On April 9, 2021 at three in the afternoon, Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh passed away with his wife Queen Elizabeth II at his bedside. He died at ninety-nine years old after living almost a decade (1921-2021). Before his death, Prince Phillip had spent twenty-eight days in the hospital, but returned back to his own bed in Windsor Castle with the Queen before his death. The Windsor family stated Prince Phillip died peacefully.
Although Prince Phillip’s one hundredth birthday was on the rise, two months in the future, according to a royal source, he “didn’t really care about that.” His foremost concern was to be in Windsor Castle when he passed instead of a hospital bed. A concern of the Royal Family, Prince Phillip’s funeral, held only thirty people due to covid restrictions. It took place on April 17, 2021, and by Prince Philip’s request, he was buried in a $1,200 wool coffin carried by an electric Land Rover.
22,219 solo royal engagements, competitive in sports on the international stage, originator of the world’s leading youth achievement programme, Prince Phillip was an accomplished man. Though, while was known to be proficient and honorable, he will also be remembered as “a man of service and honor, and more personally as a master of the barbeque, legend of banter, and cheeky right ‘till the end” according to Prince Harry who has returned to the UK for the first time in a year. He will be visiting family for the first time since his infamous Oprah Winfrey interview last month. Prince William described his grandfather as a man with an “infectious sense of adventure as well as his mischievous sense of humour.” He goes on to say, “I will miss my grandpa, but I know he would want us to get on with the job.”
Royal Family members, Prince Charels, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward, have provided public tributes for Prince Phillip:
Prince Charles has stated, “My dear Papa was a very special person who I think above all else would have been amazed by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him and from that point of view we are, my family, deeply grateful for all that. It will sustain us in this particular loss and at this particularly sad time.”
Princess Anne commented, “You know it’s going to happen but you are never really ready. My father has been my teacher, my supporter and my critic, but mostly it is his example of a life well lived and service freely given that I most wanted to emulate.”
Prince Andrew states, “He was a remarkable man. … We’ve lost almost the grandfather of the nation. And I feel very sorry and supportive of my mother, who’s feeling it, I think, probably more than everyone else.”
Lastly, Prince Edward announced, “It’s been a bit of a shock. However much one tries to prepare oneself for something like this it’s still a dreadful shock, and we’re still trying to come to terms with that. And it’s very, very sad.”
Queen Elizabeth II, according to her son Prince Andrew, describes her husband’s death to have “left a huge void in her life” and is despondent as a response to her husband’s death. However, she has quickly returned to her royal duties. On April 13, just four days after Prince Philip’s passing, the Queen attended a retirement ceremony for Lord Chamberlain, Earl Peel. On April 14, she welcomed the new Lord Chamberlain, Lord Parker of Minsmere. One of Earl Peel’s final duties as Lord Chamberlain was to administer the funeral of Prince Philip on April 17.
