Advertisement

Windsor Castle to reopen to public following Queen’s death

Windsor Castle will reopen to the public for the first time since the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

The castle and St George’s Chapel will open at 10am on Thursday following the end of a period of mourning for the Royal Family.

Wellwishers and tourists will be able to visit St George’s Chapel to pay their respects at the spot Queen Elizabeth has been buried.

The Queen’s name has been inscribed alongside her mother’s, father’s and husband’s on a new black ledger stone in the King George VI Memorial Chapel.

The ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel (Royal Collection Trust/The Dean and Canons of Windsor/PA) (PA Media)
The ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel (Royal Collection Trust/The Dean and Canons of Windsor/PA) (PA Media)

The fresh stone now contains, in list form, “George VI 1895-1952” and “Elizabeth 1900-2002” followed by a metal Garter Star, and then “Elizabeth II 1926-2022” and “Philip 1921-2021”.

All four royals were members of the Order of the Garter, which has St George’s Chapel as its spiritual home.

The Queen was laid to rest with the Duke of Edinburgh, in a private service attended by the King and the royal family, following her state funeral at Westminster Abbey.

The chapel will reopen to visitors on all days the castle is open to the public, excluding Sundays when it is only open for worshippers.

Entry to the castle is £28.50 for adults on Saturdays and £26.50 on other days, according to the website.

It came as the Royal Mourning ended on Tuesday.

William and Kate, the Prince and Princess of Wales, visited Wales this week for the first time since taking up their titles. They visited Anglesey, where they made their first home as newlyweds, then went on to Swansea.

The King and his Queen Consort are to hold their first joint public engagements by visiting Dunfermline next Monday to mark it being awarded city status.

During the day, Charles and Camilla will also host a reception at Edinburgh’s Palace of Holyroodhouse to celebrate British South Asian communities.

The King travelled to Scotland soon after the Queen’s funeral and could remain at his home of Birkhall into early October, following the tradition set by the late monarch.

The Queen would normally spend around 10 weeks at her Scottish home during summer, returning to London around the time the autumn session of Parliament began.

Planning is likely to be under way for Charles’ coronation and Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court in south London heard the suggestion a date has been set for the national event expected next year.