Death of Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elisabeth II
Prince Philip, in October 2018. AP - Alastair Grant
Text by: Lena Thébaud Follow
5 mins
Prince Philip, husband of the Queen of England, died this Friday morning at the age of 99, Buckingham Palace announced.
Discreet, he had lived all his life in the shadow of his wife.
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Philip Moutbatten
, Prince of Greece and Denmark, was born on June 10, 1921 in Corfu, Greece.
Son of Prince André of Greece and Princess Alice of Battenberg, grandson of King George I of Greece, he was the youngest of a family of five children with his four sisters, Marguerite, Sophie, Théodora and Cécile.
He was also related to Queen Victoria.
If the life of the Queen of England is well known, that of her husband is a little less so.
However, he is the one to have held the role of the United Kingdom's consort for the longest time, accompanying
Elisabeth II
for almost 70 years
on her travels.
A tumultuous childhood
Faced with the political instability which reigns in Greece, the parents of Philip were forced to leave the country in 1922. Yet coming from a royal family, it is without money that Philip goes into exile in France, in Saint-Cloud , with Princess Marie de Bonaparte, wife of one of the brothers of Prince Philip's father and descendant of Napoleon 1st.
Soon after, Philip's mother, suffering from schizophrenia, was eventually interned, while his father made a living in the south of France, forcing Philip to grow up far from his family in several boarding schools.
First in England, then in Germany and finally in Scotland.
His sisters, they made their life in Germany after having married German aristocrats, close to Adolf Hitler.
In 1939, Philip joined the Royal Navy and it was on this occasion that he met Princess Elisabeth, then a teenager, before leaving to serve in World War II.
This date marks the real first meeting between the two future spouses and what the queen will describe later as "
love at first sight for Prince Philip
".
His life with Elisabeth Windsor
In 1945, then begins the love story between Philip and Elisabeth, which does not necessarily please the royal family and in particular the "queen mother".
The reason ?
Philip's Greek origins and the fact that he is not of English nationality.
Another point is also disturbing, the far too left and modern positions of Philip while the royal family is attached to traditions.
In 1946, Philip asked the king for Elizabeth's hand, while renouncing his allegiance to the Greek crown, to his title of prince.
He will also ask to be naturalized.
The wedding was then celebrated in Westminster Abbey on November 20, 1947, and the ceremony would also be fully broadcast on airwaves around the world.
After their union, Philip became The Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth and Baron of Greenwich.
Four children are born from the union of Prince Philip and Queen Elisabeth: Charles (Prince of Wales), Anne (Princess Royal), Andrew (Duke of York) and Edward (Earl of Wessex).
The couple's life will change when in 1952, King George VI, Elizabeth's father, brutally dies and propels Elizabeth Windsor to the throne at just 26 years old and forces Philip to leave the Royal Navy to support his wife.
From the couple's first appearance after the king's disappearance, Philip will remain "
two steps behind the queen
", a public position he will maintain throughout his life.
In the shadow of the Queen of England
From the Queen's coronation in 1952, until her retirement in August 2017, Prince Philip assisted Elisabeth II in numerous public outings and official engagements - 22,219 to be exact.
He thus sets the record for the longevity of the British princes consorts with more than six decades in the shadow of the queen.
In 1956, Prince Philip launched the Duke of Edinburgh's International Prize which recognizes achievement in adolescents and young adults.
Initially intended for the United Kingdom, this program now covers 144 countries.
Very committed, Prince Philip also supported nearly 800 associations and participated in the creation in 1961 of the first world organization for the protection of the environment, WWF, of which he will be its president for the United Kingdom for twenty years.
Despite her great discretion, Queen Elizabeth II said of Prince Philip that he was "
her strength and support
".
On November 20, 2017, the royal couple celebrated their
70th wedding anniversary
.
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