Before Her death, Elizabeth II lost her best friend, partner and devoted subject - her husband Prince Philip. He died on 9 April 2021 at Windsor Castle. After that, Her Majesty's health also gradually began to "surrender", until September 8, she joined her husband.

The love story of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip

The couple have been married for 73 years! They celebrated their platinum wedding anniversary together, but unfortunately he missed her platinum reign anniversary in 2022. What was their love story? What did the Prince give up to claim the queen's heart? How, despite the future crown, she swore an oath to her husband to obey and be faithful to him in everything?

Origin of Philip

Prince Philip VI was born on June 10, 1921 at the Mon Repos Palace on the Greek island of Corfu. He was the fifth child in the family and the only son of Prince Andrew, the son of King George I of Greece and the younger brother of King Constantine I. From birth he bore the title of Prince of Greece and Denmark. His relatives had a sad story, because his grandfather, King George I of Greece, was killed in 1913, his uncle was overthrown from the throne, and his father fell into depression after losing all his regalia and was forced to flee Greece with his family to Paris.

Subsequently, Philip's parents divorced and the children stayed with their mother, and his father moved to Monte Carlo to arrange his personal life. After all the trials of life, Prince Philip's mother very soon went crazy and ended up in a mental hospital. Therefore, his father took Philip to him and placed him in a private school. The guy had a tense and difficult relationship with him, so a few years later he went to England on his own and stayed with relatives, where he soon met his love.

Meeting each other

For the first time, the future spouses met at the wedding of the Greek Princess Marina, which took place in Westminster Abbey. At that time, Elizabeth was 8 years old, and her chosen one Philip was 13. After that, they did not see each other for 3 years. We met for the second time at the coronation of the father of Elizabeth II. However, even then no relationship between Elizabeth II and Philip began.

But one day she, along with her parents and sister, arrived at the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth. There, the son of the Greek Prince Andrew served and agreed to give the royal family a tour of the educational institution. At this time, the princess realized that she had fallen in love. She was thirteen years old. After the meeting, she began to correspond with the guy during his service in the Royal Navy. The parents of Elizabeth II were looking for their daughter a much better candidate for a husband, so Philip was not even considered as a son-in-law. But later the young man went to the front, where the feeling of the couple only strengthened.

The lovers were relatives

Interestingly, Philip and Elizabeth II were indeed relatives. This is not uncommon in royal families, so in this case, fate played an interesting joke. Queen Victoria was the common grandmother of the lovers, so they were fourth cousins. And even this fact could not prevent them from getting married and living in marriage many happy moments, namely, 73 years.

Wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip

The palace officially announced the couple's engagement in July 1947, and on November 20 they got married at Westminster Abbey. The event took place in the difficult post-war period, when the country's economy, like many other European countries, suffered greatly, so the princess had a modest budget for the wedding. Yes, and the girl herself believed that chic in the post-war period was unacceptable. Therefore, Elizabeth acquired the material for her wedding dress using food stamps from the Second World War.

Interestingly, British subjects also sent coupons to Elizabeth, but the palace returned each of them, as members of the royal family are not allowed to accept gifts from the public. However, she was helped by the British government, which provided the princess with an additional 200 food coupons. In the end, Elizabeth married Prince Philip wearing a magical wedding dress made from Chinese silk by Norman Gartnell.

Elizabeth's relatives were against the wedding

Elizabeth married exclusively at the call of her heart, and not according to royal protocol. Queen's father George VI considered the young man not the best choice for his daughter and heir to the throne, but the princess insisted on him. When Philip returned from the front, the native princesses realized that it was useless to prevent her from marrying her chosen one.

Despite the fact that the couple is one of the most famous in the world, there is no exact information about the recognition of Philip. Rumor has it that he wrote a confession in one of the letters to his beloved, or Elizabeth II herself asked the prince to marry her. By the time of the wedding, Philip was 26 years old, and Elizabeth was 21. There was a 5-year difference between the couple. Importantly, the couple's wedding took place 4 years before the death of King George VI, the girl's father, and 5 years before her coronation.

He - refused titles, and she - gave him an oath

On the eve of his marriage to the Princess, Philip received the title of Duke of Edinburgh. He also converted to Anglicanism, renounced the titles of Prince of Greece and Prince of Denmark, and received British citizenship. The princess was then 21 years old, and her husband was 26 years old.

To thank the man for his devotion and love, at the marriage ceremony, Princess Elizabeth took an oath in which she promised to obey her husband. Although she shouldn't have said that as a future queen. This somewhat confused the guests present, because everyone understood that when the princess became queen, Philip would have to obey her. After the coronation, he really always was "zade" her, however, despite all the difficulties, he lived a long and happy marriage with her, raising four children.

Children

A year after the wedding, Elizabeth gave birth to Prince Charles, the main heir to the crown, and two years later, Princess Anne. Prince Andrew was born 10 years later, and Prince Edward 4 years later. Of all four children, the youngest Prince Edward had a happy marriage right away - he has been married to Countess Sophie for 22 years. But all the rest had one divorce each, but later found their soul mates. Only Prince Andrew remained a hermit, who last year was accused of a sex scandal and stripped of all military ranks for this.

Cheating and the risk of divorce

However, the life of the queen and her husband was not always the fairy tale of the movies. There was a place for possible betrayals, scandals and insults. It was rumored in the British media that a year after the wedding with Elizabeth, Philip began to be suspected of secret relationships with actress Pat Kirkwood. The Queen was pregnant with her first child at the time. Journalists also said that Philip was in love with Helen Korday, whom he was friends with as a child, but they were separated when the boy went to study at Dartmouth. She got married, which broke the guy's heart, but later divorced. She had two children, but did not name her father, so there were rumors that it could be Philip. Curiously, he was their godfather.

Also, Prince Philip was credited with novels with writer Daphne Du Maurier, actress Merle Oberon, TV presenter Katie Boyle and even with Prince Stephen Ward. A few years after their marriage, the couple allegedly began sleeping in separate rooms, and secret hearings were held in Parliament to prevent a scandalous divorce. These facts will be confirmed or refuted only after 100 years under the British legislation on the classification of archives.

Back in the mid-1980s, Prince Philip made a loud statement to his biographer Basil Boothroyd that he married Elizabeth allegedly not out of high feelings, but out of calculation. Because he did not have a fortune after a complicated history with his family. The queen herself was losing her mind from an attractive and young prince.

Death of Philip, and later of the Queen

Britain's Prince Philip died on April 9, 2021 at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. At the time of his death, the Duke of Edinburgh was 99 years old. In February, Prince Philip was hospitalized due to a deterioration in health. He stayed in the hospital for almost a month, underwent heart surgery, but could not overcome the disease. Beloved of Her Majesty died 2 months before his 100th birthday.

Queen Elizabeth II was first seen in public after three months.  The 94-year-old sovereign went horseback riding on the Windsor estate, where she moved during the coronavirus pandemic.  A great horse lover, the queen was photographed riding a pony dear to her soul: Balmoral Fern, a 14-year-old animal.

  Last weekend, Queen Elizabeth II went out for a breath of fresh air, after 11 weeks in which she strictly observed the restrictions.  The British sovereign fulfilled her duties even from a distance, preferring to take refuge at Windsor Castle.

The queen isolated herself at Windsor Castle, sent Princes Edward and Andrew in a separate wing, and has only her husband, Prince Philip, 98, with her.

 The only ones allowed to approach the royal bedrooms are 22 servants who sacredly observe a ritual of cleanliness, disinfection and hygiene developed by the former commander of the battleship, Tony Johnstone-Burt.  Normally, the Queen is served by a staff of 500 servants.  During quarantine, they stayed with her 24 hours, 7 days a week, only 22.

The coronation of the eldest son of the late Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, who took the name of Charles III after succession to the throne, will be one of the year's most meaningful events.

The ceremony of accession to the throne of British monarchs has many curious details

His mother once ascended the throne during the British Empire, and Winston Churchill himself was her first prime minister. The latest is Liz Truss, elected to this post in the fall of 2022.

Elizabeth II ruled longer than the rest of her predecessors - 70 years. During this time, her own country and the world as a whole have completely changed. Charles must become the king of the new Great Britain, opening the next page of its history.

How to pronounce the throne name of Prince Charles as king?

British monarchs have certain rules for the succession of throne names. They can choose one of their middle names as it. The full name of the new king is Charles Philip Arthur George.

Initially, it was assumed that he would be called George, that is, George. This is how he would express his devotion to his grandmother and her reverence for George VI. However, in the end, the future monarch decided to leave his name.

Withh the same name - in the 17th century, Charles I and Charles II. The first ended his life on the chopping block. The second, 11 years after his father's death, was able to return England from a republic to a monarchy and rule for 25 years. Under him, the country was severely affected by the plague and the fire in London.

Where and when will the coronation of Charles III take place?

Buckingham Palace has announced that the coronation of Charles III will take place on May 6, 2023, at Westminster Abbey, in the same place where his mother first tried on the crown in the early 1950s. In this place, for 900 years, the British heirs officially ascended the throne.

It is expected that this will become one of the year's most solemn and memorable events. The event will be televised live. This will be the second time in the history of the British monarchy that millions will see the coronation.

For centuries, the coronation was considered a sacrament, so only persons close to the court could see it. However, Elizabeth II, who ascended the throne in 1952, made this event public. Her ascension to the throne was televised for the first time in history. To many at court, this seemed savage. But today, we can see how the coronation of the longest-reigning British queen occurred. Then the broadcast was watched by more than 27 million viewers, and about 8 thousand high-ranking guests were invited to the celebration.

Why does the coronation have to wait almost a year after the death of Elizabeth II?

According to tradition, the coronation of a new monarch is held at different time intervals after the death of the previous one. This is because the solemn event does not fall during mourning. In addition, a pompous procession requires careful preparation of all participants and significant expenses.

So, Elizabeth II officially took up her duties immediately after her father's death, George VI, in February 1952, but was crowned only in June 1953. That is after 16 months. This was partly due to the economic crisis in the country. There is a legend that British Prime Minister Winston Churchill personally asked the Queen to postpone the ceremony so as not to waste "a single working day" on regulating the situation in the country.

At the same time, in the history of the United Kingdom, there were cases when the coronation of the reigning monarch took place almost 15 years after the beginning of the reign. We are talking about King Edgar the Peaceful, who led the state in the 10th century. And although during his reign, the country did not fight with anyone, he discredited himself with a relationship with a nun, in union with whom his daughter was born. For this reason, his closest adviser and abbot, Dunstan, who had more power than the monarch himself, refused to crown him only after the death of Saint Edgar was they anointed king.

But Harold II, on the contrary, ascended the throne precisely on the day of the death of his predecessor, Edward the Confessor.

However, on average, the coronation of a new monarch should take place a few weeks after the death of the previous ruler. During this period,

How will the coronation of Charles III take place?

The coronation of Charles III was codenamed Operation Golden Sphere. The details of the event are being kept under wraps.

The ceremony will occur according to established traditions that have remained unchanged for centuries. However, some assumptions are still quite possible. The celebration is expected to be shorter in time, more diverse, and include a narrow circle of VIPs. At the same time, ancient rituals will coexist with modern elements, including some of the innovations of Elizabeth II.

"The coronation will reflect the monarch's role today and in the future, with a long tradition and befitting splendor," Buckingham Palace said.

It is known that his wife Camilla will be present next to Charles III. Prince William and Princess Kate of Wales will also actively participate in the ceremony. Moreover, according to anonymous sources close to the royal family, William and Camilla will play an essential role in the coronation process.

Whether Prince Harry and his wife Meghan will attend the celebration is unknown. Despite the controversy, Charles III planned to invite his grandson and wife. Still, after the release on December 8, 2022, of the documentary "Harry and Meghan" on Netflix about the scandalous revelations of their life in the palace and the leakage of excerpts from the memoirs "Spare" Sussex, the decision was canceled. Moreover, the future monarch granted new honorary titles to Prince William, his wife Kate, and Queen Consort Camilla. Curiously, the coronation date coincides with the fourth birthday of Archie, Harry and Meghan's son.

It is expected that the duration of the event will be about an hour instead of three, as was the case at the solemn ceremony of his mother's entry, Elizabeth II.

“It will be shorter and simpler than in 1953 but absolutely the same in scale and spectacle, consistent with sovereignty, history, and tradition,” the spokesman explained.

The list of guests, mainly the rest of the Windsor dynasty, has yet to be disclosed.

With what regalia is Charles III crowned?

The British monarch has a lot of jewelry at his disposal, but special regalia is used for the coronation, which is usually displayed in the Tower.

On the day of the celebration, Charles III and his wife from Buckingham Palace will head to Westminster Abbey on the golden carriage of George III. This carriage has traditionally been used for anniversaries and coronations for 260 years, including Elizabeth II. The weight of the carriage is almost 4 tons, so only a team of eight horses can set it in motion. It is known that moving in a carriage is very inconvenient because the passengers are wildly shaking. But a vintage vehicle will allow ordinary citizens to see Charles III and his wife from close range. Britons are expected to line the streets to greet the new monarch.

Upon the arrival of Charles III, staff will follow him to adjust the velvet mantle of ermine, 5 meters long and weighing 13 kilograms, at the right time. Last time, seven ladies-in-waiting helped his mother carry the train.

Accompanied by his entourage and the guests who have already gathered on both sides, the king will follow to the throne of King Edward. By the way, until 1996, the Skoon Stone was built into it, which. After being handed over to Scotland, the relic is kept at Edinburgh Castle on the condition that it be used for future coronations. Whether they will bring him on this occasion is still being determined.

Then, at the altar, Charles III will take a sacred oath in which he will swear to defend justice, law, and the Anglican Church, after which the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby will perform an ancient rite and anoint his head with oil. For anointing, a golden ampoule will be used, a vessel in the shape of an eagle with spread wings, and a silver spoon with gilding and inlaid with pearls.

And finally, after pronouncing the oath, Charles III will be presented with the symbols of the British monarchy - the scepter (in the right hand) and the orb (in the left hand). On his head, they will crown the golden crown of St. Edward the Confessor, weighing 2.2 kilograms and decorated with more than 400 precious stones.

. According to Elizabeth II, wearing a crown was very difficult, but she was lucky that she and her father had a similar skull shape, so any crown on her sat like a glove.

“You can't look down while reading a speech. You have to raise the text to your eyes. Otherwise, you will break your neck, and it will fall, ”she explained.

Other symbols of the British monarchy will also be displayed during the ceremonial procession. For example, a sizeable sovereign sword (Sword of State) weighing 24 kilograms with a golden handle made of roses and thistles (emblems of England and Scotland), a sacrificial sword (Sword of Offering), a sword of spiritual justice (Sword of Spiritual Justice), a sword of worldly justice (Sword of Temporal Justice) and the sword of mercy (Sword of Mercy).

All coronation relics are decorated with parts of the world's largest Cullinan diamond, also known as the Star of Africa. Because there were cracks in the nugget, it was divided into nine large and 96 small fragments.

No less famous is the yellowish Kohinoor diamond crowning the British crown, which in Persian is called “Mountain of Light.” This stone is over 5 thousand years old. During its history, it has visited the treasuries of Indian, Iranian, and Afghan rulers. By the way, India still claims its rights to it, specifying the stone. True, it is unlikely that their claims will ever be crowned with success, since no king or queen, with all their desire, has the legal right to dispose of the Crown Jewels.

But the red stone that adorns the crown is known as the red ruby of the Black Prince. In the middle of the XIV century, it belonged to the Moorish prince Abu Said, who was killed by the Castilian king Pedro the Cruel. The latter defeated the enemy with the military assistance of the British monarch Edward III, who received the ruby as payment. For a long time, he adorned the knightly helmets of Henry V and Richard III until, in 1661; he was inserted into the crown of St. Edward on the occasion of the ascension to the throne of Charles II.

On the hand of the new ruler, there will likely be a coronation ring topped with a dark blue sapphire with a cross of St. George made of rubies framed by diamonds. The piece of jewelry was created for the coronation of William IV and symbolizes the "marriage of the monarch with the country." He has a more miniature copy ordered by Queen Victoria, whose fingers were so narrow that the original fell off her during the ceremony.

What role will Queen Consort Camilla play in the ceremony?

The British have always disliked the second wife of Prince Charles, considering her a homemaker and even the culprit in the death of Princess Diana. Perhaps the queen also did not have warm feelings for her daughter-in-law. However, at the beginning of 2022, the monarch changed her mind and granted Camilla the title of queen consort instead of the previously promised and humiliating status of princess consort.

The last time this happened was in 1937, when Elizabeth's mother was crowned with her husband, George VI. The husband of Elizabeth herself was never crowned In front of his wife and the monarch. Without restraining his feelings, he kissed her in front of the assembled public and the whole world. The historical moment can still be seen on the recording.

As for what role Camilla will play at the coronation of Charles III remains a mystery. However, it is known that she will also be crowned more straightforwardly to emphasize her new status.

“During the ceremony, His Majesty will be crowned along with the Queen Consort [Camilla],” the document says. “The coronation will reflect the role that the monarchy plays today and the vision for the future, but will also be based on long-standing ceremonial traditions,” Buckingham Palace said in an official statement.

The wife will accompany Karl in the same carriage. Whether she will be wearing any regalia at the ceremony is unknown. Judging by how the husband of Elizabeth II was dressed in a similar situation, In such cases, the Queen is usually supposed to wear either the Queen Mother's crown or the Queen Mary's crown. Still, this time it will not be possible to demonstrate them, given the painful question for India and other countries about the ownership of the Kohinoor diamond.

Since the ceremony will be in a simplified format, Camilla prefers to wear something more lightweight. It will be a gift from the late queen. So, the queen consort has repeatedly appeared in public in the Greville tiara, known as the Honeycomb tiara. She may wear a sapphire brooch of Queen Victoria, whom Elizabeth II loved very much. In addition, Camilla has her Cubitt-Shand family tiara, which she inherited from her mother.

After the event, the king and queen will most likely follow the same route to Buckingham Palace to the congratulatory exclamations of curious spectators. Like Elizabeth and Philip once, they can go out onto the balcony to greet the people again. This will be followed by a coronation banquet, which will bring together members of the royal family, representatives of foreign monarchies, and other dignitaries. The celebration will end either with fireworks or parade flights.

Like any royal event in the UK, the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II is subject to age-old traditions and royal code. Including the funeral was partially planned by the Queen herself, who, as you know, agreed in advance with civil servants on the scenario of farewell to her. The death of Elizabeth II stunned the whole world and chained millions of people to TV screens and monitors. But, despite the close attention to the funeral of the royal person, many things remained unnoticed by the public or not understood.

How was the funeral of Elizabeth II

We at Bemorepanda want to tell you how the funeral went, showing you some of the details that you most likely didn't notice or missed.

1. Before the start of the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, the bell in Westminster Abbey began to ring 96 times - so many times one minute before the funeral began - meaning every year of her life

2. Her coffin was draped with the Royal Standard, a flag representing the sovereign of Britain, the Crown Lands and the British Overseas Territories. The flag is made up of three lions representing England, one lion representing Scotland and a harp representing Ireland.

Usually this flag was flown when the Queen was staying at one of her palaces or when she was on official business in her car or plane.

3. The crown on the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II was the Imperial State Crown, made for the coronation of her father, King George VI, in 1937

4. The crown is made of gold, 2868 diamonds, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, 269 pearls and 4 rubies

According to CBS News, the pearl on the crown belonged to Queen Elizabeth I, which has "an incredible connection with the history of Britain."

5. Next to the crown, you can see the scepter and orb of the Sovereign, which symbolize the relationship of Queen Elizabeth II with God and power.

The scepter you see on the coffin of Elizabeth II has been used at every coronation since 1661.

6. A bouquet of flowers on the coffin of the Queen was presented by King Charles III

Among the flowers were garden roses and myrtle grown from Queen Elizabeth II's wedding bouquet, which was presented to her in 1947.

7. Inside the tomb bouquet there is a note from King Charles III

It reads: "In memory of Charles R. with love and devotion." The "R" in Charles's signature means "Rex" ("Rex"), which in Latin means "king, lord, king." This is the traditional signature of the monarch, which dates back to the 12th century.

8. During the funeral procession, the family of Queen Elizabeth II followed her coffin as it moved through Westminster Abbey

Notably, Prince George of Wales and Princess Charlotte of Wales were in attendance along with their parents, William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales. This makes George and Charlotte the youngest members of the royal family to attend a state funeral in recent memory. Incidentally, neither of them attended Prince Philip's state funeral in April 2021.

9. If you look closely, you can see that Princess Charlotte has a small diamond horseshoe brooch that pays tribute to her great-grandmother's love for horses.

The brooch was presented to Charlotte by Queen Elizabeth II.

10. Catherine, Princess of Wales - Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cambridge Catherine - wore a pearl necklace from the Queen's personal collection to the funeral

Kate also wore the necklace to Prince Philip's funeral.

11. The same pearl necklace worn by Queen Elizabeth II was worn by Princess Diana in 1982 at a state banquet, which was held at Hampton Court Palace.

12. The Bahraini pearl earrings that Kate wore to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II were a gift to the Queen for her wedding in 1947.

This is not the first time Kate has worn these earrings.

13. Like Kate, Meghan Markle's jewelry at Queen Elizabeth II's funeral is also a big deal.

The diamond and pearl earrings Meghan wore to the funeral were a wedding gift from the Queen in 2018. Markle has worn these jewelry more than once.

14. Instead of a military uniform, Prince Harry wore a formal suit.

Prince Harry has refused public office as a member of the royal family and was therefore not allowed to wear a military uniform to a state funeral.

15. During the state memorial service, several hymns of great importance to Queen Elizabeth II were played.

One of them was Psalm 23, "My Shepherd of the Lord," which was sung at her wedding to Prince Philip in 1947. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip married at Westminster Abbey, where they

One of them was Psalm 23, "My Shepherd of the Lord," which was sung at her wedding to Prince Philip in 1947. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip married at Westminster Abbey, where the funeral service was held.

16. Toward the end of the memorial service, the bagpipes began to play

The Queen's personal piper, Major Paul Burns, played the funeral song "Sleep, Dearie, Sleep".

Almost every morning in the palace, Queen Elizabeth II was woken up by the bagpipes, which began to play at 9:15, giving this moment a special significance. Paul Burns' bagpipe playing is a personal request of Queen Elizabeth II, who was planning her own funeral.

17. As the funeral procession drove past Buckingham Palace, the official residence of Queen Elizabeth II in London, more than 100 Palace employees stood outside and as the queen's hearse passed, some people bowed and curtsied.

18. Near Windsor Castle, while waiting for the arrival of the funeral procession, journalists saw Queen Elizabeth II's favorite corgis, Muick and Sandy

19. Her favorite pony also said goodbye to the queen

20. Following her funeral at Westminster Abbey, Queen Elizabeth II was taken to St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, where her coffin was placed in the Royal Crypt.

It is the resting place of former British monarchs.

21. In St. George's Chapel, the Lord Chamberlain broke his staff.

The destruction of the wand symbolizes the end of the reign of the monarch and is the last act before the queen's coffin was placed in the Royal Crypt. The staff was buried with her. Also, the breaking of the staff symbolizes the end of the Lord Chamberlain's service to the late monarch.

22. By the way, this was the first time the destruction of the staff was televised.

The last time this tradition of breaking the staff took place at the funeral of King George VI in 1952.

23. Much of the music played during the service at St George's Chapel was composed by Sir William Harris, who was the organist at the chapel where Queen Elizabeth II spent most of her childhood.

24. At the conclusion of the service in St. George's Chapel, the crown, orb and scepter were removed from the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II and placed on the altar. It symbolized the end of her reign

25. The Royal Crypt is not the final resting place of Queen Elizabeth II

After the funeral, the Queen will be moved to the King George VI Memorial Chapel, which she built in honor of her late father in 1962.

Queen Elizabeth II's final resting place will be among her parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, her sister Princess Margaret, and her husband Prince Philip, who will also be moved to the Memorial Chapel.

26. In fact, after the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II was lowered into the Royal Crypt, this was the last time her coffin was seen by the public.