Are Prince William and Kate Middleton Christians? A look at the faith of the royal couple

There are few British couples who attract more attention than the Prince and Princess of Wales William and Kate. The famous royals are celebrated for their dedication and dignity in fulfilling their duties as part of the sovereign family.

With the crown now firmly placed on King Charles’ head, Prince William has stepped up the queue to become next in line for the throne. There are many responsibilities for the head of state, not least the title of Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Given that Prince William will inherit this position at some point in the future, what does his faith, and that of his wife Kate, actually look like?

Some say there was no pressure for Kate to get confirmed, she did so because she wanted to.

I’ve had a dig around and it’s fair to say that Prince William and Kate have fulfilled all the right checks and balances for membership in the Church of England. William was confirmed into the Anglican faith in 1997 at the age of 14. And weeks before their wedding in 2011, Kate Middleton also decided to be confirmed into the Church of England. For some, including Paul Handley, editor of the Church Times, this was signified her dedication to her faith. He wrote in the Guardian that there was no pressure for the royal to get confirmed, so given that she did so because she wanted to, we can conclude her faith is strong.

Despite this, people have issued challenges to the royal pair as they don’t seem to be regular church attendees. In 2013 The Daily Mail published an article suggesting that William only went to church a “handful” of times a year. And they claimed that these occasions were associated with special events like Christmas, Easter or a wedding or christening. A senior aide even confirmed to the tabloid paper that he was “not aware that [Prince William] goes every week”.

These assertions were refuted by a spokesman for the Prince who insisted that he was a dedicated Christian despite not clocking weekly services. They said: “The Duke of Cambridge is a committed Anglican and has a strong personal faith.” The aides also highlighted that the couple celebrated their marriage in a Christian wedding that was taken by then-Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams. During the service they shared a prayer that they had written together and the spokesperson described as evidence of their “continued faith”.

During their wedding service William and Kate shared a prayer that they had written together.

Adding further weight to the evidence that the Prince is invested in the Christian faith was a recorded talk he did for a church during the pandemic in which he encouraged people to embrace “Christian teachings of faith, hope and love” as we “navigate our way through these uncertain times”.

We can’t know what people’s individual and personal relationships with Jesus look like. But it’s fair to say that his late Grandmother Queen Elizabeth was deeply committed to her faith and she attended church every week. And even Prince Charles, who has expressed interest in other faiths, has always regularly go to church. Of course, we hope and pray that anyone who is awarded a position of influence in the Church is passionately invested in her causes, practices and is ultimately motivated by their faith in, and love for, Jesus.

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