Who was Prince Philip?
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, the father of Prince Charles. Prince Philip was the grandfather of Prince Harry and Prince William.
Prince Philip: Early Life, Childhood, and Education
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth, and Baron Greenwich were born on the island of Corfu in Greece, on June 10, 1921.
Also known as Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, Philip was the only son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg. He had four elder sisters: Cecilie, Sophie, Margarita, and Theodora.
He was of Greek and Danish ancestry as well as he was from a royal family. When he was a kid, Philip and his family were banished from his native country. Then they lived in France, Germany, and most of the time in Britain.
While not British, Philip does have family ties to England. Shortly after his birth, his maternal grandfather, Prince Louis of Battenberg, died in London.
Louis was a naturalized British citizen who had renounced his German titles and adopted the surname Mountbatten during the First World War. Philip is also related to the British royal family as a descendant of Queen Victoria.
On September 22, 1922, Philip’s uncle, King Constantine I of Greece, was forced to abdicate the throne. The military government arrested Prince Andrew and executed the commander of the army and five senior politicians. In December 1922, a revolutionary court banished Prince Andrew from Greece for life.
Philip’s family went to France, where they settled in the Paris suburb of Saint-cloud. Over the ensuing years, Philip’s mother was eventually committed to a psychiatric institution while his father relocated to the south of France, maintaining limited contact.
Philip attended the MacJannet American School before he was sent to the United Kingdom to study at the Cheam School. During the 1930s, he relocated to a school in Germany and then moved again to Scotland’s Gordonstoun School, founded by Jewish headmaster Kurt Hahn following the rise of the Nazi party.
Many of Philip’s family members remained in Germany, including his sisters, who married into German aristocratic circles.
After graduating in 1939, Philip attended the Royal Naval College, where he excelled. During World War II, he served in the British Navy while in-law’s family members were on the opposing Axis side of the conflict.
Family tree of Prince Philip
What caused Prince Philip’s death?
At the old age of 99, king Philip died on the morning of 9 April 2021 at Windsor Castle. Queen Elizabeth, was reportedly at her husband’s bedside when he died. He died peacefully.
Wife death
At the age of 96, his wife Queen Elizabeth II died on 8 September 2022, at Buckingham Palace. She dies peacefully, it was a natural death.
As the whole world is shocked by the death of her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, a beautiful double rainbow appeared over Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle. A night before her death.
Her death was confirmed that evening at 18:30 BST.
