LONDON – Britain’s King Charles and Queen Camilla attended the traditional Easter service at Windsor Castle on Sunday, joined by their eldest son and heir to the throne Prince William, wife Catherine and their three children at St George’s Chapel.
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The Easter Matins service holds an important place in the calendar of the King, who is supreme governor of the Church of England.
Dean of Windsor Christopher Coxworth welcomed Charles and Camilla, who wore red hats and coats, as they arrived for Easter matins, which was also attended by Princes Edward and Anne, the Princess Royal and other royals.
Charles and Camilla, who were given a bouquet of flowers, wished members of the crowd a “Happy Easter” after the service ended.
The monarch’s younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was arrested by police in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office, was absent after attending last year’s Easter gathering with ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.
His daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, were also absent on Sunday. A royal source said last week that the decision not to attend the Sunday service was the princesses’ choice, not Charles’s.
King Charles, who did not deliver an Easter message this year, was on Saturday urged by the family of Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre to meet survivors during his state visit to the US later this month. He said the visit coincides with the anniversary of his death.
Giuffre had accused the late American financier Epstein of trafficking her to Mountbatten-Windsor when she was 17 years old.
The disgraced former prince, who has denied the allegations and said he has no memory of meeting Giuffre, reached an out-of-court settlement with him in 2022 without admitting wrongdoing.
Separately, Sarah Mullally, Archbishop of Canterbury and the first woman to head the Church of England, delivered her first Easter sermon at Canterbury Cathedral on Sunday.
