The eyes of the world are on the British royal family this Easter. The holiday falls just over a week after Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, announced that she had been diagnosed with cancer and is undergoing “preventative chemotherapy.”
Kensington Palace initially pinned Easter as the date after which she might be expected to restart public engagements following a planned abdominal surgery in January, but on March 22, Kate disclosed that post-operation tests revealed cancer had been present, leading her to start treatment. She will return to official duties when cleared to do so by her medical team.
The news followed an announcement in February that Kate’s father-in-law, King Charles III, was also diagnosed with cancer and would be postponing public-facing duties as he received treatment.
Easter, which typically sees the extended royal family gather at Windsor Castle, is expected to be a scaled back celebration this year. Buckingham Palace tells TIME the King will attend the traditional Easter Sunday service at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor, but Kate, her husband Prince William, and their three children—George, Charlotte, and Louis—are not planning to go to church.
Kate’s announcement revealing her cancer diagnosis—which royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams calls “perhaps the most courageous broadcast made on health matters ever by a public figure in Britain”—changes the Easter holiday “enormously.”
“It’s a deeply sobering experience for all of us,” he tells TIME in a phone call.
In years past, Easter was a relatively low-key holiday in comparison to Christmas, Fitzwilliams says, but that will be different this Easter in the wake of a turbulent period that has transfixed the world.
“The international attention will be enormous and that’s never happened before,” he says.
As the royal family prepares for the holiday amid trying times, here’s what you need to know about their Easter traditions and what to…
