How Harry, William, and Charles marked the Queen’s death anniversary in separate corners of UK
Prince Harry paid his own private respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II in Windsor on the first anniversary of her death as the King and Prince William attended services across the UK.
Echoing his solitary journey to Balmoral a year ago, the Duke of Sussex was spotted leaving St George’s Chapel in Windsor alone on Friday, a year to the day after his grandmother died in Scotland.
Dressed in a white shirt and dark trousers, he was captured on camera by tourists at the royal estate in Berkshire at around midday walking out of the chapel, where both the late Queen and her husband are laid to rest. He was then seen leaving in a black Range Rover.
An image of his departure was later posted on social media.
The Duke of Sussex has made a fleeting visit to the UK, while the Duchess of Sussex has remained at their family home in California, before heading to Dusseldorf in Germany for the start of the Invictus Games on Saturday.
Attending a charity award ceremony in London on Thursday night, he recalled how he was unable to attend the same event last year as his grandmother passed away.
Speaking as the patron of WellChild, a charity supporting children suffering from serious illnesses, he said: “As you also probably know, she would have been the first person to insist that I still come to be with you all instead of going to her and that’s precisely why I know exactly one year on that she is looking down on all of us tonight, happy we’re together continuing to spotlights such an incredible community.”
Prince Harry’s solo trip to Windsor comes as the rest of the Royal Family have been paying their own tribute to the Queen in nations across the UK.
King Charles and Queen Camilla chose to spend the day at Balmoral, where the late Queen had been staying before her death last September at the age of 96.
The couple attended a service at Crathie Kirk for private memorial prayers on Friday morning and were greeted by well-wishers afterwards.
Earlier, the King had issued a statement to mark the anniversary thanking the public for their “love and support” over the past 12 months.
He said: “In marking the first anniversary of Her late Majesty’s death and my Accession, we recall with great affection her long life, devoted service and all she meant to so many of us.
“I am deeply grateful, too, for the love and support that has been shown to my wife and myself during this year as we do our utmost to be of service to you all.”
Buckingham Palace also issued a previously unreleased photograph of the late Queen Elizabeth, which had been taken by photographer Cecil Beaton in 1968.
The Prince and Princess of Wales were also away from Windsor for the first anniversary. The couple attended a small private service at St Davids Cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales and met local people during a walkabout.
In a poignant moment during the ceremony, the Princess of Wales placed a white floral in front of a photo of the late monarch.
The Very Revd Dr Sarah Rowland Jones, Dean of St Davids, who conducted the service, paid tribute to the Queen saying “countless numbers will be remembering her with both sadness and with great affection, giving thanks again for her long life of dedicated service”.
St Davids has been a site of pilgrimage and worship for more than 1,400 years and since the Reformation, one of the quire stalls in the cathedral has been in the possession of the Crown, known as the Sovereign’s Stall.
Elizabeth II was the first monarch to visit St Davids Cathedral since the Reformation during a royal tour to Wales in 1955.
Figures from the world of politics have also paid tribute to the late Queen, a year on from her passing.
Rishi Sunak said “the scale of Her Late Majesty’s service only seems greater” with the perspective of a year.
“Her devotion to the nations of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth only seems deeper,” he said, adding: “And our gratitude for such an extraordinary life of duty and dedication, only continues to grow.”
He said that he will “treasure my memories of those occasions when I met Her Late Majesty”, adding that he was “struck by her wisdom, by her incredible warmth and grace, but also her sharp wit”.
While Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer noted the “remarkable scenes inside and outside Westminster Hall” as the nation paid their respects to the Queen lying in state.
He said this “showed clearly the late Queen always enjoyed a special bond with her people”.
“It was a relationship built from her understanding that service of this great nation is the thread that unites sovereign and subject,” he said. “So, as we reflect on her legacy again today, let us embrace that spirit of public service as our guide towards a better future.”
In the capital, there was a gun salute fired at midday in Hyde Park and at 1pm at the Tower of London to mark the anniversary of the King’s accession and bells rang at Westminster Abbey.
Members of the public also headed to Buckingham Palace to place their own tributes to the late Queen.
i has contacted both Buckingham Palace and the Duke of Sussex’s spokesperson for comment.
