Lady Gabriella quietly reappeared in public for the first time since the death of her husband, Thomas Kingston.
On June 15, Lady Gabriella was spotted at Trooping the Colour as the British Army marked King Charles’ official birthday with a parade in London. Gabriella, 43, was spotted inside Buckingham Palace to watch the Royal Air Force’s flypast, the event’s finale.
While King Charles, Queen Camilla, Prince William, Kate Middleton and more watched the flypast from the balcony, Gabriella stood inside with her older brother, Lord Frederick Windsor, and his wife, Sophie Winkleman.
Although extended members of the royal family used to appear on the palace balcony for the aerial display at Trooping the Colour, Queen Elizabethannounced in April 2022 that only working members of the royal family and some of their children would make the appearance at the event that year. Since acceded to the throne in 2022, King Charles has stuck to the precedent.
Lady Gabriella Windsor and Sophie Winkleman at Trooping the Colour on June 15, 2024.
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Lady Gabriella and Lord Frederick are the children of Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin, Prince Michael of Kent, and his wife Baroness Marie-Christine von Reibnitz, who goes by the title Princess Michael of Kent. While Prince and Princess Michael were not spotted at the King’s birthday parade, their daughter’s attendance marked her first appearance at a royal event following the death of her spouse.
On Feb. 27, Buckingham Palace announced that Kingston had died at age 45. A spokesperson for the coroner’s office later said the cause of death given was a “traumatic wound to the head.”
Princess Anne, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace at Trooping the Colour on June 15, 2024, with Lady Gabriella Windsor and Sophie Winkleman behind.
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“It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the death of Thomas Kingston, our beloved husband, son and brother. Tom was an exceptional man who lit up the lives of all who knew him. His death has come as a great shock to the whole family, and we ask you to respect our privacy as we mourn his passing,” said the statement released on behalf of Lady Gabriella, Martin and Jill Kingston, Joanna Connolly and Emma Murray.
The palace said that Kingston was found dead in Gloucestershire, England, on Feb. 25, with emergency services called to the scene shortly after 6 p.m.
Princess Anne, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence and Prince Edward, Duke of Kent stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace at Trooping the Colour on June 15, 2024, with Lady Gabriella Windsor behind.
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A spokesperson for the coroner’s office confirmed that the cause of death was a “traumatic wound to the head,” and a gun was found near his body. It was confirmed that the inquest has been adjourned to a later date. According to The Telegraph, Kingston died by suicide.
Kingston was a director at Davenport Capital, a financial firm in London and had worked as a hostage negotiator in Iraq. He previously dated Princess Kate’s younger sister, Pippa Middleton. Though the relationship ended around 2011, the two remained friends, and Kingston and Gabriella attended Pippa’s 2017 wedding to James Matthews.
In September 2018, Buckingham Palace announced that Lady Gabriella and Kingston were engaged. The couple wed at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle in May 2019 with Queen Elizabeth, Prince Harry and other royals in attendance. In the following years, the Kingstons joined the royals at events like the Royal Ascot and family weddings.
Kingston was laid to rest in a private funeral on March 12. Around 140 close friends and family, including Prince William, gathered at the Chapel Royal in St. James’s Palace in London for the private service.
