NEED TO KNOW
- Kate Middleton drove herself to Windsor Castle for her latest engagement
- Video showed the Princess of Wales, 44, exiting a car alone for the event on Jan. 15
- It was an unusual move, as the royals are often driven to official events by chauffeurs
Kate Middleton arrived behind the wheel — in heels! — at her latest royal engagement.
On Jan. 15, the Princess of Wales and Patron of England’s Women’s Rugby team hosted a reception at Windsor Castle to celebrate the squad’s World Cup win in September 2025 and seemed to drive herself there
Fan footage shared to X showed Princess Kate, 44, exiting a black car from the driver’s side, which is on the right side of vehicles in the U.K.
The Princess of Wales closed the car door behind her, accepted an umbrella from a waiting aide and they walked into the castle together on the rainy day.
Princess Kate’s solo arrival to the reception was unexpected, as the royals are often driven to official events by chauffeurs. There may have been a simple reason why, however, as she lives nearby.
The Princess of Wales and her family live about 3.5 miles from Windsor Castle at Forest Lodge in Windsor Great Park. Princess Kate, Prince William and their children Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7, moved there in October 2025 from Adelaide Cottage, upgrading to a larger space.
The cottage was the backdrop to Queen Elizabeth’s death in 2022, the turbulence that followed Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Netflix docuseries and Harry’s memoir, Spare, published in 2023, and the 2024 announcements about King Charles and Princess Kate being diagnosed with cancer. (The King’s treatment for cancer continues and the Princess of Wales is in remission.)
“Adelaide Cottage was a place of pain, suffering and sadness. After such rough times it’s perfectly understandable they would want a new place,” royal biographer Sally Bedell Smith recently told PEOPLE.
PEOPLE understands that Forest Lodge is the family’s forever home and where they intend to remain even after William becomes king one day.
Princess Kate’s reception for the England Women’s Rugby team on Thursday marked her first solo royal duty of 2026.
The team known as the Red Roses and patron Kate wore her red Alexander McQueen pantsuit to the festive event, interpreted as a tribute to the nickname.
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The Princess of Wales attended one of the Red Roses’ September matches during their World Cup quest and told the team about how didn’t want to get tackled by her son George when they play rugby at home!
“It’s such a great game, actually, they shouldn’t necessarily need to pigeonhole boys and girls into particular sports too early,” Princess Kate said about how the contact sport can be co-ed for children, Rebecca English of the Daily Mail reported.
“Obviously, as they get physically stronger… George, now, if I play at home, I do not want to get tackled by George! But no, up to a certain age it’s great,” she said.
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