Photos of Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton before they were royals show how drastically their lives have changed
Talia Lakritz
- Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle were regular people before they married into the royal family.
- Middleton graduated from St. Andrews with a degree in art history, and now she has an official portrait at the National Portrait Gallery.
- Markle held a number of odd jobs before getting her big break on the TV show "Suits," but as a royal, she got a staff of her own.
Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle were both regular people before they married into the royal family. After becoming duchesses, their lives look very different. They follow royal protocol (most of the time), have access to enormous wealth and privilege, and live in the public eye under constant scrutiny.
Now that Markle and Prince Harry have announced they're stepping back as senior royals, Markle's life might become a little more like it was before she was the Duchess of Sussex.
Here are photos that show Markle and Middleton's before-and-after transformations from commoner to royal.
Read the original article on InsiderKate Middleton graduated from St. Andrews with a degree in art history.
Prince William studied geography and graduated at the same ceremony.
She's part of that history now with her own portrait at the National Portrait Gallery.
The director of the National Portrait Gallery showed Middleton her portrait at the National Portrait Gallery.
She drove herself to her 25th birthday party.
Middleton was photographed pulling out of her driveway in 2007.
Now she's chauffeured everywhere she goes.
Middleton gets driven to royal engagements.
As a commoner, she carried her own bags.
Middleton was photographed walking home in London in 2007.
Her assistant and stylist handle that now.
Her assistant, private secretary Sophie Agnew, and her stylist, Natasha Archer, carry luggage for her.
She used to attend red carpet parties as a guest.
She attended the WTA Tour Players Party in 2006.
Now, she's the guest of honor at charity galas.
Middleton spoke at the annual Place2Be School Leaders Forum in 2017.
Middleton used to wear cowboy hats.
She chose a brown cowboy hat with braid detail to wear to the Gatcombe Park Festival of British Eventing in 2005.
They've since been replaced with fascinators.
She's undergone a hat style evolution.
She wore button-down shirts and blazers before joining the royal family.
Middleton wore a blue striped button-down with an olive green coat the Annual National Hunt Festival held at Cheltenham Racecourse in 2007.
She still wears a slightly more regal version of the same look.
At a wine tasting during a visit to New Zealand in 2014, she wore a blue checkered shirt with a crisp navy blazer.
She was a fan of wearing bold animal prints when going out and about.
Back when she could attend events like a circus show at the O2 Arena in 2008, she could wear funkier clothes.
She can get away with more muted versions.
She wore a less shiny animal print dress to visit Resort Studios in Cliftonville in 2015.
Meghan Markle held a number of odd jobs before getting her big break on the TV show "Suits."
She was a briefcase model on "Deal or No Deal," a freelance calligrapher, a restaurant hostess, and more.
After becoming a royal, butlers and staff did jobs for her.
Palace staff gave out goodie bags ahead of Markle's royal wedding to Prince Harry.
She used to go shopping for knick knacks.
Markle attended the Some Kind-a Gorgeous Style and Beauty Lounge at the Chateau Marmont in 2010.
Now her face is on them.
Merchandise and souvenirs featuring images of the happy couple were sold before the royal wedding.
Before royal life, she could sip a cocktail without thinking twice.
Markle attended the DirecTV Beach Bowl 2014 at the Gansevoort Hotel in New York City in 2014, and sampled a pink cocktail.
But her royal life involved lots of formal toasts with dignitaries.
No pink cocktails to be found at a reception at the residence of the British Ambassador to Ireland during her visit to Ireland.
Markle gave enthusiastic hugs as a commoner.
Meghan Markle participated in the DirecTV Beach Bowl at Pier 40 in New York City in 2014 and hugged her teammates.
Hugging a royal isn't considered appropriate according to royal protocol, so handshakes it is.
She shook hands on a walkabout at Cardiff Castle in Wales.
Markle used to be able to cross her legs like anyone else.
Markle attended Fashion Week in 2013 and sat next to Petra Nemcova.
As the Duchess of Sussex, she was expected to sit with a "duchess slant."
Coined by Beaumont Etiquette, the term "duchess slant" refers to the way Kate Middleton sits, keeping her ankles and knees together while slanting her legs to either side. It's a move Markle has adopted, as well.
She once gave out autographs as an actress.
She signed her name on a board at a charity event in 2013.
As a duchess, autographs are against royal protocol — but she's been known to bend the rules.
Royals aren't allowed to sign autographs for security reasons to prevent their signatures from being forged. That didn't stop Markle from signing 10-year-old Caitlin Clarke's autograph book with a heart and smiley face.
Markle used to be able to wear whatever shade of nail polish happened to match her outfit.
At an InStyle party in Toronto, she wore grey nail polish to match her dress.
The Queen reportedly only allows neutral nail colors.
Royals are expected to adhere to an unspoken rule of wearing only neutral nail colors.
Markle was an actress starring on "Suits."
She played the character Rachel Zane.
But being the Duchess of Sussex became a full-time job.
Not anymore. She and Harry announced in January that they're cutting back on their royal duties and planning to split their time between the UK and North America, launch a "new charitable entity," and become financially independent.
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