Armed Forces 'honour their special relationship' with Duke of Edinburgh
17 April 2021, 11:43
Service personnel will be taking a key part in the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh to "honour their special relationship" with Philip, a spokesman said.
Philip enjoyed an active naval career between 1939 and 1951, and was a veteran of the Second World War.
Detachments drawn from units that had a link with Philip will be positioned on the grass in the Quadrangle of Windsor Castle.
Here are some of those military links:
- Royal Navy
HMS Magpie, HMS Collingwood, HMS Sultan, Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton, 1710 Naval Air Squadron, Captain Naval Recruiting and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary will be in attendance.
Philip commanded the anti-submarine frigate HMS Magpie from September 1950 to July 1951.
Philip reached the rank of Commander during his active military service in the Royal Navy through to 1951.
He left the Royal Navy in 1953 and was promoted Honorary Admiral of the Fleet. In June of the same year, he was appointed Captain General Royal Marines, a position he held until December 2017.
To celebrate his 90th birthday, the Queen appointed him Lord High Admiral of the Royal Navy, the highest rank in the organisation anyone other than the sovereign can hold.
- Royal Marines
Units from 40 Commando Royal Marines and the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines will be in the Quadrangle.
Philip held the title of Captain-General of the Royal Marines for 64 years after being appointed by the Queen after her coronation.
His final official solo engagement was the Captain General's Parade outside Buckingham Palace in August 2017.
- British Army
Units from The Queen's Royal Hussars, Grenadier Guards, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, "The Highlanders", Royal Gurkha Rifles, The Rifles, The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and The Intelligence Corps will be in the Quadrangle.
The band of the Grenadier Guards will lead the procession.
The Quadrangle will be lined by The Household Cavalry including The Life Guards, the Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons, The Blues & Royals and the 1st Battalion The Coldstream Guards plus the 1st Battalion The Welsh Guards.
The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery is also part of the proceedings. Members of The King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery took part in a 41-gun Royal Salute to mark Philip's birthday every year on June 10 in Hyde Park, central London.
Mourners lay flowers for Prince Philip at Sandringham
Philip's grandson, The Duke of Sussex, joined The Blues & Royals in April 2006 and served in the Household Cavalry Regiment, and did two tours of Afghanistan where he was a captain.
The Grenadier Guards are involved as the bearer and escort party for the funeral.
Philip held the title of Colonel of the Grenadier Guards from 1975 to 2018, before handing it to The Duke of York when he was appointed to the role in March 2018.
Philip was the Regimental Colonel of the Welsh Guards from 1953-1975.
His ties with The Queen's Royal Hussars began in 1953 when he was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars.
He remained the Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment until his death, apart from the years 1993-2002 when he fulfilled the role of Deputy Colonel-in-Chief under The Queen Mother. He also visited the regiment on operations in Iraq.
He was also the Royal Colonel of 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland "The Highlanders" and presented it with new Colours at RAF Kinloss in 2011.
Prince Philip's unwavering loyalty to Queen to be praised at Windsor funeral
Philip was appointed Colonel-in-Chief, The Rifles in 2006. One of the four Gurkha regiments which merged to form the Royal Gurkha Rifles in 1994 was 7th Duke of Edinburgh's Own Gurkha Rifles.
His lifelong passion for all forms of engineering made his role as Colonel-in-Chief of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers special.
A visit by Philip to the Intelligence Corps in Ashford, Kent, in 1971 prompted similar trips by other members of the royal family before he became the organisation's Colonel-in-Chief in 1977.
He became a patron of the Military Intelligence Museum in 2003.
- Royal Air Force
Philip was the Honorary Air Commodore of RAF Northolt and flew on many flights out of the station, which opened in 1915 and played a key role in defending the UK during the Battle of Britain. It also served as a fighter station during the London 2012 Olympic Games as home to four Typhoon fighter aircraft.
Philip presented 32 (The Royal) Squadron with a new standard at RAF Northolt in March 2015.
- International
Commonwealth defence advisers from Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Trinidad and Tobago will be present at Horseshoe Cloister to recognise Philip's close links with the Armed Forces in their countries.
Philip was the Admiral of the Fleet of the Royal Australian Navy, Field Marshal of the Australian Army and Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force, and also the Colonel-in-Chief of the Trinidad and Tobago Regiment.
His range of appointments with Canada include being the Admiral of the Royal Canadian Navy, General of the Canadian Army and General of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
Philip's titles also included being the Admiral of the Fleet of the Royal New Zealand Navy, Field Marshal of the New Zealand Army and Marshal of the Royal New Zealand Air Force.
