King Charles and Camilla will mark the anniversary of the late Queen Elizabeth II’s death privately at Balmoral, it has been announced.
The Royal couple are spending their traditional summer break at their Scottish retreat and will commemorate the anniversary on Friday with a period of reflection. It is understood the King and Queen Consort are not expected to attend any public engagements during the week of the anniversary.
The late Queen, the UK’s longest-serving monarch, died peacefully at Balmoral in Scotland on September 8 last year, aged 96, after reigning for 70 years. Her death was the moment her son and heir Charles became King, and the date will remain a touching period for the head of state.
Prince Harry will be in the UK on the eve of the first anniversary of his grandmother’s death to attend a charity awards ceremony, but it is believed he will not be visiting his father in Scotland. Relations between the Duke of Sussex, 38, and the Royal Family continue to be strained after he and wife Meghan Markle stepped back from senior royal duties in 2020.
Harry will celebrate the achievements and resilience of seriously ill youngsters and the families supported by the charity WellChild on Thursday this week and at the weekend will be in Dusseldorf in Germany for the opening ceremony of his Invictus Games.
Charles and Camilla have followed the rhythm of a typical royal year since his mother died and after their Coronation in Westminster Abbey on 6 May. They have attended the Commonwealth Day service, Royal Ascot, Garter Day and Trooping the Colour and are holidaying on their Balmoral estate.
Balmoral Castle held a special place in the heart of the late Queen. From childhood, she would spend several weeks at the grand turreted property in Royal Deeside, surrounded by close family.
The Scottish Highland estate was the place where the late monarch felt happiest and most at peace and many observers felt it fitting that she died there, peacefully, last September.
So for Charles, Camilla and the rest of the family, returning to Aberdeenshire this summer is likely to have been tinged with sadness. "They have all been so busy, what with the coronation and other commitments, that when they did get up there, I think that yes, it will have hit them," royal expert Hugo Vickers told OK! this week.
"Her absence will have been felt and I’m sure it’s been very poignant for them. No one will have been in those rooms since she died.
"But as Proust said, the pain of loss eventually becomes the joy of remembering. If you’ve lost somebody and you go to their house and you see their raincoat and their wellington boots in the hall, it gives you a pang at the beginning.
"But as time goes on, it’s a great pleasure and joy to come across something you remember. That’s the whole process of grief.”
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