King of Britain attends Catholic Mass for the first time since Reformation

A funeral of the Duchess of Kent at the Westminster Cathedral of the RCC in England. Photo: BBC

On September 16, 2025, at Westminster Cathedral – the main Catholic church of England and Wales – the funeral of the Duchess of Kent took place. The requiem mass was attended by King of the United Kingdom Charles and other high-ranking members of the royal family. This was reported by the BBC.

The British monarch participated in a Roman Catholic mass in the United Kingdom for the first time since the Reformation.

The late Duchess, who passed away at the age of 92, converted to Catholicism in 1994 and married the Duke of Kent, a cousin of Elizabeth II. She was the first member of the royal family to convert to Catholicism since 1685.

The requiem mass was private, officiated by Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster. Also present at the altar was the Anglican Dean of Windsor.

This event holds significant symbolic importance and reflects the monarchy's desire to demonstrate religious tolerance. Historically, the participation of a monarch in a Catholic mass was impossible: after the Reformation and Henry VIII's break with Rome, British kings became the supreme heads of the Anglican Church, and Catholicism was placed under strict restrictions. Laws prohibited the monarch or his heirs from professing Catholicism or marrying Catholics, otherwise, they would lose their right to the throne. Although these restrictions have gradually been eased (including the 2013 reform allowing royal family members to marry Catholics), this is the first participation of a king in a mass in Great Britain.

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