Thomas Kingston: the remarkable life of the royal who died by suicide after struggling with anti-depressants

The household of Thomas Kingston person called for a alteration successful the mode antidepressant medicine is prescribed pursuing the results of the inquest into Kingston’s termination past February.

The precocious hubby of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent’s girl Lady Gabriella Kingston died from a catastrophic caput wounded astatine his parents’ £3 cardinal location successful the Cotswolds, with a weapon recovered adjacent his body.

During the inquest into his death, Katy Skerrett, the elder coroner for Gloucestershire, said Kingston had luncheon with his parents earlier the mates went connected a walk, and Kingston was not contiguous upon their return. His assemblage was discovered by his begetter successful an outbuilding.

At the time, those who knew Kingston were wholly taken aback. One adjacent person told The Telegraph: “You bash wonderment however thing similar this happens. He was truthful acceptable and truthful mentally stable. He wasn’t a depressed individual.” Another person added: “He’s 1 of those guys who tin beryllium rather enigmatic and doesn’t archer you what helium is thinking.”

It has present go wide that Kingston was struggling with slump and had precocious stopped taking the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) helium was prescribed arsenic anti-depressants. Kingston’s parents, Martin and Jill Kingston, are present calling for a alteration successful however patients are prescribed these SSRIs, with Martin Kingston telling Radio 4’s Today programme that patients should beryllium told much explicitly astir the imaginable broadside effects of the medication, including what tin hap if they halt taking it.

To many, Kingston would not person been instantly evident arsenic a cardinal subordinate successful the royal family. He joined Lady Gabriella Windsor, the 42-year-old non-working royal 56th successful enactment to the throne, and has stayed comparatively removed from frontline royal life.

But determination is overmuch much to Kingston than is wide known: the University of Bristol postgraduate had links to the royal household agelong earlier Lady Gabriella, having allegedly dated Pippa Middleton astir the clip of Kate and William’s wedding successful 2011, arsenic good arsenic 1 of Prince William’s rumoured ex-girlfriends. And portion he’s a financier by trade, Kingston besides spent a play of clip moving successful hostage dialog and struggle solution successful Iraq during the war.

Here’s everything we cognize astir the royal’s storied past.

As with astir radical who travel to wed royals, Kingston was well-acquainted with friends-of-friends of the household agelong earlier helium really joined into The Firm. Born successful Evesham, Worcestershire to William Martin Kingston and Jill Mary Kingston (née Bache), helium wasn’t precisely British nobility. Bache is the granddaughter of Sir William Joseph Pearman-Smith of Park Hall, the erstwhile Mayor of Walsall, and Kingston is simply a “self made man” who was educated astatine a secondary-modern authorities school, earlier going connected to go a palmy barrister specialising successful readying law. Kingston excessively was authorities educated, and his household is thought to beryllium descendant from Cheshire butchers and farmers.

But it was successful Gloucestershire wherever Kingston would find himself successful the outer ellipse of the royals. At 1 point, helium met chap Bristol University postgraduate Natalie Hicks-Lobbecke and the brace are rumoured to person dated for a play of time. As it happens, Hicks-Lobbecke was besides portion of the Gloucestershire-based ‘Beaufort Polo Club set’ on with Prince William and Harry. She and William sparked dating rumours astir July 2000, erstwhile Hicks-Lobbecke and the young Prince were photographed laughing with each different astatine a polo match, though some denied the narration rumours astatine the time.

Then came Kingston’s 2nd brushwood with near-royal romance successful 2011, erstwhile helium was said to beryllium dating Pippa Middleton close astir the clip of Kate and William’s royal wedding. Far from the modular post-split animosity, helium and Pippa person remained adjacent friends. Both parties attended each others’ weddings — Kingston was astatine Middleton’s nuptials to James Matthews successful 2017, and Middleton was successful attendance astatine Kingston’s royal wedding to Lady Gabriella successful 2019 — and person been photographed enjoying each others’ institution galore times implicit the years.

Kingston near Bristol University with a grade successful economical history, which helium enactment to bully usage successful his immoderate 17 years of enactment arsenic a chartered fiscal analyst, equity expert and manager of the superior firms. However, helium took an absorbing segue aft graduation, wherever helium worked wrong the diplomatic missions portion of the Foreign Office successful Iraq.

In this role, Kingston was based successful Baghdad, and gained acquisition successful hostage dialog and struggle resolution. According to The Times, helium utilised his “relentless optimism” to assistance negociate the merchandise of hostages and adjudicate disputes betwixt the Iraq’s warring ethnic, religious, and tribal leaders.

In 2004, helium narrowly escaped a brushwood with decease erstwhile a a suicide-bombing claimed the lives of 22 radical astatine the lone Anglican religion successful Iraq. Reverend Canon Andrew White, who was known arsenic the “Vicar of Baghdad” acknowledgment to his 10 years presiding implicit the Anglican religion successful Iraq and besides survived the bombing, said antecedently that Kingston was an “an exceptional young man” who “makes things happen.” Kingston’s pivot to this enactment of enactment makes much consciousness to those that knew him well, who described him arsenic a “very, very, very” committed Christian. At uni, helium was adjacent known arsenic “Christian Tom.”

“Tom is 1 of the astir singular radical I person ever worked with and I would person him backmost astatine my broadside tomorrow, if helium would come,” Canon Andrew said of Kingston portion helium was inactive alive. “Tom has a fierce determination to marque things win and large penetration into what makes humans tick, some bully and bad. He uses those to spot beyond the intolerable and get done to the different side.”

In airy of his tragic death, Canon Andrew told The Telegraph: “We survived respective termination weaponry attacks [...] We were regularly caught up successful IED [improvised explosive device] attacks. Cars would stroke up successful beforehand of america and we would conscionable determination on. We were ever unneurotic and had 35 equipped guards astatine each times,” recalled Canon White.

“The happening astir Tom was helium was ne'er scared. Whatever I asked him to bash helium would bash it with a large grin connected his look successful the mediate of a warfare zone.”

Following connected from his clip astatine the Foreign Office, Kingston joined the Iraqi Institute of Peace arsenic a task serviceman from 2003 to 2006. The Times reports that Kingston “developed a estimation arsenic a talented young diplomat and a devout Christian” during his clip there, and worked tirelessly to assistance Iraqi Christians rebuild their lives successful the aftermath of Sadam Hussein’s reign of terror.

Kingston past veered backmost into the calmer satellite of finance, archetypal moving arsenic an equity expert for Schroders, the planetary plus absorption firm, past arsenic the managing manager of Voltan Capital Management until 2017. Kingston aboriginal became a managing manager astatine Devonport Capital, a fiscal steadfast founded by erstwhile City lawyer Paul Bailey, who had antecedently tally a “boutique concern firm” successful Iraq. The business, for which Kingston was a co-owner astatine the clip of his death, proved palmy and was not known to beryllium successful immoderate monetary trouble.

Kingston’s widow, Lady Gabriella, is the girl of Queen Elizabeth’s archetypal cousin, Prince Michael of Kent, and his woman Princess Michael of Kent. While this makes them comparatively insignificant royals, Prince Michael’s archetypal cousin-status besides provided an indelible nexus to Queen Elizabeth, and truthful the Michaels were kept successful the nationalist oculus — adjacent erstwhile they privation they weren’t.

Known arsenic “Princess Pushy”, Princess Michael has suffered her just stock of gaffes during her years successful the royal family, including the infamous “racist” brooch incident. This occurred erstwhile Princess Michael met Meghan Markle for brunch, each the portion outfitted with a “blackamoor” brooch that features the bust of a quality with achromatic skin. Princess Michael apologised, with a spokesperson saying she was “very atrocious and distressed that it has caused offence". And Lady Gabriella was not devoid of scandal, either. In 2018, the twelvemonth earlier Kingston wed into the family, Lady Gabriella’s ex-boyfriend, Aatish Taseer, penned a bombshell nonfiction for Vanity Fair that, among different things, claimed they had taken MDMA successful royal residences and swam bare successful the Queen’s excavation successful Buckingham Palace. The nonfiction besides alleged further racially-insensitive actions from Princess Michael, worsening her nationalist profile. He referred to an nonfiction published successful the New York Post with the header ‘Royal Bigot’. The communicative claimed that Princess Michael had told immoderate noisy customers (and radical of colour) astatine Da Silvano, an Italian edifice successful Greenwich Village, to spell backmost to the colonies. She denied it, saying: “I would ne'er person said that.”

But Kingston didn’t care. He was thrust into nationalist beingness successful 2019 erstwhile the quality of his connection to Lady Gabriella, which took spot connected the Isle of Sark, successful the Channel Islands, wherever his household has a vacation home, made the quality successful 2018. The brace had already been an point since 2015, having been introduced by communal friends.

He wed Lady Gabriella successful a ceremonial astatine St George's Chapel successful Windsor Castle successful May 2019, and the brace looked a representation of wedded bliss. The Queen, Prince Philip and Prince Harry were each successful attendance, contempt Harry becoming a begetter to Prince Archie conscionable weeks beforehand. Also successful attendance were Pippa Middleton, Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes, Lady Frederick Windsor (aka Sophie Winkleman, Claudia Winkleman’s sister). The lone notable lack was Prince William, who was engaged with his relation arsenic President of the Football Association, presenting the trophy astatine the FA cupful final. Post-nuptial celebrations were held successful Frogmore Cottage, the aforesaid determination arsenic Harry and Meghan’s wedding reception.

In the years since their marriage, the Kingstons person appeared blessed and good astatine galore nationalist functions. Their past nationalist quality was conscionable earlier this month, astatine a a solemnisation of Shakespeare’s enactment astatine the Grosvenor House Park Lane Hotel successful London. Close friends of the mates told the MailOnline they seemed perfectly happy. "They seemed blessed and affirmative arsenic ever,” the adjacent person said. "Ella was peculiarly chatty." Another person said: "It's utterly shocking. None of america saw it coming. I cannot recognize it."

The find of Kingston’s assemblage astatine his parent’s Gloucestershire location sent shockwaves astir his household and the wider community. The Telegraph reports that Lady Gabriella’s brother, Lord Frederick Windsor, is understood to person informed Kingston’s closest friends of his death, including his 3 champion men.

One adjacent acquaintance told the newspaper: “We are truthful upset astir the news, everybody loved him. He was kind, charming and thoroughly decent and 1 of the past existent English gentlemen. It is beyond tragic and truthful hard to get one’s caput around.”

The section sub post-master added: “We are each truthful bittersweet to perceive the unspeakable news. They are a lovely, gentle household who bash a batch for the colony and the church. They are a large portion of the section assemblage [...] Thomas popped into the store a lot, helium would travel by each truthful often. I past saw him a fewer months ago. He was a precise gentle soul, conscionable similar his father. Everyone is successful shock, it’s truly bittersweet and precise fresh.”