Prince Philip was the godfather of Anglo-British nationalism
In the year before Prince Philip was born, 1920, the British empire was the largest it would ever be. The year after he was born, 1922, Charles Francis Jenkins demonstrated the first principles of the television.
The changes driven by decolonisation and the invention of the modern media, between them, could easily have ended the reign of the House of Windsor. The fact that they didn’t, the success of the British monarchy in transitioning from the divine rulers at the apex of history’s biggest empire to the celebrities at the centre of a modern nationalist project built on TV and the tabloids, was, in large part, because of the duke of Edinburgh, who died today at 99.
The Duke of Edinburgh – quizzical, witty and controversial – was the Queen’s greatest source of support, her confidant and the man she relied on above all others.
His lifelong role was to ensure that he never let her down and their long-lasting marriage was arguably one of the world’s best-known relationships.
Although he was not officially given the title of Prince Consort, Philip – a private, enigmatic man of strong character – was always there, one step behind, ready to lend the Queen a helping hand.
Through his stewardship, he had a profound effect on the development of the British monarchy.
Updated: April 9, 2021, 2:29 pm
Prince Philip of Greece at Gordonstoun school (PA)
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At school, Prince Philip showed all the qualities of a natural leader, but even his teachers’ reports revealed he had a rather short fuse.
Assessments written in 1938, when he was around 17, called him kind and firm, but suggested he was too irritable when put in charge of games.
Prince Philip of Greece, tossing the ball in the air, with the junior cricket team at Gordonstoun School (PA)
Prince Philip has passed away aged 99, Buckingham Palace announced todayCredit: WENN
Philip’s dad had been a Lieutenant General in the Greek army, although he was a prince of Denmark.
But he was blamed for a devastating military defeat to Turkey and kicked out of the country, only escaping execution when the British Government intervened.
As the cruiser HMS Calypso carried the blond toddler and his four older sisters to safety, the ship’s crew took pity on the youngster and made him a crib from an orange box to keep him comfortable.
Philip had become sixth in line to the Greek throne when he was born on the dining room table of a villa in Corfu on June 10, 1921.
FILE - In this Thursday June, 16, 2011 file photo Britain s Queen Elizabeth II with Prince Philip arrive by horse drawn carriage in the parade ring on the third day, traditionally known as Ladies Day, of the Royal Ascot horse race meeting at Ascot, England. Buckingham Palace says Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth II, has died aged 99. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File) Alastair Grant
In November 1947, a dynastic union was forged between the royal houses of Greece and Great Britain. It would be one of the last of this kind of royal marriages in history â a type of union that had knitted together the continent for 1,000 years. When Philip, prince of Greece and Denmark married Elizabeth, princess of Great Britain, they reconnected two bloodlines descended from Queen Victoria. But they also renewed a kinship tie between Britain and Denmark that had been joined together numerous times, from Canute and Aelfgifu in 1015 to Edward VII and Alexandra in 1863.