For the British people, who mythologize their role in World War II, Prince Philip’s death on Friday means more than the loss of a figure who has been at the center of British public life for three quarters of a century.
It signifies the changing of the guard within the monarchy and the nation at large from the generation that experienced that conflict and whose life spanned the UK’s imperial peak, as well as the loss of empire and a diminishing global role.
Queen Elizabeth, the prince’s wife, remains on the throne, nearing her 95th birthday, and is apparently in good health. But Philip’s death breaks a prominent link with what many Britons see as a heroic past and has given the monarchy and the country a chance to reflect on the future.
Prince Charles, heir to the throne, is a different character from his direct and powerful father. He takes over the management of family affairs, taking over more and more roles hitherto entrusted to his mother. The country, just outside the European Union, finds where it fits on the world stage.
In some ways, Prince Philip, who was 99 years old, was a relic of an earlier era that predated World War II, in which the royal families of Europe intermarried. Born Prince of Greece and Denmark, he was, like his wife, a descendant of Queen Victoria.