In a statement, the palace said: “It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty the Queen announces the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle. In due course, the royal family mourns his loss along with people around the world.
The Duke was admitted to King Edward VII Hospital in London Hospital on February 17 after feeling unwell. The palace later confirmed he was being treated for an infection. On March 1, he was transferred to St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, also in London, where doctors continued to treat the infection and test for a pre-existing heart condition. After heart surgery, the Duke was released from hospital in mid-March.
Philip, also known by his official title of the Duke of Edinburgh, was the longest-serving British consort. He married then-Princess Elizabeth in 1947 after a courtship that enchanted a country still reeling from the devastation of World War II.
In his seven decades of service, Philip often accompanied the Queen on royal engagements and conducted thousands of his own solo performances. He once called himself ‘the most accomplished plaque revealer in the world’, while the Queen praised him as her ‘constant strength and guide’.
The Duke was known for his ready-made remarks that often showed a quick wit, but occasionally missed the mark, sometimes spectacularly. Philip continued to perform in public well into his nineties, only retiring in August 2017.
He supported a number of philanthropic endeavors and was associated with about 800 organizations. He founded the Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme, a youth development program active in more than 130 countries and territories around the world.
After retirement, Philip spent much of his time on the Queen’s estate in the Sandringham countryside. He was occasionally seen at private family events in later years, such as the weddings of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and Princess Eugenie to Jack Brooksbank, both at Windsor Castle.
Philip’s advanced age meant that his health had received a lot of media attention in recent years. In December 2019, he was taken to hospital as a “precautionary measure” for what Buckingham Palace described as a “pre-existing” condition. He had previously been hospitalized several times for various reasons, including for a hip replacement and for the treatment of bladder infections.
The Duke was born on the Greek island of Corfu in 1921 as Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark. He left Greece with his family at 18 months when King Constantine was forced to resign after an uprising by the Greek forces. The family moved first to Paris and later, in 1928, to England.
Philip had an itinerant childhood and attended various courses in the UK, France and Germany.
He became a decorated naval officer for his service during World War II, and when peace returned, a previous friendship with Elizabeth rekindled that soon grew into a public romance.
To marry, the Duke relinquished his Greek title, became a naturalized British subject, and adopted the surname Mountbatten, derived from his maternal side of the family. The wedding ceremony was held at Westminster Abbey in 1947. He and Elizabeth had four children: Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward.
CNN’s Laura Smith-Spark contributed to this report.