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Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh appears to have missed the traditional Easter services at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor this Sunday. However, her husband, Prince Edward, and son, James, Earl of Wessex, were both present with the extended royal family. Their daughter, Lady Louise, was also not there. It was been reported that Sophie was expected to attend, but was “under the weather,” while Louise is away at school. She is currently a student at St. Andrews University.
Sophie’s absence comes a few weeks after the Edinburghs missed the annual Commonwealth Day event at Westminster Abbey on March 9. The following week, Edward went to the Nigerian state banquet at Windsor Castle without Sophie. Today, then, marks her third major royal event in a row she’s missed.
Prince Edward and James on Easter 2026.Anadolu – Getty Images
The Duchess, especially, had a busy travel schedule in March. The couple first went to Italy for the Paralympics, where they were supporting British athletes. (The Duke of Edinburgh has served as patron of the British Paralympic Association since 2003.) Then Sophie made a quiet visit to New York to attend the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women meeting. Sophie has continued to have a busy agenda since then, having been at the Jane Goodall Institute UK’s Reasons for Hope gala in London and the opening of a new music school at Radley College outside of Oxford last week.
The Duchess of Edinburgh, in a paisley Zimmerman gown, at the Reasons for Hope gala in London on March 23.Dave Benett – Getty Images
Among those who were present at the annual Easter service were King Charles and Queen Camilla; Princess Anne and her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence; Lady Sarah Chatto, the daughter of Princess Margaret, and her husband Daniel Chatto; the Prince and Princess of Wales, along with their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis; and Peter Phillips, his fiancée Harriet Sperling, and their daughters.
Notably absent were Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice. Ahead of the weekend, it was reported that they would be skipping the family event following the recent arrest of their father and the former Duke of York, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He has always denied any wrongdoing.
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