Queen Elizabeth II reportedly did not get to be by Prince Philip‘s side when he passed away.
According to Hugo Vickers‘ new book, Queen Elizabeth II, Her Majesty was left heartbroken by how her husband’s April 2021 death played out — without her.
“There had often been times in earlier days when she had asked the staff to let her know when Philip was leaving, only to be told ‘His Royal Highness left 20 minutes ago,’” the author wrote in a passage obtained by Daily Mail.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip join members of the Order of Merit for a group photograph ahead of a luncheon at Windsor Castle in 2019. By: MEGA
“She took the line, I was told, that she was ‘absolutely furious that, as so often in life, he left without saying goodbye,’” he explained, while claiming that Philip “quietly slipped away.”
In a statement to the public, Elizabeth addressed the passing of her spouse of 74 years. “My family and I would like to thank you all for the support and kindness shown to us in recent days,” she said.
“We have been deeply touched and continue to be reminded that Philip had such an extraordinary impact on countless people throughout his life,” the late leader of England said.
In Ingrid Seward‘s book, Prince Philip: Revealed, the royal expert claimed Elizabeth did one thing to show her devotion to Philip after he was gone.
Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II unveil the Iraq and Afghanistan memorial in 2017. By: MEGA
“[Queen Elizabeth] never takes it off and inside the ring is an inscription. No one knows what it says, other than the engraver, the Queen and her husband,” she wrote in an excerpt from the tell-all via Woman and Home.
Before the patriarch’s death, he’d been hospitalized for 28 days for infection and treatment of a pre-existing cardiac condition.
At the time, a senior palace aide told People, “Her family will step up and be by her side, but she will carry on.”
“She understands that she has a job to do, and [Philip] would have wanted her to crack on,” they claimed. “She did do so when he retired from public life. She will never abdicate because of duty and honor and public service is so deep in her, as it was for him.”
Prince Philip’s body is carried into his funeral in 2021. By: James Whatling/MEGA
During Elizabeth’s Christmas 2021 address to the British public, she said, “But for me, in the months since the death of my beloved Philip, I have drawn great comfort from the warmth and affection of the many tributes to his life and work.”
“From around the country, the Commonwealth and the world. His sense of service, intellectual curiosity and capacity to squeeze fun out of any situation — were all irrepressible. That mischievous, enquiring twinkle was as bright at the end as when I first set eyes on him,” she continued.
“But life, of course, consists of final partings as well as first meetings; and as much as I and my family miss him, I know he would want us to enjoy Christmas,” the matriarch concluded.
Elizabeth passed away in September 2022.