The Duchess of Kent’s coffin arrived at Westminster Cathedral late on Monday afternoon afternoon for private funeral rites ahead of tomorrow’s requiem mass.
The royal hearse made the three-mile journey from Kensington Palace, reaching the cathedral just before 5pm. After a day of showers and blustery winds, the sun broke through as the Union flag flew at half-mast.
Her coffin, draped in the Royal Standard for family members and marked with a white border, was accompanied by her immediate family. A bearer party from the Royal Dragoon Guards—whom the Duchess had supported as deputy Colonel-in-Chief since the regiment’s founding in 1992—carried the coffin.
Katharine, the wife of the late Queen's cousin the Duke of Kent, died peacefully at home, surrounded by her family, on the evening of September 4 aged 92.
Earlier, a lone piper from the same regiment played a sombre lament as the coffin left Kensington Palace for the final time, before the hearse travelled to Westminster Cathedral under police escort.
Close friends and family began arriving about twenty minutes before the coffin. A minibus brought over a dozen mourners dressed in black. Prince and Princess Michael of Kent came separately, while Princess Alexandra arrived in a wheelchair in a black cab.
At the cathedral steps, the Duchess’s immediate family lined up for the Rite of Reception. The Duke of Kent, leaning on a walking stick, greeted Father Slawomir Witoń, the dean of Westminster Cathedral, and watched as his wife’s coffin was carried inside.
Monday evening’s rites included a Vigil for the Deceased, the sprinkling of holy water during the Rite of Reception, and Vespers—led by Bishop James Curry, Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster and Titular Bishop of Ramsbury—marked by prayers, music, hymns and tributes.
The requiem mass will be held on Tuesday, twelve days after Katharine died peacefully at home, surrounded by her family. The King, Queen and senior royals will attend, in what will be the first Catholic funeral for a member of the royal family in modern British history.
Katharine, who converted to Catholicism in 1994, was the first royal to do so in more than 300 years. Her husband, the Duke of Kent, did not convert and remains in the line of succession. Honouring her wish, her funeral will take place at Westminster Cathedral—the first royal funeral held there since the cathedral’s construction in 1903.
