After a lifetime of public service by the side of Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Philip is finally retiring at the age of 96. He is known for his frequent offensive quips at the expense of racial and cultural minorities.
"I reckon I've done my bit so I want to enjoy myself a bit now," he said shortly after announcing he would be stepping down.
Since his wife Elizabeth II became queen in 1952, Prince Philip has also attended countless events by her side, but the nonagenarians have increasingly handed over responsibilities to the younger royals.
"Prince Philip is entitled to slow down a bit," read an editorial in the Daily Telegraph. "This is a man who has always put his country first."
Philip's final engagement - at a charity event with the Royal Marines - will honor his own military background as a naval officer during World War II. He has also served as captain general of the Royal Marines since 1953, when he took over from the queen's father, King George VI, who had died the year before.
Philip has carried out 637 overseas visits on his own in the past 65 years, given almost 5,500 speeches, and served as patron, president or member of more than 780 organizations.
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Elizabeth has called Philip, her husband of almost 70 years and the longest-serving consort in British history, "my strength and stay." Good for her, then, that Philip remains healthy for a man of his age despite his two-night hospitalization in June for the treatment of an undisclosed infection.
Though the queen supports her husband's decision to retire, she has no plans to do the same as her nation navigates its Brexit from the European Union.
"Her Majesty will continue to carry out a full program of official engagements with the support of members of the royal family," the palace announced earlier this year.
And Brits may not have seen the last of their aged prince. A spokesperson said that, though Philip's string of individual events has come to an end, "he may choose to attend engagements alongside the queen from time to time."
Looking back on the life of Prince Philip
Prince Philip — or the Duke of Edinburgh, as he was officially known — retired from his royal duties in August 2017. DW looks back at the prince's life and more than 70 years of marriage to Queen Elizabeth.
Image: Sven Nackstrand/AFP/Getty Images
Itinerant childhood
Prince Philip's early years were marked by tragedy. When he was still young his mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia and placed in an asylum. Philip would rarely see her until adulthood. He was sent to boarding schools in France and Germany, but the rise of the Nazis forced him to continue his education in Scotland. Here, Philip (second from left) is seen at a French school in about 1929.
Philip held royal titles since his birth on June 10, 1921, in Corfu. As the only son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Princess Alice of Battenberg, he was born the prince of Greece and Denmark — titles he would relinquish upon marrying Princess Elizabeth in 1947. After fleeing unrest in Greece at just 18 months, Philip went on to become a naturalized British citizen.
Image: picture-allianc/dpa/London Express
Consort to Queen Elizabeth II
As the queen's husband of more than 70 years, Prince Philip was the longest-serving British consort, or companion to the sovereign. The couple married on November 20, 1947, at Westminster Abbey, at which point Philip was given the title of Duke of Edinburgh. Just over four years later, Elizabeth ascended to the throne after the death of her father, King George VI, in February 1952.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Str
Family man
Philip and Elizabeth had two children, Charles and Anne (pictured in 1953 at Clarence House), before Elizabeth became queen. Two more sons followed in 1960 and 1964, Andrew and Edward. As their first-born son, Prince Charles is next in line for the throne.
Princess Charlotte, pictured here in June 2017 with her mother the Duchess of Cambridge (center), is one of Prince Philip's nine great-grandchildren. He had eight grandchildren, including Charlotte's father, Prince William (right).
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/K. Wigglesworth
Diverse patronages
Upon his retirement in August 2017, Prince Philip had served as patron or president to some 800 organizations. These reflected his interests in conservation, sport, the military and engineering — and the Cartoon Art Trust, seen here in 2002. He also established The Duke of Edinburgh Award in 1956, which aims to instill confidence and new skills in young people.
Image: CHRIS HARRIS/AP/picture alliance
Royally outspoken
As someone who took part in many official ceremonies and photo ops, Prince Philip developed a reputation for being gaffe-prone at best, and insulting at worst. Upon meeting a group of Australian Aborigines in 2002, the prince asked if they were "still throwing spears at each other?" And in 1997, he called then German Chancellor Helmut Kohl "Reichskanzler" — the title used by Adolf Hitler.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/epa/Hanson
Long-lasting love
Philip's marriage to Queen Elizabeth lasted more than seven decades and despite the inevitable rumors was, to all appearances, remarkably free of scandal. Royal historian Robert Lacey said they were not "a soppy couple," though they shared a passion for horses. Philip, however, was rumored to be less keen on his wife's cherished corgis.
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Hi six and a half decades of diplomacy were not without controversy, however. His propensity for gaffes caused no end of headlines and official apologies from Buckingham Palace. In 1997, he called German Chancellor Helmut Kohl "Reichskanzler" - the title taken by Adolf Hitler. He once asked an Aboriginal Australian whether indigenous people "still throw spears at each other" and told a teenager with sky-high dreams that he was "too fat to be an astronaut."
In 1995, he publicly wondered whether Scots could be kept "off the booze long enough" to pass a driving test. And once told a group of British exchange students in China they would be "all-slitty-eyed," if they stayed in the country much longer.
Generally, Philip was forgiven for his faux pas. "Humor is important," as the Telegraph put it. "The Duke's has brightened these decades."
