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Family of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge
Coat of arms granted to Michael Francis Middleton (the father of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge) on 19 April 2011, as the armigerous head of the family.
Current region	Bucklebury, West Berkshire, England
Earlier spellings	Middeltone, Mideltuna, Middeltune
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Members	Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge Pippa Middleton James William Middleton

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge is a member of the Middleton family, the daughter of Michael and Carole Middleton and sister of Pippa and James Middleton. Shortly before her royal wedding to Prince William of Wales in April 2011, a coat of arms was granted to her father Michael Francis Middleton as the armigerous head of the family of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge.

Background

Middleton is a habitational surname originating from numerous different places in England and in southern Scotland. There are over 30 places similarly named which are derived from the Old English elements: midel + tūn (middle + enclosure, settlement); although some other places have different origins and derived from other elements, such as: micel (large, great), or *(ge)mȳthel (confluence). Early recorded instances of the surname are: de Mideltone in 1166, within the Eynsham Cartulary; de Midilton in 1221, within a charter to the Abbey of Arbroath; and de Midelton in 1327, within the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex.

Michael Middleton's family line came from Leeds: his grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather were all solicitors in that part of England. Michael's father Peter, was an Oxford educated pilot. His paternal relations, such as the Lupton family, were active in commercial and municipal work in Leeds for several generations; often working alongside and playing host to Royalty. Michael Middleton's family tree includes his great granduncle Sir Charles Lupton and Lady Bullock (née Barbara Lupton), the 2nd cousin of his grandmother Olive Middleton (née Lupton).

The Rev. Thomas Davis, a Church of England hymn-writer is also Kate's paternal ancestor.

William Addams Reitwiesner discovered that Catherine is most likely distantly descended from Sir Thomas Fairfax (c.1475-1520) and his wife Agnes Gascoine, an ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales, thus it is possible that Catherine and Prince William could be fifteenth cousins. This link is possibly via Michael Middleton's grandmother, Olive Lupton, daughter of Leeds cloth merchant Francis Lupton and his wife Harriet (née Davis).

The paternal Goldsmith family of Carole Middleton came from London. Carole's maternal family, the Harrisons, were working-class labourers and miners from Sunderland and County Durham two generations before. Catherine's mother, Carole Goldsmith, is descended from Sir Thomas Conyers, 9th Bt. of Horden, Durham, which brings multiple lines of descent from Edward IV's alleged illegitimate daughter Elizabeth, by Elizabeth Lucy.

Michael Francis Middleton was born in Leeds in 1949, and was the son of a pilot instructor / aviator. His grandfather Noel Middleton was a solicitor. Michael Middleton was educated, like his father and grandfather at Clifton College. At Clifton, all three Middleton men boarded at Brown House. Carole Elizabeth Middleton (née Goldsmith) was born on 31 January 1955 at Perivale Maternity Hospital in Ealing. The daughter of a builder, Ronald Goldsmith (1931–2003), and his wife, Dorothy Harrison (1935–2006), she was raised in a council flat in Southall, and attended the local state school.

The couple met when they both worked for British Airways; Carole as a stewardess, Michael as an officer.{{citation needed}} In 1979, Michael Middleton was promoted within BA and became a flight dispatcher at London Heathrow Airport, where he kept track of the airline's fleet on the ground. The couple were married on 21 June 1980, at the parish church of St James in Dorney, Buckinghamshire. They bought a semi-detached Victorian house in Bradfield Southend near Reading, Berkshire.

The couple have three children (two daughters and one son). Following the birth of their daughters Catherine Elizabeth (born 1982) and Philippa Charlotte (born 1983), the family briefly moved to Amman, Jordan where Michael Middleton worked from 1984 to 1987.

Their third and youngest child, a son named James William, was born in 1987. In 1987, when Kate and Philippa were at a pre-school at St Andrew's School, Pangbourne, Carole Middleton set up Party Pieces, a company which began by making party bags and which now sells party supplies and decorations by mail order. By 1995, the firm was being run by both parents and was moved into a range of farm buildings at Ashampstead Common. The family moved into a larger five-bedroomed house in Bucklebury, Berkshire. The business was successful, and over the space of a few years the Middletons are reported to have become very wealthy. As a result, the Middletons sent both of their daughters to the independent Downe House, a girls' boarding school in Cold Ash, and finally the public school Marlborough College, Wiltshire.

Shortly before his elder daughter's royal marriage, Michael Middleton was granted a coat of arms. This features three acorn sprigs, one for each of his children. The oak represents England and strength as well as the family's home district of West Berkshire. The white chevronels symbolise peaks and mountains, said to represent the family's love of the Lake District and skiing, and the gold chevron represents Carole Middleton's maiden name of Goldsmith.

Children

Their first daughter, Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Middleton, now known as HRH The Duchess of Cambridge, was born on 9 January 1982. After finishing at Marlborough, she went to study at University of St Andrews. It was here, while living at St Salvator's Hall, that she met Prince William. After a long relationship, and a six month engagement, she married Prince William at Westminster Abbey on 29 April 2011. In December 2012, it was announced that Catherine and William are expecting their first child. The announcement followed the duchess' three-day hospital stay and diagnosis with hyperemesis gravidarum, a form of acute morning sickness.

Their second daughter, Philippa Charlotte "Pippa" Middleton, born on 6 September 1983, attended the same schools as her sister Kate and then studied English literature at the University of Edinburgh. There she shared a house with Lord Ted Innes-Ker, a son of the Duke of Roxburghe, and with Earl Percy, heir of the Duke of Northumberland. Following graduation, in 2008 she took an events management / marketing job with Table Talk, a London-based events catering company. She also writes for Spectator, Vanity Fair and The Party Times, an online magazine which is an off-shoot of her parents' company.

James William Middleton, their youngest child and only son, was born on 15 April 1987. He was educated at St Andrew's School, Pangbourne and Marlborough College. He started a degree in Environmental Resources Management at the University of Edinburgh before leaving in 2006 after one year to start his own cake-making business, the Cake Kit Company. His company lost £16,858 at the end of April 2012. Both of Catherine's siblings played a prominent role in their sister's wedding: Pippa was the maid of honour and James read the lesson.

Family heritage

Arms

Coat of arms of Middleton family

Notes The coat of arms was granted to Michael Middleton by the College of Arms on 19 April 2011. Thomas Woodcock, Garter King of Arms, the senior officer of the College of Arms, helped the family with the design. Adopted 19 April 2011 Escutcheon Per pale Azure and Gules, a chevron Or, cotised Argent, between three acorns slipped and leaved Or. Symbolism The dividing line (between two colours) down the centre is a canting of the name 'Middle-ton'. The acorns (from the oak tree) are a traditional symbol of England and a feature of west Berkshire, where the family have lived for 30 years. The three acorns also denote the family's three children. The gold chevron in the centre of the arms is an allusion to Carole Middleton's maiden name of Goldsmith. The two white chevronels (narrow chevrons above and below the gold chevron) symbolise peaks and mountains, and the family's love of the Lake District and skiing.

Family Tree

Television and film portrayals

William & Kate, a television movie about Catherine's romance, was released on 18 April 2011, with Catherine and William played by Camilla Luddington and Nico Evers-Swindell respectively. Other members of the Middleton family were played by: Christopher Cousins (Michael Middleton), Serena Scott Thomas (Carole Middleton), Mary Elise Hayden (Pippa Middleton), and Calvin Goldspink (James Middleton). A number of television programmes were also shown in the UK before the wedding which provided deeper insights into the couple's relationship and backgrounds, including When Kate Met William and Channel 4's Meet the Middletons.

References

1. Coat of arms of the Middleton family - website of the College of Arms
2. Learn about the family history of your surname, Ancestry.com, retrieved 30 May 2011. This website cited the following book for the surname Middleton: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4.
3. Middleton, Encyclopedia.com, retrieved 30 May 2011. This website cited the following book for the place name Middleton: A Dictionary of British Place-Names, Oxford University Press, 2003.
4. ^ Reaney, Percy Hilde (1995), Wilson, Richard Middlewood (ed.), A Dictionary of English Surnames (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, pp. 308–309, ISBN 0-19-863146-4.
5. Black, George Fraser Black (1946), The Surnames of Scotland, New York: New York Public Library, pp. 599–600.
6. Rayner, Gordon. . UK Daily Telegraph. June 22, 2013. UK Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 July 2013. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); External link in |title= (help)
7. Reed, Michael (5 April 2013). "Duchess of Cambridge not posh? Her ancestor was lord mayor of Leeds". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
8. Reitwiesner, William Addams (2011). Child, Christopher Challender (ed.). The Ancestry of Catherine Middleton. Scott Campbell Steward. Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society. p. 16. ISBN 978-0-88082-252-7.
9. "Reverend Thomas Davis". thePeerage.com. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
10. Reitwiesner, William Addams (2011). Child, Christopher Challender (ed.). The Ancestry of Catherine Middleton. Scott Campbell Steward. Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-88082-252-7.
11. "Olive Christiana Lupton". thePeerage.com. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
12. Reitwiesner, William Addams (2011). Child, Christopher Challender (ed.). The Ancestry of Catherine Middleton. Scott Campbell Steward. Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society. pp. 116–7. ISBN 978-0-88082-252-7.
13. Reitwiesner, William Addams (2011). Child, Christopher Challender (ed.). The Ancestry of Catherine Middleton. Scott Campbell Steward. Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society. pp. 118–9. ISBN 978-0-88082-252-7.
14. Wilson, Christopher (22 December 2006). "Kate, the coal miner's girl". Mail Online. London.
15. "American Ancestors, Fall 2011, Connecting Catherine Middleton to Sir Thomas Conyers, 9th Baronet, Child, Christopher Challender" (PDF). 05 July 2013. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
16. ^ Rayner, Gordon (16 November 2010). "Royal wedding: Kate Middleton's family background". 16 November 2010. London: The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
17. Poppy Bradbury (3 May 2011), "Kate Middleton's mum's old school hosts Royal Wedding party", Ealing Gazette
18. Lundy, Darryl. "Person Page 20097". thePeerage.com. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
19. Geoffrey Levy (18 November 2010). "For Kate Middleton's mother Carole being royal in-law will be no laughing matter | Mail Online". London: Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
20. Levy, Geoffrey; Kay, Richard (17 April 2011). "Kate Middleton's character shaped by generations of social-climbing matriarchs | Mail Online". London: Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
21. Claudia Joseph The intriguing story of the woman who gave Kate her looks – and family wealth Mail Online, 21 November 2010; Retrieved 22 November 2010
22. ^ Party Pieces Princess in News of the World (21 November 2010), pg. 4
23. ^ "Royal wedding: profile of Kate Middleton". 4 May 2011. London: The Telegraph. 29 April 2011. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
24. About us at partypieces.co.uk, accessed 19 February 2011
25. Profiles: Kate Middleton in Hello! dated August 2001
26. "Generation why-should-I?". Edinburgh: News.scotsman.com. 11 June 2008. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
27. "Royal wedding: Family's badge of honour for Kate Middleton". The Scotsman. 20 April 2011.
28. Heaven, Will. "Catherine Elizabeth "Kate" Middleton". 4 May 2011. London: The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
29. "Royal wedding: Kate Middleton's home village of Bucklebury prepares for big day". 12 Apr 2011. London. 12 April 2011. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
30. ^ Anna Pukas, Kate Middleton's eligible little sister (20 November 2010) Daily Express, accessed 19 February 2011
31. Welcome to the Firm at channel4.com, accessed 4 January 2011
32. Tim Walker, Wedding is good business for Pippa Middleton Daily Telegraph (17 November 2010), accessed 17 February 2011
33. Levy, Geoffrey and Kay, Richard (1 September 2009). "How many MORE skeletons in Kate Middleton's closet?". The Daily Mail. London. Retrieved 3 May 2011.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
34. Jessica Fellowes (1 October 2008), "The 'posh-preneurs' who mean business", Daily Telegraph, London {{citation}}: |chapter= ignored (help)
35. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/gordon-rayner/9895785/Duchess-of-Cambridges-brother-James-Middleton-helped-by-family-as-cake-business-goes-17000-into-the-red.html
36. Anita Singh (29 April 2011), "Pippa Middleton shines as maid of honour", Daily Telegraph, London
37. Tim Ross (29 April 2011), "How Kate Middleton's brother risks upsetting the Prince of Wales", Daily Telegraph, London
38. ^ "The arms of Miss Catherine Middleton". College of Arms. 1 May 2011.
39. William and Kate at imdb.com, accessed 19 February 2011
40. Rewind TV: When Kate Met William; Kate and William: Romance and the Royals; The Suspicions of Mr Whicher; The Crimson Petal and the White The Observer, 1 May 2011
41. TV review: Meet the Middletons; Help! My House is Infested; The Reckoning guardian.co.uk, 18 April 2011

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