Prince Philip has died today and as we celebrate his life, let’s remember the enormous sacrifices he made when he married the Queen in 1947.
The dashing Prince previously enjoyed a distinguished career in the Royal Navy and, as reports would have it, a Playboy lifestyle.
However, the Duke Of Edinburgh selflessly gave that all up when he dedicated the rest of his life to his new wife and to the nation.
What did Prince Philip give up for the Queen?
When he married the Queen after a decades-long, slow-burn romance, he gave up his existing titles and his place in line to the Greek throne.
In fact, the young Prince was part of both Greek and Danish royal families before he met the then young Princess Elizabeth.
When he asked King George VI for his daughter’s hand in marriage, one of the conditions was that he gave up his titles elsewhere.
Agreeing on the condition, the King bestowed upon Philip the titles of the Duke Of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich.
He also became a British citizen and took his maternal grandparents’ surname of Mountbatten.
What did Philip achieve in the Royal Navy?
Before marrying the Queen, Prince Philip had enjoyed a distinguished career in the Royal Navy.
Seeing action in World War II, the then First Lieutenant helped save the lives of those onboard HMS Wallace in 1943 off the coast of Sicily.
And then, as part of the crew of HMS Whelp, he found himself evacuating Prisoners Of War in Japan on VJ Day in 1945.
After his brave efforts in World War II, the Prince thought that a post-war career in the Navy beckoned.
I thought I was going to have a career in the Navy, but it became obvious there was no hope.
However, things changed when he met the young Princess again.
“I thought I was going to have a career in the Navy, but it became obvious there was no hope,” he said.
“There was no choice. It just happened. You have to make compromises.
“That’s life. I accepted it. I tried to make the best of it.”
Giving up smoking
Philip also had to radically change his lifestyle when he married the Queen and became the Duke Of Edinburgh.
Smoking was part of that change.
Like Elizabeth’s father, King George VI, Philip smoked during his adult life.
However, his daughter disapproved of the habit (it eventually took the King’s life) and Philip gave up the cigarettes on the morning of his wedding.
’
“
“”
’