Royal family to attend Easter Sunday service amid coronation preparations

The King and Queen are expected to attend Easter Mattins at St George’s Chapel

King Charles III, Queen Camilla and other senior royals are due to gather at Windsor Castle for the first Easter Sunday service of the new monarch’s reign.

The royal family will be out in force at St George’s Chapel in the grounds of the Berkshire castle for the traditional Easter Day Mattins.

A staple in the royal calendar, last year’s event saw the now-Prince and Princess of Wales attend in the spring sunshine with their two eldest children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

It is also likely to be a moving moment for the royal family, with the 15th century chapel being the late Queen’s final resting place and the Easter Sunday service the first to take place since her death.

Queen Elizabeth II is buried in the church’s tiny King George VI Memorial Chapel, alongside Prince Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh, and her late parents George VI and the Queen Mother, with their four names inscribed on a new black stone slab set in the floor.

The Windsors gathered at St George’s in September for the monarch and royal matriarch’s televised committal service and then private burial following her state funeral in Westminster Abbey.

The late Queen missed last April’s Easter Sunday service due to mobility problems.

Charles, as monarch, has succeeded his mother to become the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

In less than a month’s time, he will be crowned alongside Camilla in a religious service in Westminster Abbey. It was confirmed last week that Camilla would be known as Queen instead of Queen Consort after invitations to the coronation on 6 May were released.

As the Prince of Wales, Charles often released an Easter message and last year highlighted the millions of displaced people “wounded by the past, fearful of the future”, but this year has not, likely to be a reflection of his new role as head of state.

On Maundy Thursday (6 April), the King and Queen continued the late Elizabeth II’s tradition of handing out Maundy money. The monarch gifted 74 men and 74 women with Maundy money as thanks for their outstanding Christian service and for making a difference in their local communities.

Additional reporting by PA