King Charles and Queen Camilla Return to St. Paul’s Cathedral for Service After Missing Prince Harry’s Event
The King and Queen attended a Service of Dedication for the Order of the British Empire one week after missing Prince Harry's event at the cathedral
King Charles and Queen Camilla arrived at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London on May 15 for a Service of Dedication for the Order of the British Empire.
The royal couple’s outing comes just one week after they missed Prince Harry’s event that was also held at the cathedral. On May 8, the Duke of Sussex, 39, celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games at St. Paul’s with a Service of Thanksgiving.
Although PEOPLE understands Harry extended invites to his father, Camilla, brother Prince William and sister-in-law Kate Middleton, the royal family was not in attendance.
The King and Queen hosted the first garden party of the year at Buckingham Palace just a few miles away on the same day as Harry’s service. A spokesperson for the Duke of Sussex previously said Harry and Charles would not spend time together during the prince’s brief visit to the U.K. due to the monarch’s “full” schedule.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/king-charles-III-queen-camilla-service-order-of-the-british-empire-051524-3-1d71297bd3e04fd0ae25fb9f1eeb4409.jpg)
“In response to the many inquiries and continued speculation on whether or not The Duke will meet with his father while in the U.K. this week, it unfortunately will not be possible due to His Majesty’s full program. The Duke of course is understanding of his father’s diary of commitments and various other priorities and hopes to see him soon,” the spokesperson said.
The King, 75, heads the Order of the British Empire, while Camilla, 76, oversees the OBE as its Grand Master.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/king-charles-III-queen-camilla-service-order-of-the-british-empire-051524-2-fd7b1961876045f780dd8ffe093dfe35.jpg)
Established in 1917 to honor war contributions, the OBE now celebrates various contributions to the realm.
As they arrived, the King and Queen were escorted into the church before taking their place in the procession.
Nearly 2,000 award holders attended, representing the U.K. and Commonwealth.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(704x229:706x231):format(webp)/king-charles-III-queen-camilla-service-order-of-the-british-empire-051524-4-5bf4e70ace2042fdb35695e730c44612.jpg)
While Charles and Camilla attended the service, Prince William held investitures at Windsor Castle. Meanwhile, Princess Kate remains absent from royal duties amid her cancer treatment.
Following his brief visit to the U.K., Harry was joined by wife Meghan Markle as they traveled to Nigeria, where they undertook their first international tour since stepping away from their royal duties in 2020.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex returned to Los Angeles on May 14, and were spotted leaving a private suite at LAX before driving away in a white SUV.
