HRH The Duke of Edinburgh: A dear friend to Pakistan will be sorely missed

THE NEWS International

The United Kingdom is in mourning today at the loss of their 

beloved Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He was 99 years old, two 

months before he would have turned 100. He was married to the 

Queen for 74 years.

Throughout their marriage, he was a tower of strength for her, 

through personal tragedy and triumph, as a husband, a father, a 

grandfather, and a great grandfather.

The Duke of Edinburgh was a naval officer to the core. As a child he was evacuated from Greece along with the rest of the Greek Royal Family on a destroyer of the British Navy. He joined the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth as a teenager, and it was there he first properly met the then 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth in 1939. They were married in 1947.

During the Second World War he had served on warships with distinction, being Mentioned in Dispatches for bravery. His naval career blossomed after the War, till he got his first command of the warship Magpie in 1950. His active naval career came to an end in 1952 when Elizabeth became the Queen at the death of her father but his love and attachment for the Navy continued throughout his life.

Philip was an avid sportsman. He received a yacht as a wedding gift because of his love of sailing. He went on to win a major trophy at the challenging Cowes Week. He played polo regularly and was also a keen cricketer.

The Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen visited Pakistan twice, first in 1961 and again in 1997 on Pakistan's 50th Independence Anniversary. The first visit lasted two weeks and the second just under a week, during which they toured the entire country and met people of every background, particularly students... Click to continue