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House of Windsor - Prince Philip


Name: Prince Philip
Father: Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark
Mother: Princess Alice of Battenberg
Born: June 10, 1921 at Villa Mon Repos, Corfu, Greece
Married: Princess Elizabeth, later Queen Elizabeth II, on November 20, 1947
Children: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward

Philip was born Philippos Prince of Greece and Denmark on the Greek Island of Corfu in 1921. His father was Prince Andrew, younger brother of King Constantine of Greece, and his mother Princess Alice of Battenberg. He is a great-great-grandchild of Queen Victoria though his mother’s family. The monarchy of Greece was overthrown in 1922, and George V sent a Royal Navy ship HMS Calypso to rescue them. The one-year old Philip was carried to safety in an orange box. The family lived in Paris but his parents’ marriage broke up and Philip went to school in England, Germany and then Gordonstoun in Scotland where he was head of the school cricket and hockey teams and became head boy. Princess Elizabeth and Philip first met when they attended the wedding of Philip's cousin, Princess Marina of Greece to The Duke of Kent, who was an uncle of Princess Elizabeth, in 1934.

Philip joined the Royal Navy in 1939 and attended Dartmouth college where as a cadet Philip of Greece he showed round then 13 years old Princess Elizabeth. He saw active service in WW2 in the Mediterranean taking part in the Allied invasion of Sicily, and with the British Pacific fleet was present in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese surrender was signed. He returned to Britain in 1946 and served as a staff officer at Greenwich Naval College. In 1947 he became a naturalised British subject, and adopted the surname Mountbatten, the anglicised version of his mother’s name of Battenberg . He converted from Greek Orthodox to the Anglican religion, and renounced his allegiance to the Greek crown.

The engagement between Princess Elizabeth and Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten RN was announced on the 9 July 1947 and they were married in Westminster Abbey on 20 November 1947. The day before his wedding, King George VI titled his future son-in-law Philip Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth, and Baron Greenwich, of Greenwich in the County of London. The ceremony recorded by the BBC was hugely popular and brought a ray of sunshine to the otherwise austere life of post-war Britain. His three surviving sisters who had married German aristocrats were not invited to the wedding. Following their honeymoon the Prince resumed his career in the Navy and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh lived in Malta. In February 1952 they were in Kenya staying at Tree Tops hotel during a tour of the Commonwealth when news came of the death of the Princess’s father King George VI. They returned to Britain for the Princess to take up her new role as Queen Elizabeth II, and Prince Philip as consort. He resigned from the Royal Navy, and has since supported the Queen for over 65 years, with numerous royal duties, state visits and occasions

Known for his sometimes blunt naval manner and plain speaking, he has fulfilled a difficult role in support of his wife Queen Elizabeth with loyalty and dedication. In addition to his royal duties, the Duke of Edinburgh is or was the patron of many organisations, including The Duke of Edinburgh's Award and the World Wide Fund for Nature. His interests have included flying, sailing, polo, carriage driving and shooting. He is the longest-serving consort of a reigning British monarch and the oldest-ever male member of the British Royal Family. On 2nd August 2017 Prince Philip at the age of 96 retired from his official royal duties having completed over 22,000 official solo engagements since 1952. However he continues to appear alongside other royals at public events.

Prince Philip's Signature