Great Britain's Prince Philip Dies At Age 99 - NPR

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As Queen Elizabeth II's husband, Prince Philip was the longest-serving consort in British history. In 2015, he attended the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster. Alastair Grant/WPA Pool/Getty Images hide caption

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As Queen Elizabeth II's husband, Prince Philip was the longest-serving consort in British history. In 2015, he attended the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords at the Palace of Westminster.

Alastair Grant/WPA Pool/Getty Images

Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II's husband and the Duke of Edinburgh, died Friday at age 99, Buckingham Palace announced. He was the first male royal consort since Queen Victoria's time in the 1800s — and the longest-serving consort in British history.

"It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen announces the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh," the Royal Family's official website said. "His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle. Further announcements will be made in due course. The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss."

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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

Speaking in London, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, "It is to Her Majesty, and her family, that our nation's thoughts must turn today. Because they have lost not just a much-loved and highly respected public figure, but a devoted husband and a proud and loving father, grandfather and, in recent years, great-grandfather."

President Biden also offered his condolences. "The impact of his decades of devoted public service is evident in the worthy causes he lifted up as patron, in the environmental efforts he championed, in the members of the Armed Forces that he supported, in the young people he inspired, and so much more. His legacy will live on not only through his family, but in all the charitable endeavors he shaped," Biden said.

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In a statement, former President George W. Bush said Philip "represented the United Kingdom with dignity and brought boundless strength and support to the sovereign. Laura and I are fortunate to have enjoyed the charm and wit of his company, and we know how much he will be missed."

Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark was a dashing young officer when he courted then-Princess Elizabeth after World War II, when he had served with the Royal Navy's Mediterranean and Pacific fleets.

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"To have been spared in the war and seen victory, to have been given the chance to rest and to re-adjust myself, to have fallen in love completely and unreservedly, makes all one's personal and even the world's troubles seem small and petty," he wrote Elizabeth in 1946.

By the time of their wedding in 1947, he had renounced his royal titles and naval career, taken British citizenship and agreed that his children would carry his wife's family name of Windsor.

These were significant sacrifices, says Karina Urbach of the University of London's Institute of Historical Research. "He must have regretted it a lot," she says. "It's a very privileged life, of course, but it's also a very boring life. It also meant that a man like him, who is an alpha man, who wants to lead, who wants to be recognized in his own profession, you know, couldn't fulfill that."

Later in life, Philip took to describing himself as "the world's most experienced plaque unveiler."

• Hide caption Prince Philip of Greece dressed for the Gordonstoun School's production of Macbeth, in Scotland in 1935. Previous Next Fox Photos/Getty Images
• Hide caption Lt. Philip Mountbatten salutes as he resumes his attendance at the Royal Naval Officers School at Kingsmoor, Hawthorn, England, in summer 1947. Previous Next PNA Rota/Keystone/Getty Images
• Hide caption Members of the British royal family and guests pose around Princess Elizabeth and Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace on their wedding day, Nov. 20, 1947. Previous Next STR/AFP/Getty Images
• Hide caption Philip and Elizabeth carry around their eldest children, Prince Charles and Princess Anne, circa 1951. Previous Next OFF/AFP/Getty Images
• Hide caption Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, pose for a portrait at home in Buckingham Palace in 1958. Previous Next Donald McKague/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
• Hide caption Philip and Elizabeth chat during the Royal Windsor Horse Show in 1982. Previous Next Tim Graham/Getty Images
• Hide caption Philip pilots a flight to El Asnam in Algeria circa 1980. Previous Next Tim Graham/Getty Images
• Hide caption Philip (right) accompanies Prince Charles and Princess Diana on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after their wedding on July 29, 1981. Previous Next Tim Graham/Getty Images
• Hide caption Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend the state opening of Parliament in London in 2000. Previous Next Tim Graham/Getty Images
• Hide caption The royal couple dons 3D glasses during a visit to England's University of Sheffield in November 2010. Previous Next John Giles/WPA Pool/Getty Images
• Hide caption Philip presents Operational Service Medals to the 4th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland in 2014 in Fallingbostel, Germany. Previous Next Nigel Treblin/Getty Images

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Philip was born in Corfu, Greece, into a deeply dysfunctional branch of the Greek royal family. His father was notorious as a philanderer and gambler. His mother, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia and sent to a mental hospital, became deeply religious. Young Philip grew up couch-surfing between royal relatives across Europe.

"I had vaguely thought, 'What could I do?' " he told the BBC in 1995. "Bit difficult being stateless."

In the early years, Philip was considered a rebel and a modernizer. He bristled at stuffy courtiers and allowed cameras behind the scenes at Buckingham Palace.

But by the 1970s, Philip was widely seen as a crotchety, angular figure trailing his wife at royal walkabouts, emitting intermittent and much-reported gaffes. He called Beijing a "ghastly" city while on a visit there. He once asked a female navy cadet if she worked in a strip club. And he congratulated a British backpacker in Papua New Guinea for not being eaten.

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Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, then Princess Elizabeth, and Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, wave to the crowd from the balcony of Buckingham Palace after their wedding on Nov. 20, 1947. From left are King George VI, Princess Margaret, Lady Mary Cambridge, the bride and groom, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary. AP hide caption

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Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, then Princess Elizabeth, and Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, wave to the crowd from the balcony of Buckingham Palace after their wedding on Nov. 20, 1947. From left are King George VI, Princess Margaret, Lady Mary Cambridge, the bride and groom, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary.

AP

Matthew Glencross, a historian at King's College London, says these statements may have been intentional. "The man was no idiot," he says. "The man knew when he was saying certain things. And I think he almost deliberately did it. He kind of enjoyed it, because it provided the light side of a royal tour."

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If it bothered Queen Elizabeth, she never let on. Philip was her closest companion and confidant and one of the last links to her life before the throne.

"He is someone who doesn't take easily to compliments. But he has, quite simply, been my strength and stay all these years," she said 50 years after their wedding. The couple had four children: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward.

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Remembering Prince Philip, The Longest-Serving Consort In British History

Remembering Prince Philip, The Longest-Serving Consort In British History

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Historians say Philip, a great-great-grandchild of Queen Victoria, was always aware that, as royal consort, he had no constitutional role in British politics or public life. He was careful not to cross that line.

But he devoted many hours to supporting British institutions and was a passionate advocate for the environment — a passion shared by his son Charles. The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, which he founded in 1956, honors achievements of young people around the world.

Philip announced his retirement from public duties in 2017.

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Prince Philip was Queen Elizabeth's closest companion and confidant and one of the last links to her life before the throne. Hannah McKay/WPA Pool/Getty Images hide caption

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Prince Philip was Queen Elizabeth's closest companion and confidant and one of the last links to her life before the throne.

Hannah McKay/WPA Pool/Getty Images