A new royal biography claims ‘heartbroken’ Kate Middleton started rethinking her and Prince William’s entire relationship when they split in 2007.

Kate Middleton took a hard look at her and Prince William’s relationship after their 2007 breakup. According to a new biography on the Princess of Wales, “doubts began to creep in” for her following the Prince of Wales’ admission that he couldn’t “promise” marriage.

William broke up with Kate over the phone in 2007

In his new book, Catherine, the Princess of Wales: A Biography of the Future Queen, out Aug. 6, 2024, author Robert Jobson explored the details of William and Kate’s 2007 breakup.

In a Daily Mail excerpt, Jobson claimed William called Kate up—who’d sensed something was wrong—and suggested they split. “In an emotionally charged 30-minute conversation, they both acknowledged they were on ‘different pages,’” he wrote.

“It was a devastating blow to Catherine, who felt doubly let down at being dumped over the phone. Though it wasn’t the first time William had called time on their relationship, it felt final.”

The heir to the throne was, at the time, “unable to promise her marriage.” For context, William and Kate had graduated from college at the University of St. Andrew’s two years earlier in 2005 after meeting in 2001.

‘Distraught’ Kate wondered if she’d been ‘led on’ after their breakup

Kate Middleton and Prince William

“​​In the wake of the break-up, doubts began to creep in. Had she been led on, she asked herself?” Kate didn’t linger on the questions for long, though. Following a trip to Dublin, Ireland, with her mother, Carole Middleton, the “heartbroken” future royal decided to do something besides “moping.”

Kate started going out in London, England, which led to many paparazzi photos of her and her sister, Pippa Middleton, going in and out of clubs. Not two months into their split, William began to miss Kate, having “serious second thoughts” about the decision to part ways.

“After the way he’d treated Catherine, it wasn’t going to be easy to woo her back. This time, he knew, he’d have to give her cast-iron assurances about their future together. But how and when would he get the chance?”

William and Kate soon found themselves in the same room together at a house party hosted by a mutual friend. “The chemistry between William and Catherine did the rest,” and they were back together. The two got engaged in 2010 before marrying in April 2011.

William and Kate’s comments on their 2007 breakup: ‘a bit of space’

In their 2010 engagement interview, William and Kate discussed the breakup. For his part, William chalked it up to being “very young” and “finding” themselves.

“We both were very young, it was at university,” he said. “We were sort of both finding ourselves as such and being different characters and stuff. It was very much trying to find our own way. We were growing up, and so it was just sort of a bit of space and a bit of things like that.”

Kate, meanwhile, called it a learning experience. “I think at the time wasn’t very happy about it, but actually it made me a stronger person,” she said. “You find out things about yourself that maybe you hadn’t realized.”

“I think you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you are younger and I really valued that time for me as well, although I didn’t think it at the time,” she added, calling it not “all bad.”