Lord Mountbatten: India Hicks recollects day of IRA assassination

The Queen and Prince Philip married in 1947, and the pair are widely regarded as one of the most successful unions in modern royal history. The Queen and Prince Philip have now been married for more than 70 years. But several decades ago, it was Lord Louis Mountbatten who was often credited as bringing then-Princess Elizabeth and Philip together.

Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten was born in Windsor on June 25, 1900, to Prince Louis of Battenberg and Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine.

Lord Mountbatten had a long career as a naval officer, and he was eventually appointed as the last viceroy of British India.

Lord Mountbatten would later become the first governor-general of independent India, before serving as chief of the Defence Staff until 1965.

Lord Mountbatten was married to Edwina Mountbatten, Countess Mountbatten of Burma.

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He was father to two daughters: Patricia Knatchbull, later 2nd Countess Mountbatten of Burma, and Lady Pamela Hicks.

Prince Philip and Princess Elizabeth first met at the 1934 wedding of Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark and Prince George, Duke of Kent.

Philip and Elizabeth would meet again in 1939, while King George VI toured the grounds of the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, where Philip was attending at the time.

It is thought the Queen Mother and Lord Mountbatten asked Philip to escort Princess Elizabeth and her sister Princess Margaret during the visit.

The pair went on to exchange letters, and would eventually formally become engaged in 1947.

How was Lord Mountbatten related to the Royal Family?

Lord Louis Mountbatten was Prince Philip’s maternal uncle, as the brother of Philip’s mother Princess Alice of Greece and Denmark.

Alice and Louis were members of the Battenberg family, who changed their Germanic surname during World War One to Mountbatten.

Although Philip was born a Prince of Greece and Denmark in his own right, to marry the future Queen Elizabeth II he had to renounce his own titles and adopt a surname as a British citizen.

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Philip subsequently took on the surname of his mother’s family, and became Philip Mountbatten.

Titled members of the Royal Family don’t need to use surnames, but in cases where they do, the Queen and Prince Philip’s children often use the surname Mountbatten-Windsor.

Through his mother’s family line, Lord Mountbatten was also related to Queen Elizabeth II.

Lord Mountbatten’s mother Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine was Queen Victoria’s granddaughter.

As a result Lord Mountbatten was Queen Victoria’s great-grandson, while the current Queen Elizabeth II is Queen Victoria’s great-great-granddaughter.

The Queen and Lord Mountbatten were therefore second cousins, once removed.

As Prince Philip’s uncle, Lord Mountbatten was also Prince Charles’ great-uncle.

Lovingly known as ‘Uncle Dickie’, Charles and Louis were known to have a close relationship.

Lord Mountbatten was killed in 1979, when the IRA blew up his fishing boat Shadow V off the coast of County Sligo, Ireland.

Two of Lord Mountbatten’s relatives and a local boy were also killed during the explosion.

In the years since Lord Mountbatten’s death, Charles has spoken about how big a role Louis played in his life.

Visiting the site of Lord Mountbatten’s death in 2015, Charles said: “I could not imagine how we would come to terms with the anguish of such a deep loss since, for me, Lord Mountbatten represented the grandfather I never had.”

The Queen was also said to be “deeply shocked” by the death of her elder cousin in the attack.

The high regard the Royal Family had for Lord Mountbatten is still visible today, with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge believed to have named their youngest son Prince Louis after him.

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