Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth were married on November 20th, 1947, at Westminster Abbey.
They first met at a family wedding when the future queen was only a child, but were reintroduced
as teenagers, at which point the queen reportedly fell in love on the spot.
The two were destined to become the longest-married royal couple in British history, and, even
after 70 years together, royal biographer Ingrid Seward wrote:
"The queen's face lights up when Philip enters a room."
Like the queen, Prince Philip was known for being headstrong and opinionated.
In public, the Duke of Edinburgh was often frightfully unafraid of speaking his mind,
perhaps because he knew his place: that of the country's most famous stay-at-home husband.
The year he retired, in 2017, the prince made headlines after joking that he was "the world's
most experienced plaque-unveiler."
"You're now seeing the world's most experienced plaque-unveiler."
One thing many people might not know about Prince Philip, however, is that he actually
moved out of Buckingham Palace late in his life, taking up residence in a farm manager's
cottage called Wood Farm, located on the grounds of the royal residence of Sandringham.
He had reportedly stopped living with the queen after retiring from public life at the
age of 96.
In 2020, as COVID-19 swept through the UK, the press reported that Queen Elizabeth and
Prince Philip had reunited to live together at Windsor Castle — for the first time in
two years.
In truth, Prince Philip was most likely at his happiest when not living with the queen.
When he retired, gossip columns even ran a story suggesting that the move had been, in
part, the queen's idea.
At the time, an anonymous source told one tabloid:
"She knows him too well, if he was still at the center of royal life he'd feel he had
to be involved.
Being at Wood Farm means he's not too far away, but far enough to be able to relax."
Prince Philip's dislike of Buckingham Palace is well documented, with reports claiming
that he once compared the palace's architecture to that of a hospital.
Certainly, the palace was never a place where the Duke of Edinburgh could actually relax.
According to Charlie Proctor, editor of Royal Central:
"[It was] viewed as a workplace by the Duke.
It is in the middle of noisy Central London, and perhaps doesn't offer the same peaceful
tranquility as Windsor Castle or Sandringham House."
But moving out of Buckingham and into a farmhouse didn't mean that Prince Philip gave up the
luxuries of royal life.
In fact, the Daily Star reported that the prince had a house of staff to attend to his
needs, including two pages, a footman, a chef, a housekeeper, a valet, and a security detail.
While Prince Philip may not have lived with the queen during his retirement, however,
that doesn't mean they ever lost touch.
In 2019, The Express reported that the Duke of Edinburgh and his wife spoke daily via
telephone.
And if the news that Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth technically lived separately might
surprise some, royal followers will know that the pair have often spoken of wanting to live
a life that's less formal than that of a monarch and her consort.
In fact, the queen joined Prince Philip at his cottage pretty much whenever she could.
Before Philip's death, royal biographer Penny Junor told the Daily Beast that the couple
had always been this way, saying:
"They are very modest.
They like being in a smaller, cozier house, and not having to have all the staff.
We may dream of living in a palace surrounded by flunkies, but they dream of being like
us."
During his retirement, Philip spent his days reading and watercolor painting — but he
also likely enjoyed spending time at the grill.
As Robert Hardman wrote in his biography on Queen Elizabeth, the Duke of Edinburgh was
a "brilliant" and "innovative" cook.
Hardman wrote:
"Prince Philip [...] would relish the prospect of setting up his barbecue in the unlikeliest
spots and cooking anything that took his fancy."
All in all, it sounds like Prince Philip's final years weren't too bad at all.
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