Sad news from the British Royal Family today! The Duchess of Kent has passed away last night at the age of 92. The Yorkshire Baronet’s daughter married the late Queen’s cousin in 1961 and served as a working Royal for 40 years, becoming the first Royal to covert to Catholicism in centuries before retiring to became a music teacher.
It is with deep sorrow that Buckingham Palace announces the death of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent.
Her Royal Highness passed away peacefully last night at Kensington Palace, surrounded by her family.
The King and Queen and all Members of The Royal Family join The Duke of Kent, his children and grandchildren in mourning their loss and remembering fondly The Duchess’s life-long devotion to all the organisations with which she was associated, her passion for music and her empathy for young people.
The only daughter of Sir William and Lady Worsley, she was born at the Family Seat, Hovington Hall in Yorkshire, where her father was the Lord Lieutenant. After studying in Yorkshire and Norfolk, she studied music at Miss Hubler’s Finishing School in Oxford.
In 1961, Katharine Worsley married the Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, with Royal Guests from around Europe gathering for their Wedding at York Minster.
The Duke and Duchess of Kent had three children; the Earl of St Andrews, Lady Helen Taylor, and Lord Nicholas Windsor and ten grandchildren.
The Duchess of Kent became a full-time royal after her wedding, carrying out official duties to support the Queen and Royal Family for over 40 years, including when the Duke focused on his Army career. For many years, the Duchess was the presenter of trophies at Wimbledon, famously consoling Jana Novotna after her loss in 1993.
In 1994, the Duchess converted to Catholicism, the first member of the Royal family to publicly do so since 1701, and in 2002, she reduced her public role, instead becoming a music teacher, and preferring to be known as Katharine, Duchess of Kent (the style given to the widowed or divorced wife of a Duke), though her official title remains HRH the Duchess of Kent.
The Duke and Duchess spent their final years between a house on the grounds of Kensington Palace and a house in Oxfordshire, remaining out of the public eye but appearing for some concerts and royal events over the years.
Our condolences to the Duke of Kent and their family!
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