Duke of Edinburgh appointed as Lord High Commissioner to the 2024 General Assembly
Published on 10 March 2024 1 minute read
Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, has been appointed as the Lord High Commissioner to the 2024 General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, a decade after he last took on the role of royal representative at the annual gathering.
The Lord High Commissioner is the Sovereign's personal representative to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and is appointed by His Majesty The King to attend proceedings on his behalf.
The Duke, who was granted the title previously held by his father on his 59th birthday last year, will make the opening and closing addresses to the Assembly and carry out a number of official functions throughout the week.
He was previously Lord High Commissioner in 2014, when he held the title of Earl of Wessex, and represented his mother, the late Queen.
He is the first member of the Royal Family to become Lord High Commissioner since his nephew HRH Prince William, now the Prince of Wales, was appointed in 2021.
His Majesty The King attended while Prince of Wales in 2000 and Princess Anne, The Princess Royal, and Prince Andrew have also been Lord High Commissioners with Her Majesty The Queen attending the General Assembly in person in 1969 and 2002 and also visited the General Assembly in 1977 as part of her Silver Jubilee celebrations.
The General Assembly, which was first held in 1560 in the first year of the Scottish Reformation, is the supreme court of the Church of Scotland.
It will take place in the General Assembly Hall on The Mound in Edinburgh from Saturday, May 18 until Thursday, May 23.
The Moderator Designate for 2024-25 is Rev Dr Shaw James Paterson. He will chair proceedings at the General Assembly and will be the Kirk's ambassador at home and abroad for the following 12 months.
Details of the 2024 General Assembly programme are still being finalised and more information will be released in the coming weeks.
