Prince Harry’s godmother Lady Celia Vestey has died ‘suddenly but peacefully’ at the age of 71.
Lady Vestey was the wife of courtier Sam Vestey, the 3rd Baron, former Master of the Horse to the Queen.
She was a close friend of the Queen, 94, and Prince Charles, 72, and was part of their ‘racing circle’.
A death notice announcing the sad news which was printed in the Daily Telegraph read: ‘Celia Elizabeth SRN BA. Died suddenly, but peacefully, on Saturday 28th November, aged 71 years.
Adored wife of Sam. Much loved mother of William, Arthur and Mary and loving Granny of Ella, Frankie, Sam and Cosima.’
Prince Harry’s godmother Lady Celia Vestey has died at the age of 71. Pictured, arriving at Claridges Hotel to attend the wedding reception for Alexander Fellowes and Alexandra Finlay following their wedding ceremony at the Chapel of St Mary Undercroft in the Palace of Westminster on September 20, 2013 in London
Lady Vestey was a close friend of the Queen and Prince Charles and was a member of their ‘racing circle.’ Pictured, from left to right (back row) Bryan Organ, Lady Sarah Chatto, Lady Vestey, Mrs Bartholomew and Gerald Ward, (front row) Prince Harry, The Prince of Wales and Prince William, pose for a photograph at the confirmation of Prince Harry at Eton College on March 19, 2000
‘Private family funeral. Memorial service later.
‘Family flowers only please, but donations gratefully received in Celia’s memory to Ebony Horse Club.’
In 1981, she tied the knot with Lord Samuel Vestey, known as Spam to his chums, who was the Royal Household’s Master of the Horse from 1999 to 2018 – before being appointed as a permanent Lord-in-waiting to Her Majesty in August 2019.
His duties included attending important ceremonial occasions as the man responsible for the Royal Mews and the Queen’s carriages and horses.
The couple had three children together – The Hon. William Guy Vestey, The Hon. Arthur George Vestey and The Hon. Mary Henrietta Vestey.
Queen Elizabeth II and Lady Vestey attend day 4 ‘Gold Cup Day’ of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse on March 13, 2009 in Cheltenham
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Lady Vestey watch the racing as they attend day 4 ‘Gold Cup Day’ of the Cheltenham Festival at Cheltenham Racecourse on March 17, 2006 in Cheltenham
Her oldest son, William, was one of the Queen’s Page of Honours for three years, until he reached the age of 15.
In 1995, Lady Vestey nearly died when she suffered a serious stroke in 1995. Lord Vestey was told by doctors at Frenchay Hospital, Bristol, that his wife had less than a one in ten chance of survival.
She recovered after neurosurgeons removed a blood clot the size of a golf ball from her brain and said afterwards it was the support of her husband that gave her the strength to recover.
‘He is my hero,’ Lady Vestey said. ‘He was a tower of strength.’
Celia was one of six godparents chosen for the Duke of Sussex by his parents Prince Charles and Princess Diana for his christening at St George’s Chapel in Windsor in 1984 – where he later got married.
Lady Celia Vestey attends the wedding of Prince Harry to Ms Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018 in Windsor
Lord and Ladyattend Harry Meade & Rosie Bradford’s wedding at the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul on October 23, 2010 in Northleach near Cheltenham
Among the others were Prince Andrew, Princess Margaret’s daughter Lady Sarah Chatto, artist Bryan Organ, Charles’ close pal Gerald Ward and Princess Diana’s former flatmate Carolyn Bartholomew.
Reports at the time claimed Prince Harry’s aunt Princess Anne didn’t attend his christening after she was upset by Princess Diana and Prince Charles’s decisions.
According to a 1984 report by the Daily Express, the royal instead went game shooting with then-husband Mark Phillips on their Gatecombe Park estate in Gloucestershire.
Buckingham Palace said in a statement: ‘Unfortunately neither of them could make it. They will be arriving in Windsor later in the day.’
Lady Celia attended the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on May 19, 2018.
The Vesteys, who own the 6,000-acre Stowell Park Estate in Gloucestershire, were also among the guests in St Paul’s Cathedral for the 2011 wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
The Vestey family has an estimated £750million fortune through the family meat business, Vestey Foods Group.
The company – which once owned Dewhurst butchers – has been privately owned since it was founded in 1897 by brothers William and Edward Vestey.
Lady Celia Vestey and Lord Samuel Vestey accompany the Queen and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh as they attend Sunday service at the church of St Mary in Flitcham near the Sandringham Estate on January 15, 2012