The Queen today announced with ‘deep sorrow’ the death of her husband Prince Philip at the age of 99, her ‘strength and guide’ throughout their 73-year marriage and her 69-year reign.
The Duke of Edinburgh spent his final days at Windsor Castle with his wife after a 28-night stay in hospital having been admitted in mid-February for an infection and a pre-existing heart condition.
Her Majesty announced her husband’s death at midday as the Union Flag was lowered to half-mast outside Buckingham Palace and on public buildings across the UK and Commonwealth.
He served with distinction in the Royal Navy and was mentioned in dispatches, but a humble lilo proved to be Prince Philip’s downfall.
This extraordinary footage and pictures are taken from candid home movie videos – never seen in public before – of the young Queen and her husband off duty at Christmas in 1953.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he “inspired the lives of countless young people”.
Speaking at Downing Street, the prime minister added: “He helped to steer the Royal Family and the monarchy so that it remains an institution indisputably vital to the balance and happiness of our national life.”
“Prince Philip earned the affection of generations here in the United Kingdom, across the Commonwealth, and around the world,” he said.
Paying tribute to the duke’s role as the longest serving consort in history, Mr Johnson also remembered Prince Philip as one of the last surviving people to have fought in World War II.
“From that conflict he took an ethic of service that he applied throughout the unprecedented changes of the post-War era,” Mr Johnson said.
“Like the expert carriage driver that he was, he helped to steer the Royal Family and the monarchy so that it remains an institution indisputably vital to the balance and happiness of our national life.”
William Roache (Analysis Editor Newspresslive )
