Buckingham Palace announced that Katharine, Duchess of Kent, died peacefully on the night of September 4 at Kensington Palace, surrounded by her family.

The statement added that King Charles III, Queen Camilla, and all members of the royal family joined her husband, the Duke of Kent, their children, and grandchildren in mourning her loss and celebrating her lifelong devotion to music and young people.

Born Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley on February 22, 1933, at Hovingham Hall in North Yorkshire, she was the daughter of Sir William Worsley and Joyce Morgan Brunner. After studying music and French at Queen's College, Oxford, she married Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, on June 8, 1961, at York Minster, becoming Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent. Her marriage to the late Queen Elizabeth II's first cousin lasted 64 years until her death.

The duchess was best known for her passion for music and her work at the Wimbledon Championships. For decades, she presented the Ladies' Singles Trophy and was widely admired for the compassion she showed to runners-up, notably embracing Jana Novotná after her defeat in the 1993 final. In 1994, she became the first senior royal to convert to Catholicism since the 1701 Act of Settlement, following which she stepped back from official duties in 2002 and pursued a private life of charitable and musical engagement.

Following her withdrawal from working royal life, Katharine spent 13 years teaching music at a primary school in Hull, where she was known simply as "Mrs. Kent.". She later founded FutureTalent, a charity supporting young musicians from disadvantaged backgrounds. Her patronages included UNICEF, the Royal Northern College of Music, and Alder Hey Children's Hospital.

Buckingham Palace confirmed that a period of royal mourning has begun, during which flags will fly at half-mast and a formal notice will be displayed at the palace gates. Details of a private funeral are expected to be announced in due course. Her death comes just days before the third anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's passing.

Katharine is survived by her husband, the Duke of Kent, now the oldest living royal at 89, and their three children: George, Earl of St Andrews; Lady Helen Taylor; and Lord Nicholas Windsor. The royal family and the nation remember her for her warmth, musical talent, and unwavering dedication to charitable causes.

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Dead, Passed away, Royal, Royal family, Buckingham Palace, Royals