Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who served as consort to his wife Queen Elizabeth II for more than 60 years, has died at the age of 99.
Buckingham Palace released a statement confirming the duke had died “peacefully” on Friday morning.
It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen has announced the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle. pic.twitter.com/XOIDQqlFPn
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) April 9, 2021
Prince Philip was the longest-serving royal consort in British history and the oldest serving partner of a reigning monarch.
The Duke had been rarely seen in public life following his retirement from royal duties in 2017.
BORN IN GREECE
Philip’s father, Prince Andrew of Greece, was the fourth son of George I of the Hellenes, formerly Prince Wilhelm of Denmark, who was elected king of Greece following a protocol signed in 1863 by England, France and Russia, and who was to die from an assassin’s bullet.
Andrew’s brother, King Constantine I, was deposed by a military junta following the Greeks’ heavy defeat by the Turks in the war of Asia Minor in 1922. Andrew was charged with treason, imprisoned, and sentenced to death before fleeing with his family to live in much reduced circumstances in Paris. Prince Philip was born in Corfu and he was a Greek Prince before his family fled Greece.
Philip harboured not one jot of emotional attachment to the country of which he was prince. “I certainly never felt nostalgic about Greece. A grandfather assassinated and a father condemned to death does not endear me to the perpetrators,” he said.
His Danish dynastic name was Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksburg, and his father was also descended from Russian emperors.
His mother, Princess Alice, became a Greek orthodox nun and was the daughter of Prince Louis of Battenberg who, in 1917, renounced his German titles to take the anglicised surname of Mountbatten and was created the first Marquess of Milford Haven.
MORRISON’S TRIBUTE
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has led the tributes to Prince Phillip after he died at the age of 99 by saying Duke of Edinburgh ’embodied a generation’ which would never be seen again. His tribute states:
For nearly 80 years, Prince Philip served his Crown, his country and the Commonwealth.
His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh was, in the words of Her Majesty, her ‘strength and stay’.
He embodied a generation that we will never see again.
Beginning as a naval cadet in 1939, he served in war and in peace. When Her Majesty ascended the throne, The Duke ended his military service and became her constant support.
Prince Philip was no stranger to Australia, having visited our country on more than 20 occasions.
Through his service to the Commonwealth he presided as patron or president of nearly 50 organisations in Australia. Given his own service, Prince Philip also had a strong connection with the Australian Defence Force.
For 65 years, The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme has encouraged over 775,000 young Australians to explore their leadership potential. Forty thousand young Australians are currently participating in the program.
Australians send our love and deepest condolences to her Majesty and all the Royal family. The Commonwealth family joins together in sorrow and thanksgiving for the loss and life of Prince Philip. God bless from all here in Australia.
Further details about Australia’s remembrance of Prince Philip will be announced over coming days. Flags will be lowered in honour of His Royal Highness.
