Prince Philip Biography

Prince Philip was the official consort to Queen Elizabeth II, from her ascension to throne in 1952 until his death in 2021. His 69 years in the role made him the longest-serving royal consort in British history.

Born into the royal family of Greece, Philip Mountbatten served in the British Royal Navy during world War II, making a name for himself as a fast-rising young officer. After the war he became engaged to Princess Elizabeth and they were married on November 20, 1947. (He was created Duke of Edinburgh and his official title, by the queen’s decree, was The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.)

Beyond his many royal duties as the queen’s companion, Prince Philip became known as a keen outdoorsman and conservationist; in 1961 he co-founded and became the first president of the World Wildlife Fund. An avid sportsman, he passed his love of polo on to his son Prince Charles. Over the years, The Duke of Edinburgh also developed a reputation for blunt and impolitic public quips, such as his 1966 comment that “British women can’t cook.”

After years standing beside the Queen at public ceremonies, Prince Philip finally retired from public life in 2017. He died in 2021, about two months before his 100th birthday. The cause of death was officially declared to be “old age,” and the Royal Family indicated that it was not related to Covid-19. Philip was interred in the Royal Vault beneath Saint George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. His wife, Queen Elizabeth II, died the next year, on September 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne.

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip had four children: Charles (b. 1948), Anne (b. 1950), Andrew (b. 1960) and Edward (b. 1964); as the eldest, Prince Charles became the heir to the throne.