Prince Edward, the Duke of Kent, turned 91 on October 9th. No doubt it will be a day soaked in poignant reflection, as the birthday comes simply weeks after he signed up with the royal household to mark the anniversary of the death of his cherished other half, Katharine, Duchess of Kent. The Prince is likewise grieving the death of his personal secretary, Nicholas Turnbull, who died in September.
Regardless of his individual losses and advanced age, the Duke of Kent stays a stalwart of the royal household. Still the holder of numerous patronages, he can be discovered supporting the arts at his precious Wigmore Hall, being in the royal box at Wimbledon, or commemorating the Scouts in Scotland in the middle of a heatwave. This work principles is normal of the royal, who embodies the exact same sense of determined responsibility as his late cousin, Queen Elizabeth II, with whom he took pleasure in a long-lasting relationship. “I constantly felt I wished to support her,” he when stated. “That’s without a doubt the most essential thing in life.”
The Duke of Kent’s moms and dads, Princess Marina and Prince George, coming down the stairs of Grosvenor House for the 1939 Derby Ball
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Prince Edward, aged one
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Maybe taking motivation from his late cousin, the Duke of Kent has actually continued to infiltrate his tenth years of life. He has actually brought out lots of engagements this year alone. This undeviating dedication to the monarchy has actually resulted in the Duke being passionately referred to as” Steady Eddie “– a relied on confidant to generations of royals who keeps a position at the very heart of The Firm.
Born in 1935, the Duke of Kent is the oldest kid of the late Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, making him a grandchild of King George V and Mary of Teck. His mom was likewise a very first cousin of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Edward was called in honor of his uncle, the future King Edward VIII. Amongst the visitors at his Buckingham Palace christening was the then nine-year-old Princess Elizabeth, along with the King and Queen, who functioned as godparents. His sibling, Princess Alexandra, The Hon. Lady Ogilvy, was born the list below year.
His titles are still utilized today by his descendants. Who was Prince George, Duke of Kent, the more youthful sibling of King George VI whose death stays a royal secret?
Disaster struck the household simply weeks after the arrival of the youngest Kent boy when Prince George was eliminated in action while serving in the RAF throughout the Second World War. The 39-year-old royal passed away along with 13 other workers after their airplane crashed quickly after liftoff from the Scottish Highlands in a non-operational objective bound for Iceland. The specific situations of the death were not revealed and stay a secret to this day.
It indicated Prince Edward prospered his dad as the Duke of Kent at simply 6 years of ages. In keeping with royal custom, the young Duke of Kent was informed at Ludgrove (likewise gone to by Prince William and Prince Harry), then Eton and later on Le Rosey in Switzerland. The Duke then got in the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, where his ability for foreign languages was acknowledged with a reward.
The Royal Family in their bathrobes after the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Back Row: The Duke of Gloucester, The Duke of Edinburgh and The Duke of Kent. Front Row: Princess Alexandra, Prince Michael of Kent, Princess Anne, Princess Marina, Princess Margaret, The Queen, The Queen Mother, Princess Royal, The Duchess of Gloucester with Prince William and Prince Richard of Gloucester. Second June 1953
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Aged simply 16, the Duke of Kent stepped up and represented his household line when he strolled behind the casket of his uncle, King George VI, as it processed to Westminster Abbey. A year later on, at the 1953 crowning of Queen Elizabeth II, he made a solemn vow to be his cousin’s “liege guy of life and limb “– and continues to live by these words today.
The Duke of Kent reviewed the enormity of the celebration in his autobiography, A Royal Life, and admitted that he had actually been nervous about forgetting his lines. “It was rather overwhelming,” he composed, including: “The entire service was quite long and it was definitely really excellent.”
The Duchess of Kent, who passed away Friday at the age of 92, wed into the royal household in 1961. Princess Anne played flower woman, and the wedding event broke a 600-year-old royal custom.
The Duke of Kent served in the military for 21 years, retiring in 1976. It was thanks to the Armed Forces that he satisfied the female who would become his spouse, Katharine Worsley– the only child of Sir William Worsley, 4th Baronet, and his partner Joyce Morgan Brunner. The Duke of Kent hung around stationed with his routine at Catterick Garrison, near the Worsley household seat of Hovington Hall. They revealed their engagement in March 1961, with the royal wedding event itself occurring that June.
When the couple wed, they braked with centuries of royal custom. Instead of choosing Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Chapel Royal at St. James’s Palace or St. George’s Chapel at Windsor, Katharine firmly insisted that they get married in her home county of Yorkshire, at the historical York Minster, which had actually not been utilized as a royal wedding event location for 600 years.
Katharine, Duchess of Kent, and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, visualized after their wedding at York Minster. 8 June, 1961.
Prince Edward and the late Duchess of Kent at the actions of Government House on the day of Ugandan Independence, in October 1962
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The bride-to-be’s option of gown was extremely 1960s in design. Developed by John Cavanagh, on the suggestion of her future mother-in-law, Princess Marina, it included a round neck with fitted sleeves, in addition to a complete skirt with a 15-foot train. There were some issues that the gown was too uncomfortable and heavy to relocate, with the bride-to-be apparently practicing her curtsey numerous times. She obtained a diamond and pearl tiara from her mother-in-law’s collection, going with a diadem that had actually come from her hubby’s granny, Queen Mary. The very same tiara was later on lent to Katharine’s child, Lady Helen Taylor, on her wedding in 1992.
Visitors at the wedding event consisted of the late Queen, in addition to the Queen Mother, the Duke of Edinburgh, King Charles III(then Prince Charles )and the Princess Royal, who worked as a flower woman. There were likewise royals from Denmark, Greece, the Netherlands and Norway in presence. It was at this wedding event that the future King Juan Carlos of Spain would satisfy his royal bride-to-be, Princess Sophia of Greece and Denmark.
The Duke and Duchess of Kent with their kids George Windsor, Earl of St Andrews, Helen Windsor(now Lady Helen Taylor)and child boy Lord Nicholas Windsor, in 1970
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The Duke of Kent and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, with Virginia Wade, the Wimbledon Singles Champion in 1977. The Duke of Kent was president of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club
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The Duke and Duchess of Kent went on to invite 3 kids, Lord Nicholas Windsor, Lady Helen Taylor and George, Earl of St Andrews, and 10 grandchildren, consisting of Lady Amelia Windsor, Lady Marina Windsor and Cassius Taylor.
The Duke of Kent is included with over 140 various charities, companies and expert bodies. These “cover a vast array of concerns, from honoring the war dead, to promoting the advancement of British innovation and market,” according to the royal household site. He is probably best called the President of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, a position he held for more than 5 years from 1969. In the function, the Duke of Kent was on hand to provide the winners’ prizes to the champs. He was prospered by the Princess of Wales in 2021.
Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, and Prince Edward, the Duke of Kent stroll onto centre court to provide the prizes after the Men’s Singles last at Wimbledon 2019
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Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, riding at Ascot Racecourse in June 1968
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The Duke of Kent represented his cousin Queen Elizabeth II on various abroad engagements and stayed a relied on member of her inner circle till her death. The well-regarded position in which he was held was made plain for the world in 2022 when he signed up with the queen at Buckingham Palace– her very first terrace look given that Prince Philip’s death the previous year. When the world grieved the death of a precious king in 2023, Prince Edward was grieving the loss of his precious cousin.
After weding the Duke of Kent, the Duchess of Kent ended up being a working member of the Royal Family. Her experience as a main school music instructor showed a broader long-lasting love of music, and much of her work centred around this. She stepped back from royal tasks in 2002 and hardly ever made public looks in her later years. Katharine did not go to the Coronation of King Charles III or the state funeral service of Queen Elizabeth II, and was last seen photographed in public when she and her partner saw an efficiency by 3 pipers from the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) to mark the Duke’s 89th birthday in October of 2024. Buckingham Palace revealed her death at the age of 92 on September 4th, 2025.
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy, Prince Edward and Birgitte, the Duchess of Gloucester, wave from the terrace of Buckingham Palace following the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on 6 May, 2023
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Last public image of the Duchess of Kent: Prince Michael of Kent, the Duke of Kent, the Duchess of Kent and Lord Nicholas Windsor see 3 pipers from the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers and Greys) play outside Wren House, Kensington Palace to mark Prince Edward’s 89th birthday, in October 2024
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The Royal Family ended up in force to pay their aspects and support the Duke of Kent at the funeral service, with King Charles III and the Prince and Princess of Wales amongst those in participation. Katharine’s casket was taken by hearse from Kensington Palace to Westminster Cathedral, where the Rite of Reception and Vespers happened, on the eve of the Requiem Mass. In an indication of the regard the Duchess of Kent made from the Royal Family, her casket was carried in the Royal Hearse, created by Queen Elizabeth II, and curtained in the Royal Standard.
The anniversary of the Duchess’s death– and the death of the Duke’s personal secretary– will no doubt taxed the heart of the Duke of Kent as he marked his birthday. If there’s one thing that the couple stood for throughout their royal professions, it was the significance of diligence and task– worths that the 91-year-old continues to embody.
Initially released by Tatler
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