THE KING AND QUEEN WILL ATTEND THE ROYAL MAUNDY SERVICE AT DURHAM CATHEDRAL
Their Majesties The King and Queen will attend the Royal Maundy Service and His Majesty will distribute the Maundy gifts at Durham Cathedral.
The King and Queen will be received on arrival by the Dean of Durham Cathedral, the Reverend Philip Plyming and the Lord High Almoner, Bishop Graham Usher.
Inside the cathedral, Their Majesties will be presented with the traditional nosegays, a small flower bouquet, before joining the procession through the nave as the service begins.
During the service, the King will present the Maundy recipients – 76 men and 76 women – with two purses: one red and one white, containing Maundy Money. In the white purse will be a set of specially minted silver Maundy coins. This year the Red Purse contains a £5 coin commemorating the 125th anniversary of the Queen Mother’s birth, and a 50p coin which features stories of the Second World War.
The Royal Maundy gifts are given in recognition of recipients’ outstanding Christian service and for making a difference to the lives of people in their local communities.
At the conclusion of the service, Their Majesties will join the Royal Maundy party for a photograph outside the North Door.
Before departure, the King and Queen will visit the Deanery to meet members of the community involved in the service and to see a special exhibition of the cathedral’s Magna Cartas, on display for the first time in eight years, recognising the 800th anniversary of the 1225 issue in Durham’s collection.
Maundy Thursday is the Christian holy day falling on the Thursday before Easter. It commemorates the Maundy and Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles.
The distribution of alms and the washing of the feet on the Thursday of Holy Week are an ancient tradition. The Royal Maundy can be traced back in England to the 13th century, with the first recorded royal distribution at Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, by King John in 1210. From the 15th century, the number of recipients has been related to the years of the sovereign’s life.
The Royal Maundy recipients are selected from Church of England dioceses across the country, and Anglican and Ecumenical partners across the UK. This year, the recipients have been chosen from the dioceses of the Northern Province of England and Scotland.
Each year the monarch is assisted in distributing the Maundy Money by the Lord High Almoner, currently the Bishop of Norwich. Appointed in November 2024, this is Bishop Graham Usher’s first Maundy service.
