The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended a memorial service for the Grenfell Tower tragedy with Prince Harry. The service acknowledged the 71 lives the violent fires took in June this year, six months on from the incident.
Over 1500 people attended the service at St Paul’s Cathedral, many of whom were survivors of the fires or had lost loved ones. The Bishop of Kensington began his address to the crowds by saying that the memorial marked what would have been the first birthday of one of the fire’s youngest victims.
The royals sat quietly during the ceremony and spoke with friends and relatives of the victims before leaving the cathedral. All three have visited numerous community centres and supported related projects since the Grenfell fires.
48-year-old Ben Gabbitas, who lost a friend in the tragedy, praised the royal’s commitment since the incident, saying that Britan “appreciated [Kate] being present, and particularly William and Harry, and I think that was a unifying force of which there were no politicians who managed that.” He added that “at these times I guess we are more thankful we have a royal family and its place within our society.”
Meghan Markle was not present at the ceremony, having flown back to the United States to visit her family.
