Prince Philip Attends Rare Engagement, Passes Down Military Role to Duchess Camilla
At 99 years old, it's entirely understandable that Prince Philip has retired from his public royal duties, and spends most of his time in private. During the pandemic, he has been self-isolating alongside Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle, but while the monarch has endeavored to stay in the public eye, recording televised addresses and releasing photos of her work from home set-up, Philip has predictably stayed on the sidelines—until this past week, that is.
First, Philip attended his granddaughter Princess Beatrice's royal wedding last Friday (in a safe, socially-distanced manner, of course), and appeared in one of the few photos released from the event. And then on Wednesday, he had a public engagement of his own: a ceremony held to mark the transfer of one of Philip's military titles, the Colonel-in-Chief of the Rifles, to the Duchess of Cornwall.
The Prince has held the position since the Rifles was formed in 2007, but has served as Colonel-in-Chief for regiments that now are a part of the Rifles since 1953. It makes sense that he's passing this responsibility down to Camilla, she's been the Royal Colonel of the 4th Battalion the Rifles since 2007.
The short ceremony began at Windsor Castle, where buglers from the Band and Bugles of the Rifles called upon Philip's arrival. A little while later, it concluded at Highgrove House, where the Duchess was marked by buglers. Watch the event for yourself in the video above.
You Might Also Like
