Royal Family Member Thomas Kingston Died From ‘Traumatic Head Wound’

British financier Thomas Kingston, the husband of royal family member Lady Gabriella, died from a gunshot wound to the head, an inquest into his death found. The Telegraph reports that Kingston, 45, died by suicide at his parents’ home in the Cotswold on Sunday.

The outlet reports that Katy Skerrett, senior coroner for Gloucestershire, said Kingston had lunch with his parents before his father took their dogs on a walk. “On his return, Mr. Kingston was not in the house,” Skerrett said, with Sky News correspondent Dan Whitehead reporting that Kingston “was found in a locked outbuilding with a catastrophic head injury – a gun was found at the scene.” The inquest has been delayed to a later date, Whitehead reports.

Kingston’s death was announced in a statement on Tuesday. Although the cause of death was not announced at that time, it was announced that it was not being treated as suspicious and that no other parties were involved. On Thursday, it was reported that an investigation into his death was ongoing.

Kingston was married to Lady Gabriella, 42, the daughter of Prince Michael of Kent, who was first cousins with the late Queen Elizabeth II. Kingston and Gabriella — a second cousin of King Charles III — married in May 2019 at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor, just a year after Prince Harry married Meghan Markle there. Kingston was a director at Devonport Capital and a former hostage negotiator in Iraq. Before marrying Lady Gabriella, Kingston dated Princess of Wales Kate Middleton’s sister, Pippa Middleton.

Lady Gabriella, Martin and Jill Kingston, Joanna Connolly and Emma Murray announced Kingston’s death in a statement. “It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the death of Thomas Kingston, our beloved husband, son and brother,” the statement read. “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.”

The monarchy also released a statement on behalf of the king and Queen Camilla, reading, “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. In particular, Their Majesties send their most heartfelt thoughts and prayers to Gabriella and to all the Kingston family.”

Hours before news of Kingston’s death was made public, Queen Camilla joined Prince and Princess Michael of Kent — Lady Gabriella’s parents — at the service of Thanksgiving at St. George’s Chapel to honor King Constantine of Greece, who died last year. Prince William was initially set to attend and perform a reading there, but was pulled away due to “personal reasons.” The Queen Consort took his place.

Lady Gabriella is 56th in the line of succession to the throne, but she is not a working member of the royal family. She works as a freelance journalist.