Queen Elizabeth II has announced she would not attend the April 8 civil wedding of her son, Prince Charles, to his longtime companion Camilla Parker Bowles.
"The queen will not be attending the civil ceremony because she is aware that the prince and Mrs. Parker Bowles wanted to keep the occasion low-key," said a spokesman for Buckingham Palace.
The palace said the British sovereign would however attend a subsequent blessing and prayer service after the wedding, led by the head of the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams.
"The queen and the rest of the royal family will, of course, be going to the service of dedication at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle," the statement continued.
