The Duke of Kent stands tall to bid a final farewell to his Duchess

The Duke of Kent has paid a powerful and poignant tribute to his wife of 64 years as he led mourners in a final farewell to the Duchess of Kent.

Prince Edward, 89, walked by himself up the steep steps of Westminster Cathedral just as the funeral service was about to begin.

His daughter, Lady Helen Taylor, was at his side.

The Duke, who often uses a walking stick, held firm to the banister but made the ascent unaided to shake hands with the clergy waiting to welcome him to the Cathedral for the Requiem Mass. The Duke, who often uses a walking stick, held firm to the banister but made the ascent unaided to shake hands with the clergy waiting to welcome him to the Cathedral for the Requiem Mass.

As well as Lady Helen, Prince Edward was accompanied by his two sons – George, The Earl of St. Andrews and Lord Nicholas Windsor.

The grandchildren of the Duke and Duchess of Kent followed him into Westminster Cathedral where the Requiem Mass was said by Cardinal Vincent Nichols.

Many members of the Royal Family had already arrived including the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Edinburgh. The Princess Royal, with her husband Sir Tim Laurence, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester were also waiting in the church.

There was some surprise when the Duke of York and his ex-wife, Sarah, arrived for the service.

The Duke of Kent’s brother, Prince Michael, and sister, Princess Alexandra, were there along with their families.

Last to arrive was King Charles who was on his own after Queen Camilla announced she’d no longer be able to attend having developed acute sinusitis.

As His Majesty entered the Catholic church, the Royal Standard was raised outside, a rare sight given that it is only in recent decades that a Monarch has even entered Catholic places of worship.

The funeral service was private and ended with the poignant sight and sound of a lone piper walking away from the coffin and into the distance, the lament slowly fading away.

Then, a moment of history as God Save The King was played for the Monarch inside a Catholic church.

The mourners then followed the coffin back through the Cathedral to the main door where the Duke of Kent once again stood tall to say farewell to his beloved wife. A beautiful floral tribute, including white roses for Yorkshire, the county of her birth, was on top of the coffin.

A private burial at Frogmore followed.

The Duchess of Kent died on September 4 2025.