(Newser)
– Buckingham Palace officials say Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, has died. He was 99 years old. “It is with great sorrow that Her Majesty the Queen has announced the death of her beloved husband, Her Royal Highness, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh,” the palace said. “His Royal Highness died peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle.” Philip spent a month in hospital earlier this year before being released on March 16 to return to Windsor Castle. Philip, also known as the Duke of Edinburgh, married Elizabeth in 1947, five years before she became queen. He was the longest-serving consort (meaning official companion of the monarch) in British history, AP reports.
Historian Sarah Gristwood tells NBC News that by the time his wife became queen, the British monarchy “was not equipped to face a new media era and Prince Philip played a huge role in moving it forward.” . He was, for example, the first of the British royals to do a television interview and helped bring royalty to the public through television rather than radio. He withdrew from public commitments in 2017 after carrying out more than 20,000. Philip was a member of the Greek royal family and was born on the Greek island of Corfu in 1921. He was an avid sportsman who loved country activities. He had four children, eight grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren, according to the BBC. (Read more stories from Prince Philip.)