A Quiet Presence: British Royal Honors Princess Astrid's Memory

The Norwegian Royal Family just said goodbye to King Harald V on September 9, when the monarch was laid to rest in Oslo, and two days later, his 94-year-old sister, Princess Astrid, sadly passed away. King Haakon, Queen Mette-Marit, Queen Sonja and the rest of Norway’s royal family gathered to remember Princess Astrid at her funeral on September 23, and although King Charles did not send a representative, Princess Anne made a sweet gesture to their royal cousins.

Princess Astrid was a second cousin once removed of Anne and her siblings, and as the godmother of Norway’s new monarch, King Haakon, it was a natural choice for the Princess Royal to sign the card on the wreath sent by Buckingham Palace.

A circle of creamy white roses featured a Buckingham Palace notecard signed “Anne,” and she added a note at the bottom reading, "With love and happy memories.”

Although she wasn’t able to attend Princess Astrid’s funeral, Princess Anne did travel to Oslo for King Harald’s services earlier this month alongside Prince William. While the Prince of Wales was there as an official representative of King Charles, the Princess Royal attended in a personal capacity as Haakon’s godmother.

The Princess Royal has another trip to Norway planned as patron of the Anglo-Norwegian Resistance Commemoration Project, with Buckingham Palace announcing on September 22 that she'll be traveling from October 5 through 7—explaining why she'd be unable to swing another trip so soon before.

As for the family connection between the British and Norwegian royals, King Harald and Princess Astrid were great-grandchildren of King Edward VII, making them second cousins to Queen Elizabeth.

Like Princess Anne, Astrid, who attend her brother's funeral on September 9, also wrote a touching note on a floral tribute. It read: "Thank you for everything we've had together. Your Astrid."