Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Thursday 3 augusT 2017
Prince Philip, 96, bids adieu with final solo official duty

By DANICA KIRKA has given 5,496 speeches,
Associated Press written 14 books and gone
LONDON (AP) — For over 65 on 637 solo visits overseas.
years, he has been the un- He’s championed environ-
wavering presence along- mental and conservation
side Britain’s longest-serving issues, and has interests in
monarch, the consummate science, engineering and
consort and royal repre- industry.
sentative. On Wednesday An accomplished sports-
Prince Philip, 96, made his man, he played polo regu-
22,219th — and final — solo larly until 1971. He earned
public engagement, brav- his RAF wings in 1953, his he-
ing heavy rain to meet licopter wings in 1956 and
Royal Marines at Bucking- his private pilot’s license in
ham Palace. The royal ap- 1959. All that activity has
peared in good spirits, wav- led to overall good health.
ing to cheering crowds and But Philip has been admit-
joking with the soldiers, who ted to the hospital on a
have completed a 1,664- number of occasions in
mile (2,678-kilometer) trek the last few years for ab-
to raise money for charity. dominal surgery, bladder
“You all should be locked infections and a blocked
up,” he quipped, making coronary artery. Many of
the soldiers laugh. Britain’s Prince Philip, right, in his role as Captain General of the Royal Marines, attends a Parade his health issues are related
Philip announced he was on the forecourt of Buckingham Palace, in central London, Wednesday Aug. 2, 2017. to sports. He has arthritis in
Associated Press
stepping down from pub- his right wrist and broke a
lic duties in May. The royal, Wednesday’s event marks a long association with the bey when she was 21 and bone in his ankle from play-
known for his sense of hu- a major landmark for the military and had once had he was 26. He renounced ing polo. He developed a
mor and gaffes, recently man born Prince Philip of promising military career. his Greek title and King rheumatic condition of the
joked about his big retire- Greece and Denmark in He joined the Royal Navy George VI made him the tendon in the hand after a
ment day, telling celebrity Corfu on June 10, 1921, to as a cadet in 1939 and Duke of Edinburgh. His ca- taking a fall in polo.
served during World War reer came to an abrupt He takes the stairs rather
II, winning mention in dis- end with George’s death in than elevators and can still
patches for service aboard 1952. At the queen’s coro- fit into the uniform he wore
the battleship HMS Valiant nation in 1953, Philip swore for his wedding. He was

In this Aug. 1951 file photo then Princess Elizabeth stands with
her husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, and their
children Prince Charles and Princess Anne at the couple’s
London residence at Clarence House.
Associated Press

chef Prue Leith: “I’m dis- Princess Alice of Batten-
covering what it’s like to be berg and Prince Andrew of
on your last legs.” Greece.
Also known as the Duke of Amid the upheaval of the
Edinburgh, he will still ap- military coup that over-
pear at Queen Elizabeth threw his uncle, King Con-
II’s side — from time to stantine, in 1922, the fam- In this Wednesday, May 9, 2012 file photo Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II sits next to Prince Philip in the
time — as the 91-year-old ily fled. King George V, House of Lords as she waits to read the Queen’s Speech to lawmakers in London.
monarch soldiers on. Philip the queen’s grandfather, Associated Press
is patron, president or a sent a Royal Navy cruiser
member of over 780 orga- to evacuate Philip’s fam- at Cape Matapan, on to be his wife’s “liege man only seen wearing hearing
nizations, with which he ily and he was whisked to Greece’s Peloponnesian of life and limb.” aids for the first time at a
will continue to be associ- safety in a cot made from peninsula. He rose to the He settled into a life sup- palace reception in 2014
ated — but he won’t play an orange box. Later, he level of commander. Two porting Elizabeth in her role at the age of 93. The pal-
an active role by attending rarely saw his parents and years after the war ended, as queen and they had four ace says his health wasn’t
engagements. The queen went to school in Germany Philip married the future children — Charles, Anne, behind the retirement
supported the decision. and Britain. Philip has had queen at Westminster Ab- Andrew and Edward. Philip decision.q