Every year, representatives from the government – including current and former Prime Ministers – Commonwealth, military and the Royal Family gather at the Cenotaph in London to mark Remembrance Sunday. Today (Sunday 8 November), the King was front and centre of this year’s service once again, with the Queen, the Princess of Wales and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, watching on from balconies above. However, there was one key difference to this year’s event.

As is tradition, The King stood ahead, alone, before the Cenotaph during the two minute silence of remembrance, and laid the first wreath at the monument on behalf of the nation. Queen Camilla and the Princess of Wales stood side by side watching the service below from a balcony, both wearing black for the sombre occasion. Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, stood on a separate balcony nearby and all three wore a trio of red poppies, rather than just one as is the more common symbol.

london, england november 08: queen camilla and catherine, princess of wales attend the 2026 national service of remembrance at the cenotaph on november 08, 2026 in london, england. every year, members of the british royal family join politicians, veterans and members of the public to remember those who have died in combat. (photo by leon neal/getty images)Leon Neal

Queen Camilla and Princess of Wales on the balcony.

london, england november 08: (l r) sophie, duchess of edinburgh, prince edward, duke of kent and vice admiral sir timothy laurence attend the 2026 national service of remembrance at the cenotaph on november 08, 2026 in london, england. every year, members of the british royal family join politicians, veterans and members of the public to remember those who have died in combat. (photo by leon neal/getty images)Leon Neal

Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh stands with Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence (Princess Anne’s husband).

The reason behind the triple poppy is that the three flowers represent the three main branches of the military; the Royal Air Force, the Royal Navy and the British Army. The King wore his own formal Royal Air Force uniform for the service, having gained his ‘wings’ at RAF Cromwell in 1971.

london, england november 8: britains king charles iii (c), britains princess anne, princess royal (r) and britains prince william, prince of wales (l) attend the 2026 national service of remembrance at the cenotaph in whitehall on november 8, 2026 in london, england. every year, members of the british royal family join politicians, veterans and members of the public to remember those who have died in combat. (photo by alberto pezzali wpa pool/getty images)WPA Pool

The King, Prince William and Princess Anne had official roles during the service.

His sister, Princess Anne, also had a leading role in the service, and laid a wreath at the cenotaph in her Royal Navy uniform, of which she is Admiral. She is also a general in the Army and Air Chief Marshal in the RAF. Given his own military service, Prince William was also in uniform to take part in the service on the ground, alongside his father and aunt.

archbishop of canterbury sarah mullally (c) attends the remembrance sunday ceremony at the cenotaph on whitehall in central london on november 8, 2026. remembrance sunday is an annual commemoration held on the closest sunday to armistice day, november 11, the anniversary of the end of the first world war and services across commonwealth countries remember servicemen and women who have fallen in the line of duty since wwi. (photo by leon neal / pool / afp via getty images)Leon Neal

The Archbishop of Canterbury at this year’s Remembrance Sunday event.

While this year’s service appeared to run like any other, there was a marked difference – it was the first to be led by a woman Archbishop of Canterbury. Sarah Mullally became the 106th person to hold the title in January this year, and the first woman in history to do so. This November marks her first Remembrance event in her new role.

london, england february 5: catherine, princess of wales and prince william, prince of wales meet with the archbishop of canterbury dame sarah mullally during an audience at lambeth palace on february 5, 2026 in london, england. (photo by aaron chown pool/getty images)Pool

The Prince and Princess of Wales at an audience with the new Archbishop in February.

The Prince and Princess of Wales personally visited the Archbishop at Lambeth Palace in the weeks after she had been officially installed in her position. The Royal Family have close ties to the Church of England, with the King being the Supreme Governor of the Church, a role traditionally held by the monarch.