The Story Of Queen Elizabeth II And Prince Philip's Relationship

Prince Philip's death in 2021, though sad, didn't come as a much of a shock — he was 99 years old and had been in and out of hospital for the past few months. However, many people were moved by the death because of what it meant for his wife, Queen Elizabeth II. Philip and Elizabeth had been married for a staggering 73 years — as the BBC's royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell put it, "a bigger span of years than most of us can imagine." It is almost impossible to imagine losing someone who has been with you for so long.

Luckily, Elizabeth and Philip's long marriage was, for the most part, a happy and successful one. After meeting when Elizabeth was just a child, the pair later had a long courtship, sending letters to one another, before marrying in an extravagant ceremony at Westminster Abbey. They had four children and spent the majority of their married life committed to performing their royal duties. Want to hear more about their romance? Here is the story of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip's relationship.

After their initial meeting, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip went their separate ways. However, they did keep in touch. Philip served in the navy during the Second World War and Elizabeth completed her schooling. The relationship seemed to be moving along as he spent Christmas of 1943 with her family at Windsor Castle. As her governess wrote of the visit, he was animated in a way "none of us had ever seen before." To keep in touch, the pair corresponded by letter (via Daily Mail).

However, Elizabeth's family wasn't initially too keen on the match. As Time pointed out in a 1957 article, her father was particularly against him. "Despite Philip's British background and his fine war record, George VI was deeply worried about how British opinion ... would take to a Greek Prince as the husband of the heiress presumptive," the publication wrote. His "loud, boisterous laugh and his blunt, seagoing manners" were also said to annoy the king. Luckily for Elizabeth and Philip, the family eventually came around.

In the early years of their marriage, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip enjoyed a peaceful existence, as she wasn't yet the queen of England. Shortly after the wedding, the couple seemed to be perfectly happy. Elizabeth wrote to her parents, as reported by NBC News, "We behave as though we had belonged to each other for years." She continued, "Philip is an angel — he is so kind and thoughtful." Philip wrote to Elizabeth's mother, "My ambition is to weld the two of us into a new combined existence that will not only be able to withstand the shocks directed at us but will also have a positive existence for the good."

The pair spent their first few years living in Malta where Philip was the commander of a Royal Navy ship. According to Times of Malta, the pair later went back to Malta in 1964 to mark the country's independence from Britain. At the time, Philip said the country was a "fortress" and a place of "peace." It's clear that the pair were carefree and happy during their time there. However, this honeymoon period came to an abrupt end when Elizabeth's father, King George VI, died in 1952.

While committing to their royal duties, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip found time to raise four children — Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward. In Netflix's "The Crown," Philip is portrayed as a distant, uncaring father. However, it turns out, he and the queen were both involved in their children's upbringing. According to the Express (via The Sun), the queen was actually pretty "upset" and "annoyed" about how the show portrayed Philip's parenting skills.

One senior staff member said, "She was particularly annoyed at a scene in which Philip has no sympathy for a plainly upset Charles while he is flying him home from Scotland. That simply did not happen." It sounds like the pair were both caring parents to their children.

As Philip recalled at his golden wedding anniversary, as reported by The Guardian, "Like all families, we went through the full range of the pleasures and tribulations of bringing up children." He noted, "I am, naturally, somewhat biased, but I think our children have all done rather well under very difficult and demanding circumstances and I hope I can be forgiven for feeling proud of them."

While Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip were certainly very busy throughout their marriage with royal duties, they continued to enjoy spending peaceful time together in more modest surroundings when they could. Philip, for one, was reportedly never a fan of Buckingham Palace. In fact, he once compared it to a hospital.

As the Daily Beast reported, the pair had a lifelong dream of moving away from London for a simpler life. As the publication put it, "The dream of quietly living out their days as 'normal' people in the Shires." When they could get away from official appearances, the pair often spent time at Craigowan Lodge on the royal estate in Scotland, Balmoral, where they imagined a more normal life with the queen doing the washing up and the prince holding barbecues. As biographer Penny Junor said, "They like being in a smaller cozier house ... they dream of being like us."

Because of their busy schedules as royals, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip didn't exactly have a normal relationship. In fact, they often had to spend weeks or even months apart. As the Daily Beast reported, Philip moved into the country after his retirement, but, before this, they had often been apart, and even when they were together, they reportedly slept in separate bedrooms.

Nevertheless, despite their unconventional marital arrangements, the pair remained loving and devoted throughout their lives. As Express noted, they even made time for a daily catch-up phone call.

As royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams said in 2019 (via Express), "She has always known she could rely on his advice and that it would be valuable." It sounds like even when they were apart, Philip continued to be a big support for his wife — and vice versa.

The royal couple was always fastidious about marking their wedding anniversary. Usually, it was the only time either expressed any remotely romantic feelings in public. According to the royal family's website, the pair's first public celebration was for their sixth anniversary during the year of Queen Elizabeth's coronation, with a dance held at Clarence House. In 1972, the pair held a service at Westminster Abbey for their silver anniversary. The year 1997 marked their golden anniversary — it was during this celebration that the queen called Philip her "strength and stay."

In 2007, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip celebrated their diamond anniversary and their relationship became the longest marriage in royal history. Finally, in 2020, the pair celebrated their 73rd anniversary, releasing a photo of them at home looking at a homemade card from family members. The royal family's official Twitter account also tweeted about the occasion, thanking the public for their well wishes and sharing a lovely image of the couple on their honeymoon.

Prince Philip's death in 2021 marked the end of the longest marriage in royal history. According to insiders, who spoke to the Daily Mail, the prince's last few days were quiet and calm. Apparently, he was determined to die at home rather than at the hospital. In his last few days, he sat outside in the sun "with a rug over his legs." He avoided using a wheelchair. As one insider said, "When [the wheelchair] first appeared in the private rooms he shouted, 'Get that bloody thing out of my sight!'" 

According to Hello! magazine, Prince Andrew said of his death, "The Queen as you would expect is an incredibly stoic person and she described his passing as a 'miracle' and she's contemplating." He added, "She described it as having left a huge void in her life, but we — her family — are rallying around to make sure we are there to support her and I know that there is a huge amount of support."

Responding to the numerous tributes paid to Philip following his death, the queen released a statement, saying, "We have been deeply touched, and continue to be reminded that Philip had such an extraordinary impact on countless people throughout his life."