Who is Lady Gabriella Windsor? Late Queen’s cousin, 42, mourns sudden death of her husband Thomas Kingston, 45

Lady Gabriella Windsor has lost her husband – who passed away suddenly aged 45 – Buckingham Palace has announced. 

The late Queen’s cousin, 42, is the daughter of Prince Michael of Kent, and paid tribute to Thomas Kingston in a joint statement with his family, describing him as an ‘exceptional man who lit up the lives of all who knew him’.

Thomas was found dead at an address in Gloucestershire on Sunday evening and emergency services were called to the scene shortly after 6pm. 

His wife and family described his death as a ‘great shock’. An inquest will be held to establish the cause of death but there are no suspicious circumstances and no other parties involved.

The King and Queen sent their condolences to Lady Gabriella, who tied the knot with her late husband at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle in 2019.

The wedding reception was held at Frogmore House, the former residence of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Lady Gabriella wore a lace gown by Italian designer Luisa Beccaria. Embroidered with flowers and embellishments, layers of blush-coloured tulle and organdie created the body of the wedding gown under the lace, fanning out for a long train.

Known as Ella, the bride had a creamy ivory Ella rose in her bouquet alongside myrtle, a tradition in many royal bridal flower arrangements. The bridesmaids and pageboys wore outfits by the same designer.

Isabella and Maud Windsor – Lady Gabriella’s nieces – and the other bridesmaids wore cream dresses with blush underlays and sashes, with flower rings in their hair in a similar style to the bouquet. 

The young royal was born on April 23 1981. Her mother, Princess Michael, has made headlines over the years for her outspoken comments, being dubbed ‘Princess Pushy’ by the press.

Her parents married in 1978 and she has one older sibling, her brother Lord Frederick, known as Freddie, who hit the headlines after admitting to using drugs at university.

Lord Frederick married Peep Show actress Sophie Winkleman in 2009 and the pair have two children together.

Lady Gabriella studied at both Brown University in the US and the University of Oxford, with degrees in Comparative Literature and Social Anthropology.

She is a writer and contributing editor, working with The London Magazine amid other publications.

Not a ‘working royal’, she is also board director for the Playing for Change Foundation, a non-profit organisation aiming to improve education through music. 

Lady Gabriella has also dabbled in the arts herself, and in 2020 released two songs as a singer-songwriter – Out of Blue and Bam Bam to help raise money for charity.  

Prior to her husband, Lady Gabriella dated journalist Aatish Taseer, who previously wrote a tell-all Vanity Fair article which claimed they swam naked in the Buckingham Palace pool.

She had been dating Thomas for a number of years when he proposed while they were on the island of Sark in 2018.

Thomas was a director of Devonport Capital, which specialises in providing finance for companies in ‘frontier economies’.

The Bristol University graduate worked in Baghdad, Iraq, according to the Telegraph, working to procure the release of hostages after joining the Diplomatic Missions Unit of the Foreign Office.

His financial career credentials include roles at Voltan Capital Management and IDC Securities.

Thomas is a close friend of Pippa Middleton – the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister – with the pair seen out and about together on numerous occasions.

He attended her wedding to James Matthews in May 2017, accompanied by Lady Gabriella.

Since their marriage, Lady Gabriella and her husband were known to attend a myriad of events on the royal calendar, having made appearances at Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee two years ago as well as her funeral that same year.

In 2022, Lady Gabriella appeared to collapse as the late Queen’s coffin arrived at Westminster Hall, Hello reported.

She attended the intimate service with her parents and husband and was seen standing in line with other members of the Royal Family as Her Majesty’s coffin was brought inside.

Video shows a member of staff rushing over to assist and Mr Kingston turning around to help his wife.

Photos taken later in the service show Lady Gabriella missing from the line-up, although she was able to leave the Hall arm-in-arm with her husband. 

Despite her fainting, the service continued without further incident. 

She wasn’t seen again during the service, however she was later photographed leaving hand-in-hand with her husband Thomas. 

Lady Gabriella was known to have a close relationship with the monarch, who attended her wedding in 2019. 

At the time, a photograph of the bride leaning down to chat to Queen Elizabeth, who was beaming with joy, went viral on social media. 

In the summer, Lady Gabriella and Thomas were also spotted at the Royal Ascot with King Charles and Queen Camilla.

They were also seen at a Chanel exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum that same year. 

The King and Queen have sent their ‘most heartfelt thoughts and prayers’ to Lady Gabriella and Thomas’s family.

A statement on behalf of Lady Gabriella and Thomas’s family said: ‘It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the death of Thomas Kingston, our beloved husband, son and brother.

‘Tom was an exceptional man who lit up the lives of all who knew him. His death has come as a great shock to the whole family and we ask you to respect our privacy as we mourn his passing.’

A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: ‘The King and the Queen have been informed of Thomas’s death and join Prince and Princess Michael of Kent and all those who knew him in grieving a much-loved member of the family.

‘In particular, Their Majesties send their most heartfelt thoughts and prayers to Gabriella and to all the Kingston family.’

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, Lady Gabriella’s parents, both attended a memorial service at St George’s Chapel today for King Constantine of Greece. 

It’s understood that Prince William’s absence from the memorial today was not linked to Mr Kingston’s death.