Prince Philip death was a 'dreadful shock' says Prince Edward

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Prince Philip was hailed as a “modern man” for choosing to defy convention to be with the Queen as she delivered their youngest son, royal author Ingrid Seward said. The Duke of Edinburgh was at Her Majesty’s side when Prince Edward was born in 1964, a move experts suggest created a special bond between the royal and his last born. Ms Seward told Vanity Fair Italia the Duke had not attended the deliveries of Prince Charles, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew but “during Edward’s birth, he was.”

She continued: “The world had moved on and he had become a modern father.

“That day, during delivery, he held his wife’s hand. He was the first royal dad to do so.”

Prince Andrew and Prince Edward both enjoyed more time with their parents compared to their older siblings, who were only four and two when the Queen ascended the throne in 1952.

Historian Robert Lacey said: “She [the Queen] was able to spend more time with them than she had been able to with Charles and Anne.”

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The extra time reportedly contributed to cementing the special bond between Prince Philip and the Queen with their two youngest sons.

The Duke of Edinburgh signalled in 1999 Prince Edward would even inherit his title at the time of his death instead of Prince Charles taking over the position.

Under rules established with a Letters Patent in 1937, the Prince of Wales will initially become the new Duke now Prince Philip died but once he becomes king the title will merge with the Crown – meaning the new king will be able to grant the position to his brother.

Prince Philip died “peacefully” on April 9 aged 99.

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Speaking about his father’s death on Sunday, Prince Edward said: “It’s been a bit of a shock.

“However much one tries to prepare oneself for this it’s still a dreadful shock and we’re still trying to come to terms with that.

“And it’s very, very sad. But I have to say that the extraordinary tributes and the memories that everybody has been able to share have been so fantastic.

“It just goes to show, he might have been our father, grandfather, father-in-law but he meant so much to so many other people.”

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The Queen’s youngest son was joined by wife Sophie, the Countess of Wessex and daughter The Lady Louise for a special service at The Royal Chapel of All Saints on Sunday.

The Countess of Wessex said Her Majesty had been “amazing” since Philip’s death and said she kept on hearing new stories about the Duke.

She said: “He always exchanged words with everybody because it didn’t matter what anybody was doing in and around the estate here and everywhere else, they all meant a lot to him and he always took a very personal interest in everything that they were doing.

“So they’ve all got stories to tell and most of them quite funny as well.”

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Prince Philip’s funeral will be held on Saturday April, 17 at Windsor’s St. George’s Chapel, which in recent years hosted the weddings of Prince Harry, Princess Eugenie and Lady Gabriella Windsor.

Due to ongoing restrictions because of Covid, only 30 people will be allowed to attend the ceremony.

Prince Harry has been granted permission to travel to the UK on “compassionate grounds” and take part in the funeral after quarantining.

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