Royal family member Thomas Kingston died after a “catastrophic head injury,” a coroner has confirmed.
Katy Skerrett, the senior coroner in Gloucestershire, confirmed on Friday, March 1, in her inquest that Kingston died after a gunshot wound to the head, per The Telegraph.
According to Skerrett, Kingston had lunch with his parents at their estate on Sunday, February 25, before his death. When his parents left to take their dogs out for his walk several hours later, Kingston seemingly stayed behind. When they returned, he was no longer in the house. Skerrett’s inquest reported that Kingston was found in a locked outbuilding “with a catastrophic head injury.”
Further details about Kingston’s death have not been shared, but Skerrett noted that a gun “was present at the scene.”
News broke earlier this week that Thomas, who was married to Lady Gabriella Kingston, had died on Sunday at the age of 45.
“It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the death of Thomas Kingston, our beloved husband, son and brother,” Gabriella, 42, and her family said in a statement to Us Weekly on Tuesday, February 27. “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.”
Gabriella, for her part, is a member of the royal family. She is the daughter of the Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, who were cousins of the late Queen Elizabeth II. Gabriella is also a second cousin of King Charles III.
“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,” a statement on behalf of Charles, 75, and wife Queen Camilla read. “In particular, Their Majesties send their most heartfelt thoughts and prayers to Gabriella and to all the Kingston family.”
Thomas previously dated Princess Kate Middleton’s younger sister, Pippa Middleton, before he moved on with Gabriella. Thomas proposed in August 2018 on the Isle of Sark, which is located in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy, France. Thomas and Gabriella wed one year later in May 2019 at St George’s Chapel in Windsor.
St George’s Chapel was also the site of Gabriella’s cousins Prince Harry and Princess Eugenie’s respective weddings in 2018.
