The Duchess of Kent died at the age of 92, and heartfelt messages of remembrance have flooded in from lots of members of the royal family, including the Prince and Princess of Wales. As well as public messages of love for the late Duchess, HELLO! understands that Prince Harry privately sent his condolences to the Duchess of Kent's family ahead of his return to the United Kingdom next week. The Duchess' granddaughter, Lady Ameila Windsor, posted a tribute yesterday and now her sister, Lady Marina Windsor has also shared a heartfelt message. She took to Instagram to share sweet words about her late grandmother, revealing a touching nickname.
Marina posted a lovely photograph of her grandmother, writing: "My amazing Amama [yellow love heart] I love you always and forever and more than words could ever say, thank you for everything, all the deep love, special friendship, giggles and hugs. I will miss you so much and you will be always in my heart." She then followed it with a black-and-white shot of her grandmother on her wedding day and then a picture of her grandmother linking arms with her grandfather.
Amama is a word for a maternal figure in your life, and it seems like Marina and her grandmother had quite the bond. Marina's sister, Lady Amelia, also took to Instagram to share a photo of her grandmother. She shared a stunning black-and-white photograph of the late Duchess and added a red heart emoji to the post, choosing not to write any words.
Buckingham Palace's statement
© Tim Graham Photo Library via GetBuckingham Palace confirmed the news in a statement on Friday. It read: "It is with deep sorrow that Buckingham Palace announces the death of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent. Her Royal Highness passed away peacefully last night at Kensington Palace, surrounded by her family. The King and Queen and all members of The Royal Family join The Duke of Kent, his children and grandchildren in mourning their loss and remembering fondly The Duchess's life-long devotion to all the organisations with which she was associated, her passion for music and her empathy for young people."
The Duchess of Kent's family
© Getty ImagesThe Duchess of Kent and her husband, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, married in 1961 had three children together: George, Earl of St. Andrews; Lady Helen Windsor; and Lord Nicholas Windsor. She also leaves behind 10 grandchildren.
A non-royal career
In 2002, the Duchess decided to step away from royal duties doing away with her HRH title, famously telling the BBC, "Call me Katharine". She spent the next 13 years as a music teacher at the Wansbeck Primary School in Hull. "I was just known as Mrs Kent," she told The Telegraph in 2022. "Only the head knew who I was. The parents didn't know and the pupils didn’t know. No one ever noticed. There was no publicity about it at all - it just seemed to work," she added.
