Kate Middleton and Prince William met almost 20 years ago at the University of St Andrews in Fife, Scotland. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were friends for a year before they moved into a house with two fellow students and the romance reportedly blossomed in 2002. In June 2005, they were photographed smiling by Kate’s father, looking very much in love on the day of their graduation ceremony.

Despite dating on and off for seven years, it was not until 2010 that the Duke of Cambridge decided to propose.

For this reason, in the years leading up to her engagement, the Duchess was dubbed “Waity Katie” as it was claimed she was simply waiting for the Prince to pop the question.

When the proposal finally arrived in Kenya, though, according to a 2011 Vanity Fair report by royal expert Katie Nicholl, Kate likely felt that every year she had waited was worth it.

Once the now-engaged couple returned to Britain, Ms Nicholl wrote, William wanted to do the right thing and ask Kate’s father, Michael, for her hand in marriage.

After receiving his blessing, the future King made him swear not to say anything in order to avoid his grandmother’s fury.

Ms Nicholl wrote: “As soon as they were back in England, William invited the Middletons to Balmoral for a shooting weekend.

“Although Kate had been many times, it was the first time her parents – who had met Charles and Camilla on a handful of occasions, including William’s ‘passing-out’ ceremony at Sandhurst had been invited to the Queen’s private estate.

“Although he was not in residence, Charles had given his permission for them to stay at Birkhall (his residence on the Balmoral estate) and allowed Michael and Carole the use of his personal driver.

“William organised a private shooting lesson for them, and on Saturday night, just before dinner, he took Michael aside.

“In the tartan-furnished drawing room, which is exactly as the late Queen Mother left it, he asked Michael for permission to marry Kate.

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“It was granted immediately, but William made Michael, too, swear a vow of silence.

“The couple did not want the news to leak out before William had spoken with his father and the Queen.”

Ms Nicholl noted that even though Her Majesty knew William had taken Diana’s ring, as the head of state she still “needed to be informed of any formal marriage announcement”.

Failing to do so would have been a breach in protocol.

As expected, Michael gave William his word and kept the news of the engagement quiet.

However, when pictures of the Middletons shooting at Balmoral were published in November 2010, there was a frenzy of excitement.

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The official announcement came shortly afterwards.

On Tuesday, November 16, at 11:05am, Clarence House issued a press statement via the Royal Family’s newly launched Facebook site and sent out a tweet on their Twitter page: “His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales and Miss Catherine Middleton are engaged to be married.”

Prince Charles’s website announced: “The Prince of Wales is delighted to announce the engagement of Prince William to Miss Catherine Middleton.

“The wedding will take place in the Spring or Summer of 2011 in London.”

As news organisations around the world headed outside Buckingham Palace, to broadcast the news and speculate on where and when the wedding might be, William and Kate gave their first-ever TV interview.

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