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Royal Feud? Heartbroken Duchess Kate Bumped By Countess Sophie In Queen’s List Of Favorites

By Ven Lanyon
Published on: 04:53 PST, Jan 3, 2016

Kate Middleton nearly has it all. When she married Prince William, the heir to the British throne, she became a Duchess and a part of the royal inner circle. Duchess Kate has money to spend, jewels to wear, gorgeous houses to live in, and her mother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth, dotes on the royal couple’s two beautiful children, George and Charlotte.

The fly in Kate’s royal fairytale ointment, however, is the queen’s attitude toward her daughter-in-law. Queen Elizabeth does not dote on Duchess Kate, and Kate is reportedly “heartbroken” over the rejection.

It’s not the first time there have been rumors flying about the “strained relationship” the Queen has with Kate. Now, however, Movie News Guide reports that there’s “more to the story” as Sophie, Countess of Wessex, moves up in the standings, becoming more and more of a favorite with Queen Elizabeth. Sophie is married to the queen’s “youngest and least noisy” child, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.

Recently, the queen and Sophie were seen to be spending “quite a bit of time together,” especially during the royal family’s annual Sandringham Christmas holiday. Countess Sophie was the one chosen to accompany Queen Elizabeth when they attended church services at Sandringham over the holiday. It was Sophie, instead of Kate, who sat with the queen in Her Majesty’s private car for the drive back and forth, leaving the two royals plenty of time for confidential chats that excluded Kate.

A palace insider told the Daily Mail that Sophie and Queen Elizabeth “enjoy an extremely close rapport” that’s completely different from the cooler relationship the queen has with Kate. The queen reportedly sees Sophie as more of a daughter than a daughter-in-law, while Kate is just the woman who married Prince William.

“[Countess Sophie] is trusted and relied upon in a way [that] couldn’t be applied to the Duchess of Cambridge or the Duchess of Cornwall.”

Duchess Kate has to pretend that all is well with the Queen, of course. She “smiles” as she sits through “Queen Elizabeth’s stories of days gone by,” but her rival Sophie actually listens to the queen. Sophie and the queen are said to “lose track of time” when they are enjoying talking about old times, or looking through Windsor Castle’s Royal Archives.

Both Kate and Sophie were commoners before marrying into the royal family; but, Sophie, who in the beginning of her royal marriage “got things so badly wrong,” is now getting it absolutely right. She is 50-years-old to Kate’s 33 years, and those extra years of experience with the queen seem to have helped her to reach her place as the queen’s favorite. She’s got the maturity to cope with her new role, and the ” inevitable scrutiny” that goes along with it. Sophie has become “animated and confident, relaxed and amusing,” while Kate, who was always a star, has failed to win the queen’s confidence.

Sophie didn’t mind at all, that in terms of rank, she lost a notch or two when Kate joined the royal family. Being less important in that way gave her more freedom to “enjoy [an] ordinary life” with her husband Prince Edward, and their children Louise and James. Kate’s arrival also gave Sophie a chance to leave behind the endless comparisons with Princess Diana, the mother of Kate’s husband, Prince William, and begin to be herself. Queen Elizabeth seems to approve of the real Sophie Wessex, and although the queen is “exceptionally careful of her choice of [confidants],” she’s happy to give Sophie that role now.

Duchess Kate is still on the outside, despite Prince Williams “considerable number of attempts to change” the situation. Some observers think that if Kate were willing to stop bringing the Middleton family to nearly every Royal event, the queen might be “more trusting” of her. But, Kate is devoted to her mother, and leaving her out is not likely to happen any time soon. Duchess Kate is still plain Kate Middleton when it comes to family.

[Photo by Arthur Edwards – WPA Pool /Getty Images]

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