This Possibly Overlooked Coronation Detail Proves That the Princess of Wales Calls the Shots Within the Royal Family

Whereas in the early years of her romance with Prince William she may have been his plus one, the then Kate Middleton has morphed into a powerful woman who calls the shots within the royal family, and her influence continues to grow, The Mirror reports. That impact was on full display at the Coronation earlier this month and seemingly shows no signs of letting up, the outlet reports.

Royal expert Camilla Tominey writes that Kate “was once seen by some as a mere WAG”—short for wives and girlfriends and a term sometimes used diminutively—but has “demonstrated her growing power and influence at the Coronation of King Charles III.” Kate is now regarded as a “Queen-in-Waiting” and William, now first in line to the throne, and Kate alongside him now have more leverage and power than ever within the Firm.

Case in point: At the Coronation, Kate’s parents Michael and Carole Middleton and siblings Pippa and James were seated just six rows behind the royals, which Tominey said “left little doubt over the Princess of Wales’s growing influence.”

In an attempt to keep his Coronation significantly smaller than his mother Queen Elizabeth’s, the King cut the guest list at the Abbey from 8,000 to just 2,300. Many did not get an invite to the historic event, but Kate specifically requested extra invitations for her team—a request that was apparently granted, and one more signal of Kate’s emerging authority.

Though she knew William as far back as 2001 and began dating him around two years later, the couple did not get engaged until 2010 and married on April 29, 2011—12 years ago last month.