Prince Philip's legacy is a complex tapestry of modernization and preservation within the monarchy. His efforts to balance tradition with the demands of a changing world have left an indelible mark on the British royal institution.
When a commission chaired by Prince Philip proposed broadcasting the 1953 investiture ceremony that formally named Elizabeth II as queen on live television, Prime Minister Winston Churchill reacted with horror.
Ultimately, more than 20 million people watched the televised ceremony, thanks to the foresight of Philip, who died Friday at age 99.
The Duke of Edinburgh has died at the age of 96
Philip was the great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria and nephew of Constantine I of Greece, whose 1922 abdication forced the young infant and his family to flee their home country.
- The future consort’s childhood was a peripatetic one, with Philip spending stretches of time in France, England and Germany, and was notably marred by tragedies, including the institutionalization of his mother and the death of his beloved older sister in a plane crash.
- Philip and Elizabeth first met in 1934, when he was 13 and she was 8. Five years later, the pair wed in 1947, embarking on a 74-year partnership that would cement Philip’s status as the United Kingdom’s longest-serving royal consort.
- Arguably Philip’s greatest legacy was his push to modernize the centuries-old monarchy. He took steps to reorganize and renovate the royal estates and generally sought to “make the royal household and the monarchy less stuffy, not to have so much formality everywhere.”
The queen, for her part, summarized the couple’s relationship in a 1997 speech marking their 50th wedding anniversary:
“He is someone who doesn’t take easily to compliments but he has, quite simply, been my strength and stay all these years, and I… owe him a debt greater than he would ever claim or we shall ever know.”
