Queen Elizabeth II, like her royal forebears before her, is not just monarch of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, but also serves as Supreme Governor of the Church of England. The role is largely ceremonial, but the British royal family takes their traditional Easter services very, very seriously. Through the years Elizabeth and the Windsor women, including Princess Diana; Sarah, Duchess of York; and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (aka Kate Middleton), have donned their pastel best for Easter church service at some of England’s historic chapels, and almost always top the look off with an eye-catching hat. Here, take a look back at some of the best Paschal fashion statements dating back to Diana walking young Princes Harry and William to St. George’s Chapel, through Princess Beatrice and Eugenie and their modern bonnets, and concluding with Kate in a subdued suit fit for a future queen consort.
Diana, Princess of Wales, with her son Prince William and her nephew Peter Phillips on their way to Easter service in 1987. The princess is wearing a pale blue coat designed by Catherine Walker, who made a similar one for Prince William. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Queen Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother attend the Easter service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, circa 1987. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
From left: Peter Phillips, Prince William, Diana, Princess of Wales, and Prince Charles attend the Easter service at Windsor, April 19, 1987. (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images)
The Duchess of York attending an Easter Service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, in 1988. (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images)
Diana, Princess of Wales, with Prince William, and Prince Harry, during the Easter weekend, at Windsor Castle, on April 2, 1988 in Windsor, United Kingdom . Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Queen Elizabeth II attends the Easter service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, March 1988. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Charles, Prince of Wales, his son Prince William, and Diana, Princess of Wales, attend the Royal Easter Service at St George’s Chapel on March 26, 1989, in Windsor, England. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, and Diana, the Princess of Wales, holding Easter eggs after attending morning service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle in 1991. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Princess Diana and her son Prince William leaving Windsor Chapel after the traditional Easter service, April 1992. They are both holding Easter eggs that had been given to them. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Zara Phillips, daughter of the Princess Royal, and Prince Edward’s then fiancée Sophie Rhys-Jones leaving St George’s Chapel in Windsor, following the Easter Sunday service in 1999. (Photo by John Stillwell – PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images)
Queen Elizabeth II smiling at Windsor Castle for Easter service in 2003. (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images)
Children give flowers to Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II as she leaves the Easter Sunday church service in Windsor on April 4, 2010. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Members of the royal family arrive to attend the Easter Matins at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle on April 24, 2011, in Windsor, England. The annual service attended by the Queen and members of the royal family was one of the last formal royal engagements before the marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton in Westminster Abbey on April 29, 2011. From left to right: Princess Eugenie; Sophie, Countess of Wessex; Princess Beatrice; Prince Andrew, Duke of York; Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex; Princess Anne, Princess Royal. (Photo by Oli Scarff – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is escorted past awaiting fans following Easter Sunday service at St Andrews Cathedral on April 20, 2014, in Sydney, Australia. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were on a three-week tour of Australia and New Zealand, the first official trip overseas with their son, Prince George of Cambridge. (Photo by Lisa Maree Williams – Pool/Getty Images)
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, attend the traditional Royal Maundy Service at Sheffield Cathedral on April 2, 2015, in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice, with Lady Louise Windsor, attend the Easter Sunday Service at St George’s Chapel on March 27, 2016, in Windsor, England. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, leave after the Easter Sunday church service at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, on March 27, 2016, in Windsor, England. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, attend Easterservice at St George’s Chapel on April 16, 2017 in Windsor, England. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
