The Queen and Prince Philip were together for 73 years (Image: Getty) This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
The late Queen Elizabeth and her husband Prince Philip were often kept apart by duty during their marriage which lasted more than 73 years. The monarch took her role in supervising the affairs of state very seriously and would frequently work 16-hour days, taking in up to four hours of dedicated, solitary paperwork per day. This was on top of a huge number of public engagements, meetings, and briefings.
Despite this the royal couple remained devoted to each other, according to historian Hugo Vickers. Discussing his biography the Queen on the Talking Royals podcast, Hugo described a touching private moment that he thinks told a profound story about the enduring love between them.
“The wonderful thing was that when they were together, they were in complete unison,” he said.
“I was lucky to see them together privately a few times. I also remember that fascinating Russian state visit when the Queen pretty much wrapped President Yeltsin around her little finger, so he put on a special march past on the quayside at Saint Petersburg before Britannia sailed away and kissed her hand and he’d met a new friend he’d never see again.
“But what I saw as Britannia began to sail away was Queen and Prince Philip on an upper deck. When he looked to the left, they were completely in unison. And they didn’t do that for me to tell you that today.”
The Prince enjoyed just over three years of retirement at Wood Farm (Image: Getty)
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Prince Philip officially retired from public engagements at the beginning of August 2017, and planned to spend his final years in seclusion at Wood Farm, on the Sandringham Estate. Until recently his disgraced son Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was temporarily housed there after his ignominious eviction from Royal Lodge. He has since moved into his new permanent home, Marsh Farm.
Her majesty believed that at the age of 96, her husband had “done his bit,” according to Hugo. He thought he deserved to spend a few years indulging his hobbies of painting and carriage driving.
The royal couple would chat on the phone daily and they would naturally come together with the rest of the family for major occasions such as Easter and Christmas.
The Queen and Philip married in 1947, and she became queen in 1953 (Image: Getty)
The late Queen would also visit her husband at the cottage whenever her busy schedule allowed, and the happy couple would enjoy stalls together in the peaceful countryside views.
Hugo explains: “Obviously he wanted to spend his final years in peace at Wood Farm, where he liked being, but the Queen had to scoop him up and bring him down to Windsor for the Covid period. And they ended up spending a long time together.”
He added: “They spent more time together in that last year than consistently together than at any time, probably in the whole of their marriage.
“But as he himself said earlier on in the marriage, when he was in the Navy, it would have been very odd if he had been at home for as long as he was, you know, because he would have been away serving.”