The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge celebrated their milestone tenth wedding anniversary in April 2021, but did you know that Prince William and Kate had to spend their first Valentine's Day as a married couple apart?
In 2012, the Duke was deployed to the Falkland Islands for six weeks in his role as a RAF search and rescue pilot. And that meant missing out on the annual holiday with his wife of ten months.
But William made sure to treat Kate on the day, as she revealed when she stepped out for solo engagements in Liverpool.
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When one little boy told the Duchess he was sorry that William couldn't be with her on Valentine's Day, Kate told him: "Do you know where he is, Jaqson?
"He's in the Falklands but he's sent me a card this morning."
Jaqson's mother also revealed at the time that the Duchess said she received a bouquet of flowers from her husband as well as a card.
William returned home from the Falkland Islands on 21 March 2012 and enjoyed a short period of leave with Kate, before returning to his duties in the UK.
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© Photo: Getty ImagesKate also received flowers and cards from the crowds in Liverpool in 2012
It's not unusual for the royals to have public outings on occasions such as national holidays and their birthdays.
The Duchess of Cambridge went to the ICAP Art Room at a school in Ealing on Valentine's Day in 2014, and in 2017, she spent the holiday visiting the RAF Air Cadets in Stamford.
Meanwhile, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex also spent some of their first Valentine's Day as a married couple apart in 2019. Prince Harry visited the British armed forces in Norway and was pictured sitting in a makeshift igloo, surrounded by candles and photos of the couple on their wedding day.
"You weirdos," Harry joked at the time. "It's very kind of you to invite me into your private shrine or whatever you want to call it. And the music, is that part of it? Very romantic."
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