'Awful burden' Kate Middleton discovered about Prince William before their wedding
Kate and William split up for a time while they were studying at St Andrews University, which they've briefly spoken about over the years
Zoe Forsey
Sarah Waddington
Kate met Prince William while studying at the University of St Andrews in Scotland (Image: Clarence House via GettyImages)
A royal expert has revealed the potential reason why Kate Middleton and Prince William briefly split up while studying at university together, before going on to get married.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, now happily married with three adorable children, dated for years before William finally got down on one knee and asked her to join the Royal Family.
But the couple split for a period while they were at St Andrews and although they've spoken about it there is still a lot of speculation about what made them decide to temporarily call a break on their romance, reports the Mirror Online .
According to one royal expert, the split may have happened because Kate realised what she was taking on by dating the prince - who will one day become King.
Judy Wade, former royal correspondent at Hello! magazine, said: "She might have realised the awful burden she would have taken on.
"It's a life sentence marrying a royal."
The Duke and Duchess spoke about their brief split in their engagement interview, and Kate admits it made her stronger.
William said: "We did split up for a bit.
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"We were both very young, it was at university and we were both finding ourselves and being different characters and stuff.
"It was very much trying to find our own way and we were growing up.
"It was just a bit of space. It worked out for the better."
Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after getting married on April 29, 2011
Kate Middleton and Prince William with Princess Charlotte (Image: PA)
Kate admitted she wasn't happy about the break-up at the time, but in hindsight believes it was a good idea.
She said: "At the time I wasn't very happy about it but actually it made me a stronger person."
"You find out things about yourself that maybe you hadn't realised. I think you can get quite consumed by a relationship when you're younger.
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"I really valued that time, for me as well, although I didn't think it at the time."
But the couple managed to work things out and Kate has since fully embraced her life as a senior member of the Royal Family.
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales