Prince Philip the Greece-born stalwart husband of Queen Elizabeth II and Britain's oldest and longest-serving royal spouse in 10 centuries, died on Friday morning at the age of 99.
Buckingham Palace announced: "It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen announces the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh," the statement read. "His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle."
In March, Prince Philip left hospital after a month-long stay for treatment. He underwent a procedure for a pre-existing heart condition at another London hospital – St Bartholomew's.
The prince married Princess Elizabeth in 1947, five years before she became Queen.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he received the news of the duke's death "with great sadness."
"He helped to steer the Royal Family and the monarchy so that it remains an institution indisputably vital to the balance and happiness of our national life," he added.
Paying tribute to the duke, Mr Johnson also recalled Prince Philip as one of the last surviving people to have fought in World War II. "From that conflict he took an ethic of service that he applied throughout the unprecedented changes of the post-War era," Mr Johnson said.
"Prince Philip earned the affection of generations here in the United Kingdom, across the Commonwealth, and around the world," he added..
But as royal consort, Philip's death does not affect the royal succession or the British government.
As husband of the sovereign, the duke is entitled to a state funeral, but he has expressed his preference for a private, military-style funeral at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle and burial nearby at Frogmore Gardens, where his great-great grandparents, Queen Victoria
and Prince Albert, are buried.
Prince Philip and the Queen had four children, eight grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. He was born on the Greek island of Corfu on 10 June 1921. His father was Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark, a younger son of King George I of the Hellenes.
Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Alice, was a daughter of Lord Louis Mountbatten and a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria.
