carole said in a 2021 interview with Good Housekeeping. “As long as I am able to, that’s what I’ll be doing. I cook with them, I muck around dancing, we go on bike rides.”

Michael Middleton

Catherine’s father, Michael Middleton, was born on June 23, 1949. He is the son of Captain Peter Middleton and Valerie Middleton. Michael’s father served as a RAF pilot during World War II and was a co-pilot on Prince Philip’s 1962 tour of South America.

While working as a flight dispatcher he met his future wife Carole. The two went on to wed in 1980. When Catherine was two, her father’s work took the family to Amman, Jordan, where Michael worked for two and a half years, before returning to the UK. According to The Telegraph, “a year or so later” after Carole founded Party Pieces in 1987, Michael left his job in aviation to work for the business. 

“My husband and I were young and a little inexperienced, but very enthusiastic, so we didn’t worry too much,” Carole shared with Sheer Luxe in 2022. “We took any early setbacks in our stride and had a lot of fun building the business together. When Michael and I first started Party Pieces, we did everything ourselves. Taking orders, filling boxes and sometimes making the deliveries.”

Prince William shared in 2010 that he did not ask Michael for permission to marry Catherine before proposing. “I was torn between asking Kate’s dad first, and then the realization that he might actually say ‘no’ dawned upon me,” the Prince confessed. “So, I thought if I ask Kate first, then he can’t really say ‘no.'”

But, William spoke with Michael “soon after” the proposal happened. Michael accompanied his daughter Catherine to Westminster Abbey in a Rolls-Royce, before walking her down the aisle to marry William on April 29, 2011.

Not long after the royal wedding watched by millions, the Middleton patriarch was pictured on his lawn mower. Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, the Waleses’ former private secretary and Prince George’s godfather, told the Daily Mail in 2026: “My favourite image of the entire wedding was Mike [Middleton] sitting on his lawnmower the next day. That, to me, summed up the whole family set-up. Having walked his daughter down the aisle in front of billions, this rather self-effacing man was, the very next day, back in his garden. To me, that image of Mike represents the very essence of being English.”

Pippa Middleton

Philippa Charlotte Middleton, known as Pippa, is Carole and Michael’s second child. The Princess of Wales became a big sister with Pippa’s birth on September 6, 1983.  

Pippa was educated at St Andrew’s School in Pangbourne, before attending Downe House School and Marlborough College. She later studied in Scotland for university, though unlike Catherine and William, she did not attend the University of St Andrews. Instead, she earned her degree from the University of Edinburgh. 

Pippa garnered attention at her sister’s wedding, wearing a figure-hugging dress by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. “It was completely unexpected. I think the plan was not really for it to be a significant dress,” she later admitted to Matt Lauer. “[It was] really just to blend in with the train. I suppose it’s flattering. Embarrassing, definitely. It wasn’t planned.”

Catherine was by her sister’s side when it came to her nuptials six years later. Pippa married James Matthews, the brother of Made In Chelsea star Spencer Matthews, at St Mark’s Church in Berkshire on May 20, 2017. Her niece Princess Charlotte served as a bridesmaid, while her nephew Prince George was a page boy.

Like her sister, Pippa has three children. She and James welcomed their son Arthur in 2018, followed by their daughters Grace in 2021 and Rose in 2022.  

James Middleton

James is the youngest of the Middleton family. Carole and Michael’s third child and only son was born on April 15, 1987. 

He followed in his sisters’ footsteps, attending St Andrew’s School and Marlborough College. After one year at the University of Edinburgh, James dropped out. “My parents were very keen for me to stay. I’d done resits during my year out because my initial grades weren’t good enough, so they saw that I’d worked harder than hard to get there,” James told the Evening Standard in 2014.

“But as an adult it was my first big decision and I’m so pleased with it because it’s given me confidence in decisions I’ve made since. There is a lot of pressure put on people to go to university, when actually, as long as you are driven about what you want to do, it’s not the be all and end all,” he continued.

In 2013, James started the company Boomf, selling personalised marshmallows. The company was acquired by a consortium of investors in 2022. Prior to selling Boomf, James launched Ella & Co., named after his beloved cocker spaniel Ella, in 2020. The happiness and wellbeing company for dogs has since been rebranded to James & Ella.

James credits his dog Ella with helping him overcome the “deep struggles” he had with his mental illnesses, and with introducing him to his now-wife, Alizée, in 2018. 

“Ella was lying at my feet under the table; realising she might want some water, I trusted her to take herself over to the water bowl across the terrace,” he revealed in a 2021 article for The Telegraph. “However, she made a beeline for Alizée. Rather embarrassed, I went over to apologise and bring Ella back. But Alizée thought I was the waiter and ordered her drink while continuing to stroke Ella, who at this point was on her back lapping up the attention.”

“Little did I know, but I had just met my future wife, all thanks to Ella,” he added.

The pair tied the knot on September 11, 2021 in the French village of Bormes-les-Mimosas. The couple’s official wedding photos were shared in a world exclusive with HELLO!. “We couldn’t be happier,” James told HELLO! at the time. “It was wonderful to finally celebrate with family and friends despite the challenges of a global pandemic but we were relaxed and knew the day would eventually come.”

Two years after their wedding, James and Alizée welcomed their son Inigo Middleton. “No matter how much people say to you about how wonderful it is, or how it will change your life, nothing can ever prepare you for that experience of seeing a little baby that’s yours arrive,” James told HELLO! in 2024. “It unlocks something in your heart that you didn’t know was there.”

James publicly showed his support for his sister Catherine after she revealed in 2024 that she was undergoing chemotherapy. “Over the years, we have climbed many mountains together. As a family, we will climb this one with you too,” he wrote alongside a throwback photo of the two of them.

Just over two years later, the siblings (literally) went climbing. In 2026, James joined Catherine as she took on the Three Peaks Challenge, climbing the highest peaks in Scotland, England, and Wales (Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike, and Snowdon) within 24 hours.

“Two years ago, I told you we’d climb this mountain together. We talked about climbing mountains while you were in hospital, and about the incredible healing power that nature can have for both the body and the mind. So it was such an honour to join you for your Three Peaks Challenge for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity,” James penned after the challenge. 

“Seeing how far you’ve come is nothing short of inspiring. Your strength, resilience, and determination, all while being the most amazing mother, wife, daughter, and sister, inspire me and so many others every single day. Keep being exactly who you are.”