Prince Philip has passed away at the age of 99, Buckingham Palace has announced.
The royal family has shared the following statement: "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.
"His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle. Further announcements will made in due course. The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss."
Born in Corfu on June 10, 1921 to Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and Princess Alice of Battenberg, Philip was sixth in line to the Greek throne.
He had a difficult childhood. His mother, Princess Alice, suffered from a nervous breakdown and she was confined to a sanatorium in Switzerland. His father, who was working in the army, was accused of treason and exiled.
Under the care of his aunts and uncles, Philip was sent to school in England and after a brief time in Germany, he returned to Britain and attended Gordonstoun in Scotland.
While he was there, Philip experienced a series of tragedies. When he was 16, his sister Cecile, her husband, and their two children were killed in a plane accident. Just months later, his uncle and guardian, George Mountbatten died suddenly of cancer at the age of 46.
When Philip left school, he enrolled at the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, on the advice of his uncle, Lord Louis Mountbatten. The then 18-year-old cadet soon met his third cousin, 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth. Seven years later, in 1947, the pair announced their engagement. They married at Westminster Abbey on 20 November that year.
The royal couple welcomed four children - Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward - and in November 2017, they celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.
As the longest-serving consort of a reigning British monarch, the Duke carried out more than 22,000 solo engagements and served as the patron or president for some 800 organisations in his lifetime. Alongside his role as consort, Philip pursued his own interests. In 1956, he founded The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, which went on to become the world's leading youth achievement award.
In May 2017, Buckingham Palace announced that Philip would retire from public duties. He carried out his final official royal engagement in August 2017 at the age of 96.
