Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II‘s husband, Prince Philip, the palace announced that there would be a memorial service to celebrate his life at some point. The Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral service was limited to just 30 people due to coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions at the time, but Prince Philip’s memorial is supposed to include many more. However, a few key people will be noticeably absent.
Here’s what Prince Harry said about him and his wife, Meghan Markle, not attending, and why even the queen may not be there.
What Prince Harry’s spokesperson said about the duke not attending
Prince Philip’s memorial will be held on March 29 at Westminster Abbey but his grandson, Prince Harry, has stated that he and Meghan will not be making the trip abroad for the event.
Marie Claire noted that a spokesperson for the prince released a short statement saying that the Sussexes “will not be returning to the U.K. in late March, but [Harry] hopes to visit his grandmother as soon as possible.”
According to The Sun, the queen was only given 15 minutes notice that the duke and duchess wouldn’t be attending before the statement was released to the public. For that, some royal experts have accused Harry of “snubbing” the monarch.
Queen Elizabeth might not make it either
Recently, it’s been reported that Queen Elizabeth herself may not attend Prince Philip’s memorial service.
Whether or not the royal family matriarch will go to the memorial has become uncertain because as Express noted, “The queen will undoubtedly wish to pay her respects to her late husband of more than seven decades. But there have been concerns in recent weeks about whether the queen will attend after canceling a string of engagements in recent months.”
Speaking to The Royal Beat, Mirror editor Russell Myers added: “You have to be realistic. [She is] just weeks away from 96, she has accepted her own limitations … I don’t think we’ll ever see her step back, but we probably will see her less and less. Will she make Prince Philip’s memorial service in a few days? That’s in the balance.”
Who will be attending Prince Philip’s memorial
So who will be attending the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial? While the official guest list has not been made public yet, the rest of Philip’s family is expected to be there. That includes senior royals such as Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, and Prince William and Kate Middleton. It’s believed that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s children may be there too.
The service is an invitation-only event and per the Daily Mail, several European royals will be in attendance too. They are Norway’s King Harald and Queen Sonja, Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia, Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia, and King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium.
Queen Margrethe of Denmark, who is Queen Elizabeth’s friend and the only other queen regnant in Europe, is also said to be invited to the service.
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