Royal Family leads tributes to Duchess

THE Prince and Princess of Wales have paid a personal tribute to the Duchess of Kent, praising her for working “tirelessly to help others” and describing her as a “much missed member of the family.

- LAURA ELSTON and AINE FOX

The King, Queen and the Royal Family are in mourning for Katharine, the wife of the late Queen’s cousin the Duke of Kent, who died peacefully at home, surrounded by her close family, on Thursday night.

Union flags were lowered to half-mast at Buckingham Palace and at royal residences around the country where the monarch is not in residence as a mark of respect.

A formal framed notice announcing the duchess’s death was placed on the railings of the Palace shortly after midday yesterday, and the King has approved a period of Royal Mourning until and including the day of the duchess's funeral, which is expected to be held in a week’s time.