The Duke of Edinburgh s funeral made me realise that the military creates great art
Too often, our creative industries sneer at service and tradition. Instead, they would do better to follow the drum
22 April 2021 • 5:00am
A hypnotic elegance: buglers of the Royal Marines played during the funeral service
Credit: Danny Lawson / POOL / AFP
On Saturday afternoon, while watching the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral, I was struck by something that had never occurred to me before. Amid the beautiful restraint of the day – the very model of what a ceremonial royal funeral should be – I found myself bowled over by the power of the music. Although it was incredibly familiar (Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma Variations, I Vow to Thee My Country after Holst’s Jupiter and Parry’s Jerusalem), these works suddenly felt new. That was partly down to the strangeness and solemnity of the occasion, but partly, too, thanks to the tri-service band who lined the Quadrangle. They made me realise
Her Majesty will continue to observe a period of mourning until Friday, April 23, and as such, is understood to be reluctant to mark this year’s anniversary.
She is expected to have a quiet lunch with close family members at Windsor Castle, the details of which will remain private.
However, the Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry, has travelled back to California to his wife, Meghan, and son, Archie, following the funeral of Prince Philip.
The Royal family’s social media channels marked the sovereign’s birthday this morning by releasing a new photograph, although there are not expected to be any further commemorations. It said on Twitter:
I owe my life to Prince Philip s mother who hid my family in her attic during the war
From what Evy Cohen has learnt, her family wouldn t exist today if it weren t for Princess Alice, the Duke of Edinburgh s mother
The Duke of Edinburgh with his mother, Princess Alice of Greece
Credit: Bettmann
There was one commemoration this week that stood out for its poignancy. Evy Cohen, 65, owes her life to Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, who hid her family during the Second World War.
When Greece was under the control of the Nazis, in 1943, Princess Alice, the great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria, let three of Mrs Cohen’s relatives stay in an apartment in her royal residence in Athens.
SIR – I support Lt Cdr Brian Smith’s idea (Letters, April 16) that a new royal yacht should be named HMY Elizabeth and Philip, following the precedent of HMY Victoria and Albert.
Many ships acquire affectionate nicknames: HMS Endurance was known as the Red Plum, HMS Charybdis as Cherry B, and HMS Sheffield as Shiny Sheff.
If the idea is taken up, it won’t be too long before she is known as HMY Liz ’n’ Phil – affectionately, of course.
Cdr Peter Baseby RN (retd)
Kennington, Oxfordshire
SIR – The strict observance by the Queen and the Royal family of the current Covid rules showed their consideration and respect for all those who have died in the past year, and whose families had to cope with even tighter regulations as they laid their loved ones to rest.
The long-held conventional wisdom about Prince Philip and his eldest son emphasised their perceived differences
Just four days after an ailing Duke of Edinburgh was admitted to the King Edward VII’s Hospital in mid-February, the Prince of Wales made a two-hour trip from his Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire to see his 99-year-old father.
Under the Government’s coronavirus lockdown rules, such a hospital visit could only occur in “exceptional circumstances” . When Charles emerged a half-hour later, his face was covered with a mandatory surgical mask, but his distress could be seen in his rheumy eyes. He was the only member of the Royal family to visit the hospital during the Duke’s month-long stay. It was the most visible sign of a rapprochement between father and son that had taken hold in recent years.