Buckingham Palace has announced that Katharine, the Duchess of Kent, has passed away aged 92. Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, she was the eldest member of the royal family.
Born Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley on 22 February 1933, she was a member of the British royal family by marriage. Katharine was born into an old Yorkshire family; her father, Sir William Worsley, was the 4th Baronet of Hovingham Hall.
In 1961, she married Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (the first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II and nicknamed “Steady Eddie”), becoming the Duchess of Kent.
Together, they have three children: George, Earl of St Andrews; Lady Helen Taylor; and Lord Nicholas Windsor. They conceived a fourth child, but he was tragically stillborn. Following that horrible loss, the Duchess was treated at the hospital for seven weeks. She later shared that she was being treated for acute depression.
Katharine made headlines in the 1990s when she became the first royal to convert to Roman Catholicism in more than 300 years. It is expected that due to her conversion, she will have a Catholic funeral service. It will be the first for a member of the British royal family in centuries.
For many years, she carried out royal duties alongside her husband, representing the late Queen at official engagements in the UK and abroad. She also supported numerous charities, in particular the Samaritans, founded the Future Talent charity in 2004, and worked as a UNICEF ambassador.
She was known for presenting trophies at Wimbledon, and in 1993, she broke with royal formalities by hugging a crying Jana Novotna following her women’s singles final loss. However, she reportedly fell out with Wimbledon after she was not permitted to bring the son of Philip Lawrence, a headmaster who was killed, into the royal box.
The duchess even graced one of the covers of The Australian Women’s Weekly in 1976, titled “The Royal who surprised them all.”
In recent years, she had stepped back from public duties. She taught music at a state primary school where she was known simply as Mrs Kent. The duchess was a skilled musician who could play piano, organ, and was a talented singer. She received permission to officially drop her “HRH” title.
Despite her increasingly private life, she did attend the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and attended the Prince and Princess of Wales’ (then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s) wedding. Furthermore, she was also at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s wedding in 2018 — she wore white trainers for the event. However, she was not present for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, and she did not attend Her Majesty’s funeral or King Charles’ coronation.
As mentioned, Buckingham Palace shared news of her passing. The Palace wrote:
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.
On September 16, 2025, the Duchess’ coffin was taken out of Kensington Palace ahead of her funeral at the Westminster Cathedral the following day.
Her husband, Prince Edward walked with their daughter Lady Helen Taylor.
Members of the royal family will be attendance at the funeral including King Charles, Queen Camilla, the Prince and Princess of Wales, and additional members.
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