THE 2016 ROYAL MAUNDY CEREMONY

The Queen has handed out commemorative Maundy coins in a traditional royal service at St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.

Ninety men and 90 women, representing her 90 years, were presented with the coins in recognition of service to the Church and community.

The Queen was accompanied by the the Duke of Edinburgh. It is the first time the service has been held at St George's Chapel since 1959.

Each recipient received two purses, one red and one white. This year the red purse contained a £5 coin, commemorating the Queen's 90th birthday, and a 50p coin commemorating the 950th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings.

Royal Maundy can be traced back in England to the 13th Century. The service derives its name from the Latin "mandatum", Jesus Christ's commandment to his disciples to "love one another", after he had washed their feet on the day before Good Friday.

This year the Queen gave coins, which are known as Maundy money, to 180 deserving senior citizens who have been recommended in recognition of their service to the Church and community. They are traditionally selected from a single diocese but this year have been chosen from across the country.

To read the complete article, see:
Maundy Thursday: Queen hands out 90th birthday coins (www.bbc.com/news/uk-35890750)

In one of the longest-standing acts of royal devotion, Tim O’Donovan has spent more than 35 years compiling the comings and goings of the royal family.

Every year since 1979 the retired insurance broker has provided The Times with an annual summary of royal engagements, a service which has given readers a unique insight into the royal family’s devotion to duty or, in some cases, lack of it.

Now Mr O’Donovan, 84, has featured in a royal engagement himself after he received Maundy money from the Queen at the annual church service.

In a moving ceremony held on the Queen’s home territory, St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, for the first time since 1959, she handed commemorative coins to 180 pensioners.

Mr O’Donovan, who is also a retired lay steward for St George’s Chapel, began keeping the record “out of curiosity”, he said. “I just thought perhaps one should know what the royal family are doing.”

It was, he said, a privilege to be part of the service, instead of watching on.

To read the complete article, see:
Queen’s Maundy tribute for a royalist (www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/royalfamily/article4721233.ece?shareToken=08f67fd8d2b9efc6191ed88df3a14376)

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