Details About Pippa Middleton's Marriage Only The Biggest Royal Watchers Know

While Princess Catherine is the more well-known Middleton, there's no denying that her sister Pippa Middleton has royal fans just as interested. From her alluring maid of honor dress at Catherine and Prince William's wedding to her dating history, fans have always been intrigued by her life. After Middleton married her husband, James Matthews, fans got even more invested. 

But unlike her sister Catherine, who is a public-facing British royal who makes appearances out and about as part of her royal duties, Middleton and Matthews are a bit more private. Considering neither is a working royal or has a similarly public career, it shouldn't be too big of a surprise. But that doesn't stop people from wanting to know all they can about the couple and their life together. 

Thankfully, fans of the royal family who have kept a close eye on the couple have learned a few interesting things about Middleton and Matthews' marriage over the years. As the two continue to raise their three children together, here are a few things casual fans might not know about the two's beautiful love story. 

One thing royal fans might not realize about Pippa Middleton and James Matthews is just how rarely they appear in public. This might be surprising to some considering Middleton was known for her prominent social life before getting married, with Tatler even naming her the Number 1 Society Singleton back in 2008. The happy couple generally only go out to big events if it's a wedding or a tennis match. They are regulars at Wimbledon, so it's the one place you can usually expect at least one of them to be.  

Since tying the knot, Middleton and her husband have generally lived a quiet life. The two started dating after Princess Catherine's high-profile wedding to Prince William. But soon after they got married in 2017, there were a surprising number of weddings they attended together. In the same year, Middleton and Matthews attended a wedding in Sweden in June and another in Ireland in July. In 2018, there was Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's wedding, as well as Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's wedding, both of which they attended. 

Other than weddings and the occasional sighting for a rare date night out, Middleton and her husband have attended Wimbledon many times. But in more recent years, Middleton has either gone with other family members or not at all. The other event that the couple usually attends together is Princess Catherine's "Together at Christmas" carol service at Westminster Abbey in December each year. All in all, it's safe to say that Middleton and Matthews don't like to invite attention. 

Both Pippa Middleton and James Matthews are very into sports and physical activity. In fact, the former got a graduate degree in 2022 in physical education, sport and physical literacy. What some people might not know is that the now-married couple bonded over their love of exercise early on in their relationship, when they were reportedly just friends.

In 2014, Middleton, Matthews, and others took part in an ambitious 3,000-mile bike ride across the U.S. for Race Across America. The annual bike race travels through 12 states and is timed. To make it even more difficult, the clock never stops the whole time, so any breaks have to be strategic and limited. The next year, the two also participated in a swim-run event in Sweden. The 47-mile-long race had competitors constantly switching between swimming in the cold Baltic Sea and running over islands in the Stockholm archipelago. Exercise is clearly a big part of the couple's lives. 

Even during their honeymoon, Middleton and Matthews kept up with their physical activity. A local reportedly saw them running across the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia with someone who looked to be a personal trainer. One spectator told Fairfax Media that Middleton "looked like such a pro in her active wear," while another said, "They seemed like they were loving running across the bridge and looking around." Both Middleton and Matthews have also completed marathons and other grueling races, including some ski events. The latter was also a professional racing driver at one point. 

Despite both Pippa Middleton and James Matthews living noticeably public lives before tying the knot, after they got married, their goals changed. The happy couple wanted to settle down and keep their life private. Even before they got married, a source claimed to People that they had a "deep desire" to step away from the spotlight. The source added that the then-engaged couple planned to focus on "having children and leading a quiet life." Considering how they've been since the wedding, the report was right.

Aside from their rare public outings, Middleton and her husband have stayed quiet and quickly started welcoming children together. Their first child, a son named Arthur, was born in late 2018. Their first daughter, Grace, was born in March 2021, and another daughter named Rose arrived in 2022. While it seems like they're done having kids now, that could always change. Middleton and Matthews publicly announced their kids' births and names, but in general, they've kept them out of the public eye. They have never shared any pictures or videos of the children. 

It's a very different life for the kids than their cousins, Princess Catherine and Prince William's children. While the royal couple seems quite private as well, their children have been kind of forced to grow up with the attention of the world on them. But there are some similarities between how all the kids live, since both families have relatively lavish lifestyles. While they might not be royal, Middleton and Matthews' kids live with them in a home in Berkshire that reportedly cost 15 million pounds, with 32 bedrooms and 150 acres. In fact, it's actually bigger than Catherine's current home with her family at Forest Lodge, although they also have other estates around the country.

Even with how private the couple is, any drama in their lives was bound to get out. In 2026, exactly that happened when James Matthews clashed with local organizations over a security measure he installed on their property. After the couple bought their home in 2022, Matthews closed off a path on their grounds with a gate and railings. They also reportedly added signs that said, "no access" and "no entrance," warding off people. 

But the West Berkshire Ramblers, a walking organization in the area, took issue with the move, claiming that it blocked off an established public footpath. A local claimed that the closure presented a safety issue for the town. The Independent reported him as saying, "The alternative route is to walk along a dangerous road where very few refuges for pedestrians are present." 

In late May 2026, Matthews spoke about the conflict to the planning inquiry investigating the situation. He argued that the path, if left open, presented a safety issue for his family. There seemed to be conflicting reports about the path, with Matthews and a former estate manager claiming that there has never been a public path there, and very few people over the years have tried to walk through. Meanwhile, the other side claimed that it has been a public path for decades.