Prince William’s Cousin Rosie Roche Found Dead With Firearm Nearby

Rosie Jean Burke Ro (Rosie Roche), a 20-year-old relative of the British royal family and a distant cousin to Prince William and Prince Harry, was found dead at her family home in Norton, near Malsbury, Wiltshire, on July 14th. Reports presented at the Wiltshire and Swindon Coroner’s Court indicated that Rosie was preparing for a trip with friends when her mother and sister discovered her body.

A firearm was located nearby. Authorities have stated that there is no evidence of third-party involvement, and the death is being treated as non-suspicious. Rosie, an English literature student at Durham University, is survived by her parents, Hugh and Pippa, and her siblings, Archie and Agatha. Her family has requested privacy and plans to hold a private funeral, with a memorial service to be scheduled at a later date. The inquest into her death has been adjourned until October 25th.

Rosie Roche was a 20-year-old distant cousin of Prince William and Harry, related through Princess Diana’s maternal family line.

She was the eldest child of Edmund Hugh Burke Roche, 53, and his wife, Phillipa Kate Victoria Long. Her grandfather, Edmund Roche, 5th Baron Fermoy, Princess Diana’s maternal uncle, died by suicide in 1984. According to her LinkedIn profile, Ms. Roche attended St Mary’s Calne, an independent girls’ boarding school in Wiltshire.

She was a second-year English Literature student at Durham University and was reportedly packing for a trip with friends at the time of her death. Statements from within the Durham University community indicate that she was well-liked and will be “sorely missed” by her peers and faculty.

An obituary published in The Yorkshire Post on July 19 described her as the “darling daughter of Hugh and Pippa” and a “wonderful sister to Archie and Agatha,” as well as a beloved granddaughter to Derek and Rae Long. After a private funeral, a public memorial service will be held. The death of Rosie Roche follows the February 2024 suicide of Thomas Kingston, husband of Lady Gabriella Windsor, who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his parents’ home. However, these two deaths are unrelated.