Big surprise!
Modern Prince William becomes first ever Royal to choose a 'best man' rather than a 'supporter' (and he's picked Harry)
By
Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 6:38 PM on 14th February 2011
- Royal Aides say William is first to ever break 'supporter' protocol
- The couple will have four bridesmaids and two page boys
- Kate's sister Philippa to be maid of honour on April 29
Announcement: Prince William has asked his brother Harry to be his best man while Kate's sister Philippa will be maid of honour
Prince William broke with tradition today and asked his brother, Prince Harry, to be his 'best man' - rather than 'supporter'.
Kate Middleton has asked her sister Philippa to be her maid of honour it was revealed on the British Monarchy Facebook page today.
As tradition dictates, Prince Harry will now be responsible for organising William's stag party.
But the marrying Prince has dispensed with the the usual rule that male members of the Royal family don't have a 'best man' but a supporter when they tie the knot.
It is thought to be the first time the 'supporter' has been appointed.
The Prince of Wales chose his brother Prince Andrew to be his supporter when he married Diana at St Paul's Cathedral in 1981.
When a non-Royal is marrying a Princess, it is usual for a best man to be appointed.
It was also revealed today that William and Kate will have four bridesmaids and two page boys on their big day on April 29.
The wedding details were announced on the same day that it emerged that the couple would be paying an official visit together later this month to the university where they met.
Prince William is also to take on the role of patron of St Andrews University's 600th Anniversary appeal.
The couple will return there on Friday February 25.
The day before the couple will attend a naming ceremony and service of dedication of the Hereford Endeavour lifeboat at Trearddur Bay Lifeboat Station on Anglesey, where RAF rescue helicopter pilot William is based.
The official visits are not the first the couple have made since their wedding announcement.
Prince Harry, left, will be best man while Philippa Middleton, will be the Maid of Honour
In December they attended a Teenage Cancer Trust concert in Norfolk.
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Page boy Master William Lowther-Pinkerton is the son of Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton has been Prince William's private secretary since 2005 and is very close to him.
Tom Pettifer is Prince William's godson and will be his second page boy.
The eight-year-old's mother, Tiggy Pettifer, was personal assistant to the Prince of Wales during the 1990s.
She became a close companion of Prince William and Prince Harry following the separation of their parents, once describing them as 'my babies', and helped them adjust after the death of their mother in 1997.
Best man: Prince Harry with his older brother William during a visit to a nature reserve in Botswana last year
Bridesmaids include Lady Louise Windsor, who is the daughter of the Earl and Countess of Wessex and is Prince William's cousin, and the Hon Margarita Armstrong-Jones, who is the daughter of Viscount and Viscountess Linley. She is the second cousin of the Prince.
The van Cutsems are close family friends from Norfolk who have known the Prince since childhood. Their daughter Grace will also be a bridesmaid.
The Duchess of Cornwall's granddaughter Eliza Lopes will be a bridesmaid. The three-year-old is the daughter of Harry and Laura Lopes.
Prince Harry said he was 'delighted' about the engagement following the announcement last year.
In a statement, Harry said: 'I am delighted that my brother has popped the question! It means I get a sister, which I have always wanted.'
The brothers are only two years apart and have been close since their mother died in 1997.
Harry looking worse for wear after leaving a Soho club, left, at the weekend and Chelsy Davy, right in New York. She had earlier enjoyed a dinner date with the Prince in the UK - fuelling rumours they are to get back together
Royal appointment: The Countess of Wessex with her daughter Lady Louise Windsor, left, who will be one of Kate Middleton's bridesmaids and, right, Margarita Armstrong-Jones, daughter of Viscount and Viscountess Linley
Bridesmaids: Eliza Lopes, grandaughter of The Duchess of Cornwall, left, and Grace van Cutsem, right, being held by her mother Lady Rose van Cutsem
THE ROYAL WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENT IN FULL
The Wedding of HRH Prince William of Wales and Catherine Middleton – Maid of Honour and Bridesmaids, Best Man and Page Boys.
Miss Catherine Middleton has asked her sister, Miss Philippa Middleton, to be her Maid of Honour.
Prince William has asked his brother, Prince Harry, to be his Best Man.
Prince William and Miss Middleton have chosen the following Bridesmaids and Page Boys:
The Lady Louise Windsor (aged seven – daughter of The Earl and Countess of Wessex)
Louise is the eldest child of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, Prince Charles' brother, and his wife Sophie.
She is the youngest granddaughter and second-youngest grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh, and 9th in line to the throne.
In the past Prince Edward and Sophie have been reluctant to allow Lady Louise to be photographed because she was born with exotropia, a rare condition which causes a divergent squint.
The Hon. Margarita Armstrong-Jones (aged eight – daughter of Viscount and Viscountess Linley)
Margarita is the is the only daughter of Viscount and Viscountess Linley. She was born three months after the death of her grandmother, Princess Margaret, the Queen's younger sister, and a month and a half after the death of her great-grandmother Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.
In September 2006, Margarita made headlines after she was photographed sitting on the luggage rack of her father's bicycle in rush hour traffic, provoking complaints from advocates of traffic safety.
Miss Grace van Cutsem (aged three – daughter of Mr and Mrs Hugh van Cutsem)
Grace, the daughter of Hugh Van Cutsem and Rose Van Cutsem (nee Atsor) is William’s goddaughter.
Both William and Kate attended her parents' wedding in 2005 in Oxfordshire.
Prince Charles refused to attend the wedding of Hugh's elder brother Edward to the Duke of Westminster's daughter, Lady Tamara Grosvenor, in November 2004, after learning Camilla was to be seated some rows behind him.
Edward Van Cutsem was a pageboy at Prince Charles and Lady Diana's wedding.
Miss Eliza Lopes (aged three – daughter of Mr and Mrs Harry Lopes)
The eldest daughter of Laura Lopez (nee Parker Bowles) and Camilla’s granddaughter.
Laura married Harry Marcus George Lopes, the son of the Hon. George Edward Lopes, formerly an underwear model for Calvin Klein and now a chartered accountant.
Kate attended their wedding in 2006.
Master William (Billy) Lowther-Pinkerton (aged 10 – son of Mr and Mrs Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton)
Billy is the son of Anthony James Moxon 'Jamie' Lowther-Pinkerton, the part-time Private Secretary to William and Harry.
He retired from the British Army in 1998 and was appointed Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO) for his service as Equerry to The Queen Mother in 1986, and appointed a military Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), in 1990 for service with the special forces in Colombia.
Master Tom Pettifer (aged eight – son of Mr and Mrs Charles Pettifer )
Tom, William’s godson, is the youngest son of Alexandra Shân 'Tiggy' Pettifer (nee Legge-Bourke) who was hired a a nanny to Harry and William after Charles and Diana announced their separation.
Tiggy helped comfort the princes after their mother's death in 1997 and retired from the Prince of Wales's service when she married in October 1999.
Details about the Bridesmaids’ dresses and the Page Boys’ uniforms will be made available on the Wedding Day. The wedding will take place on April 29.
William and Kate to return to the university where they first met
University: Prince William talks to his father at St Andrews on his graduation day. He received a 2:1
Prince William and Kate Middleton will return to the university where they met next week to kick off its 600th anniversary celebrations.
The couple, who will marry in April, are making the visit to the University of St Andrews in Fife as the institution prepares to mark its forthcoming birthday.
It will be a trip down memory lane for William and Kate, who studied history of art together and shared a house in the town.
Prince William has been appointed patron of the university's fundraising appeal. The pair will launch the three-year anniversary celebrations, which run to 2013.
The university's principal and vice-chancellor Professor Louise Richardson said: 'We hope that Prince William and Miss Middleton are the first among many who will reconnect with St Andrews and join in the celebrations.'
William graduated in 2005 with a 2:1 honours degree in geography after switching subjects, while Kate achieved the same award in history of art.
Teachers there say the close-knit community helped the couple keep their romance a secret.
Former lecturer Professor Peter Humfrey, who was head of art history when they were students, also praised Miss Middleton's discretion.
He said: 'I think it's to her credit that she very deliberately kept a low profile about this.
'The fact that they managed to have a relationship together in, I don't know, their last year, maybe last two years, without many people knowing about it - certainly not me - does reflect the rather close-knit community of St Andrews.
'I think within the school of art history we're very pleased for them.'
Graduation: Kate Middleton received her degree certificate in the same ceremony as the Prince
In their first year, William and Kate lived a few doors apart at St Salvator's hall of residence and became friendly, socialising together and playing tennis.
They began sharing an elegant four-bedroom Edwardian townhouse with two friends at the start of their second year.
At the time Miss Middleton was dating another student, Rupert Finch.
By the following year, the four moved into a secluded rented cottage outside the town.
It is not known exactly when William and Kate became an item but it is rumoured to be around Christmas 2003.
St Andrews has gained a reputation as one of Britain's top match-making universities, with students there having about a one in 10 chance of meeting their partner and getting wed.
Professor Brendan Cassidy, the current head of art history, said the secluded nature of the town and its lack of clubs and bars meant students organised their own informal get-togethers and so formed closer bonds.
He said: 'Students are thrown together in ways that are unusual, I think, so they have to make their own entertainment.
'And I think that probably brings people together in a much closer way than were they to be living in Edinburgh, Glasgow or London.
'So although art history can probably take a little credit because they were doing the same subject, I think ultimately it was really St Andrews and the kind of student experience they have here, which is lovely.'
Founded in the 15th century, St Andrews is the third oldest university in the English-speaking world.
Teaching began in 1410 and the university was formally constituted by a series of papal bulls issued by Pope Benedict XIII in 1413.
daily mail
Spree: Kate and her mother Carol had scoured the shops looking for the perfect tiara. They tried Tiffany, Asprey, Garrards ... and then struck lucky with QVC
Tweak: Here comes the bride, but where's her handsome prince? Had meddlesome Harry poured too much White Lightning down him at William's stag do? She'd better check
Descent: Kate promised her future in-laws that, unlike Diana and Fergie, she wouldn't go off the rails ... she didn't say anything about sliding down the banisters, though
But it was for condolences for the victims of the Christchurch earthquake.
They went to New Zealand House in London 
