King Charles III plans to attend an Easter Matins service, which will be the monarch’s first public appearance since starting cancer treatment. Photo / Getty Images
King Charles III plans to attend an Easter Matins service, which will be the monarch’s first public appearance since starting cancer treatment. Photo / Getty Images
King Charles will sit apart from the main congregation at an Easter Matins service on Sunday in his first public appearance since beginning cancer treatment, The Telegraph can disclose.
In an arrangement agreed by the King’s medical team to protect his health, he and the Queen will be seated slightly away from others in attendance at St George’s Chapel, Windsor.
He is expected to be seen walking to church with the Queen and will – excluding any last-minute change to his schedule – enter through the Galilee Porch to join the service.
He is not expected to attend a post-service reception or host lunch in an approach described as “Easter Lite”.
A source said the arrangements, which come nearly two months into his treatment, were considered an “acceptable” environment and level of risk for the King at this stage.
For Prince Philip’s funeral in 2021, the late Queen was seated two metres apart from her loved ones as just 30 members of the royal family attended the Covid-compliant service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor.
King Charles III and Camilla, the Queen Consort with Princess Anne, second right, and Prince Andrew, right, attend the Easter Matins service at St George's Chapel in 2023. Photo / AP
Sources described the plans as “turning the dial” toward resuming his ordinary programme, including a gradual increase in hosting guests for engagements at the palace once more as summer approaches.
Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed which members of the royal family will attend. The contingent will be smaller than usual, in part to shield the King from infection risk and in part because of the absence of the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children.
A palace source called the King’s planned attendance a “sign of things heading in the right direction”.
The Telegraph also understands the royal family aims to reassemble for a full show of support for Britain’s veterans at the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
The King and Prince of Wales will both honour the sacrifices of the World War II generation on the June 6 anniversary, with plans for senior members of the family to travel to Normandy.
The King has this week undertaken his largest engagement since he was diagnosed with cancer, hosting a dozen religious leaders for an interfaith roundtable at Buckingham Palace.
King Charles III is said to be planning his diary around two key events, the 80th anniversary commemorations of D-Day on June 6 and Trooping the Colour on June 15. Photo / AP
Aides have said the King’s attendance at any event is “to be hoped for and planned for rather than assumed”, dependent on his health.
His diary is being sketched out around two key events: Trooping the Colour, which celebrates his official birthday and falls on June 15 this year, and the 80th anniversary commemorations of D-Day.
The Prince of Wales also plans to take part in events to honour D-Day veterans, with the recognition of their service said to be “very important” to him.
The prince, whose wife has also been undergoing treatment for cancer, will resume his programme of engagements in mid-April after he and the princess have spent the Easter school holidays with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. The princess will not attend any public engagements until her own medical team rule that she is well enough.
On Good Friday, the Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh was photographed enjoying a solo carriage ride in the grounds of Windsor Castle. She and her husband, Prince Andrew, have taken on additional royal duties since the King’s illness was announced, with the Duke visiting Scotland this week alongside the Princess Royal.
The full D-Day event schedule, organised by the Ministry of Defence, has not yet been confirmed, but will include a ceremony at the new British Normandy Memorial in Ver-sur-Mer, Normandy.
The King “unveiled” the memorial via video in 2021, during lockdown, saying the permanent tribute to such “remarkable individuals” had been long overdue. Then, veterans were unable to be in Normandy in person due to travel restrictions.
This year, organisers are aware that the 80-year anniversary will be one of the last chances to celebrate such a milestone while those who served are still here to see it.
It is not yet known whether the King will be able to join them in France, subject to his health and the perceived infection risk.
He also hopes to make an appearance at Trooping the Colour, where the royal family traditionally gather on the Buckingham Palace balcony for a flypast. He may choose to use a carriage rather than travel through London on horseback.
It is expected to be some time before King Charles III, pictured with Queen Camilla in December 2023, can participate in large-scale engagements such as full public walkabouts. Photo / AP
It is likely to be some time before he can participate in large-scale engagements such as investitures or full public walkabouts.
This week, the King has been represented by the Queen at the Royal Maundy Service at Worcester Cathedral, where she deputised to hand out Maundy money to pensioners for the first time.
The Queen, who also recently travelled to the Isle of Man and Belfast for solo trips, has continued her programme of engagements throughout the King’s treatment.
She has received a noticeably warm welcome by crowds, with many sending their well wishes to the King. One palace source noted that the Queen’s determination to carry on with her duties seemed to have “cemented her role at the heart of national life”.
Following the church service, the King and Queen will take an Easter break.
