His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Tobias Ellwood Excerpts

Monday 12th April 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con)]

I welcome this exceptional recall of Parliament to pay tribute to the life and service of His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, which reflects the very British bond between the monarchy, the Government, Parliament and the British people, whom we all represent and, indeed, serve. His passing has shone a spotlight on the British monarchy—arguably the most recognised and respected royal family in the world. Both domestically and internationally, they help define who we are as a nation and how we are perceived across the world. They are a welcome constant amid the flux and turmoil of politics. Many in this House and beyond have paid tribute to the sheer diversity and breadth of the ways in which Prince Philip touched people’s lives.

It is Prince Philip’s support for the armed forces that I would like to focus on today. The military has an affinity with our royal family. Governments may send people to war and into harm’s way, but they fight for Queen and country. The Duke acknowledged early on that there is no modern playbook outlining the duties of the Queen’s consort in modern times, so he had to design his own. Given his background, it is perhaps no surprise that he invested significant time in supporting the British armed forces. Prince Philip was an exemplar of that wartime generation who stepped forward to do their duty. He joined the Royal Navy at the age of 18, excelled at Dartmouth Naval College, and served with distinction in the European and Pacific theatres of operations.

After marriage to the Queen, Prince Philip was obliged to step back from his regular naval service, but then developed a close relationship with all three services, as Admiral of the Fleet, Field Marshal of the British Army and Marshal of the Royal Air Force, and by assuming active honorary duties with dozens of units in the Royal Navy, the Army and the RAF. That enabled him to stay close to and support the military fraternity, which he so loved. He was a continual inspiration across the ranks with respect to what it means to serve your country.

Prince Philip was Colonel-in-Chief of my own regiment, the Rifles, and that relationship was established before the infantry regiment amalgamations back in 1953. Indeed, his very last public engagement was in July 2020 when he handed over his honorary duties to the Duchess of Cornwall. The event took place at Windsor, where the Prince took the salute and the buglers sounded the Rifles’ assembly call, which signals the arrival of a senior Rifleman. The ceremony ended with the buglers’ No More Parades call, marking the Duke’s final ceremony as Colonel-in-Chief of the Rifles. That would also be his final public appearance. In keeping with the Duke’s spirit and reputation, the formality of the event was lifted when he broke protocol to take time out to chat with the buglers and thank them for their efforts.

Today, Parliament joins Her Majesty the Queen, her family and the nation in saluting His Royal Highness Prince Philip and expressing our heartfelt sorrow over the loss of a truly exceptional man who devoted his life to Queen and country.