A wartime photograph of HRH Prince Philip as Lieutenant Commander
Like many veterans, the Duke of Edinburgh was modest about his military career. As a result, few of us are aware of quite how illustrious, and at times perilous, it was – and, by extension, how much he did for his country.
His naval career began when he was just 17 when, after leaving Gordonstoun, he joined Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth as a cadet in May 1939. Two months later, in July 1939, came the famous meeting with the then Princess Elizabeth, and in September, war was declared.
Philip passed out from Dartmouth at the beginning of 1940, already marked out for a great naval future having won two awards, the King’s Dirk and the Eardley Howard Crocket prize for best Cadet of his entry.
Prince Andrew has no intention to distract from Prince Philip s funeral, source claims
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Harry and William will be reunited for the first time on the morning of Philip s funeral
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William s tribute to Philip was not a dig at Harry, says Omid Scobie Martin Robinson, Chief Reporter and Jemma Carr For Mailonline © Provided by Daily Mail MailOnline logo
Prince William s tribute to his grandfather Prince Philip was not a dig at his younger brother and the siblings are unified despite what it might look like to the outside world, Harry and Meghan s friend Omid Scobie claimed today.
Mr Scobie also insisted that Meghan wanted to attend the Duke of Edinburgh s funeral at Windsor on Saturday amid claims in the US she skipped it to avoid being centre of attention .
In two statements with very different tones released 30 minutes apart yesterday, Prince William praised his grandfather s lifetime of service to Queen, country and Commonwealth before Harry declared: He was my grandpa: master of the barbecue, legend of banter, and cheeky right til the end .