Wednesday 8 June 2011

On this date: Golden wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Kent

Today is the golden wedding anniversary of the Duke and Duchess of Kent. Prince Edward of Britain, Duke of Kent – a grandson of King George V and thus a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II – met Katharine Worsley – a member of the local gentry – when he was posted to North Yorkshire on military service in 1956.
They were married in York Minster on 8 June 1961 and went on to have three children: George, Earl of St Andrews in 1962, Lady Helen in 1964 and Lord Nicholas in 1970. These days the Duke and Duchess of Kent live in Wren House at Kensington Palace in London, but it is generally believed that they have been living separate lives for several years.
The Duchess of Kent, who is 78, was for many years one of the greatest assets to the British royal family, but has now retired from public life. However, the 75-year-old Duke of Kent continues to carry out a large number of royal engagements. The Duke and Duchess of Kent were last seen together at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on 29 April.
As the 1960s saw a wave of royal weddings one can count on a number of royal golden weddings in the years to come, provided that everyone stays alive and married. Princess Astrid of Norway and Johan Martin Ferner celebrated their golden wedding in January this year, followed by Princess Birgitta of Sweden and Prince Johann Georg of Hohenzollern last month. Between 2012 and 2018 there are expected to be golden weddings in the royal families of Spain, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway.

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