All about Kate Middleton

* Catherine Elizabeth Middleton, called Kate, was born Jan. 9, 1982, and grew up in Bucklebury, about 45 miles outside of London. She has a younger sister, Pippa, and a brother, James.

* She's the daughter of Michael and Carole,

self-made millionaires who earned their fortune after starting an online party-supply company called Party Pieces. Middleton's parents met while her dad worked as a flight dispatcher and her mom was a flight attendant.

* Unlike her future in-laws, Middleton is

relatively scandal-free. However, Jessica Hayes, who said she was Middleton's best friend when they were attending posh boarding school Marlborough College, told the press that Middleton would regularly moon the boys' boardinghouses.

* While at Marlborough, Middleton played

hockey and netball. Her friends called her the Princess in Waiting because she had a poster of William in his polo gear on her wall.

* Middleton met William at St. Andrews

University, in Fife, Scotland, where they both studied history of art. Reportedly, she encouraged William to persevere and change his major to geography after he considered dropping out.

* Middleton is the first woman in line to

become queen to attend a university.

* She and William are also the first heirs to

the throne to cohabitate. They lived together with two other friends while at St. Andrews.

* The couple went public with their rela-

ationship in March 2004, but briefly broke up in 2007. Some speculate the split was due to William's military career; others claim it was Middleton's middle-class background and the torrent of press attention.

* Middleton is notoriously wary of the

press. Her public appearances with the prince are highly choreographed, and she does not give interviews.

* After graduating from college, Middleton

worked part time as an accessories buyer for fashion chain Jigsaw, but quit after a year to work for her parents' online business.

* In 2008, Vanity Fair put Middleton on

its international best-dressed list, alongside first lady Michelle Obama and French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy. The Mail on Sunday reports that her favorite fashion designer is Daniella Issa Helayel.

* William's pet name for Middleton is

"Babykins," while she affectionately calls him "Big Willie," according to the Telegraph. The British press had its own nickname for Middleton because of her perceived frustration at her boy's willingness to commit: "Waity Katie."

* William proposed while the two were

vacationing in Kenya last month.

* The Guardian reports that Middleton is

"the first commoner to marry an heir presumptive to the throne in 350 years." Her predecessor was Anne Hyde, who married the man who would become James II.

- Molly Eichel