His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Viscount Brookeborough Excerpts

Monday 12th April 2021 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Brookeborough (CB) [V]]

My Lords, I am a lord-lieutenant in Northern Ireland, and in effect I am representing the others here. I have also been a member of Her Majesty’s Household for 23 years.

The Duke of Edinburgh, partly because of his naval service perhaps, had a deep affinity and love for Northern Ireland and our people, a contributing factor perhaps in the pivotal role the Province played during the Battle of the Atlantic. The convoys assembled off Londonderry and much of the air cover was provided in the Atlantic by Sunderlands and Catalinas from Lough Erne in County Fermanagh. The Bismarck was discovered from here at one stage.

Prince Philip was a people’s person who did not stand on ceremony. He wished for a small funeral, and apparently the coffin may be carried in a Land Rover from Sandringham designed personally by him, perhaps called his “gun bus”. He drove this with his head keeper beside him and his guests most definitely in the back. On arrival at a given place, he would jump out and be off leading the way. His guests, meanwhile, would be scrambling about grabbing their jackets et cetera, and the inevitable “Stop chattering and do get a move on” would come from the disappearing Duke.

Perhaps his greatest skill was as a communicator. I was involved with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in the 1980s, and he met those young people taking part on every occasion he could—indeed, he met them many times while they were going through Balmoral or Sandringham. In the more formal gold award ceremonies, he would first make some very amusing remarks, and everyone would laugh and relax. I attended two large conferences chaired by Prince Philip, one for the award and one for the Outward Bound Trust. His introduction was humorous and relaxed, and it was extraordinary how he created an atmosphere that encouraged young people to respond, give ideas, and even disagree with him. He relished such discussions.

The international award in the Republic of Ireland is known as the President’s Award, or Gaisce. Prince Philip personally instigated closer inter-state and cross-community links by giving young people from different backgrounds in Northern Ireland the option of the DofE award or Gaisce, the President’s Award. There are faxes in the office in Belfast sent by him personally when his private secretary was on leave, showing that it was his initiative and he who drove it to fruition.

He was a pioneer in protecting the environment, practising what he preached. The first biomass boiler I saw was on the Sandringham estate, and he insisted on building an early methane digester on the Windsor dairy farm. Much to his horror, and later perhaps to his amusement, the latter apparently blew up. Views vary on different renewables. After bringing up wind turbines with him, I knew not to do so again, and I smiled quietly when I saw others making the same mistake.

We know of his many international achievements. However, I sometimes wonder whether people realise the significance of inward state visits by foreign Heads of State and the part played by the monarch and, until now, by Prince Philip. These visits are at the highest levels of diplomacy and the most sought after by other nations. Visitors stay as personal guests of the Queen at Buckingham Palace or Windsor.

During my time at the palace, visitors included Presidents Putin, Obama and Trump, the Emperor of Japan and many others. During these visits an immense amount of bilateral business is done between the countries away from the principals, but it has been the personal hosting by Her Majesty and Prince Philip in their own homes that has ensured success. The success of a visit is judged by the TV coverage going out to the visitor’s nation and the happiness of the visitor and their immediate suite. This is what has been ensured by the attention paid to it by the Queen and Prince Philip, regardless of any personal opinions of any individual.

Perhaps the greatest compliments are from the many young people in this country who have been heard to say, “Had it not been for the Duke of Edinburgh, I might have been in prison or a drug addiction centre.” That is quite an accolade for any individual person.

We in Northern Ireland join the nation, and indeed the world, in sending our deepest and heartfelt sympathies to Her Majesty the Queen, the Prince of Wales and all the members of the Royal Family. We have a great deal to be grateful for.