Queen Elizabeth and her consort Prince Philip visit Richmond, Virginia, May 3, 2007.
Prince Philip of England’s upbringing was far from normal. He was born June 10, 1921, on a kitchen table on the Greek island of Corfu in a house that had no electricity, hot water, or indoor plumbing. The only son and fifth and final child of Princess Alice of Battenberg and Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark was christened Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark. The platinum blond toddler learned sign language to communicate with his deaf mother.
Prince Philip (center) with parents, ca. 1923 (Lisa's History Room)
Prince Philip of Greece’s father was a professional soldier in the Greek Army. When Turkey invaded Greece in 1922, Prince Andrew was accused of treason; he was tried, convicted, and jailed and faced possible execution by firing squad. Princess Alice (known as Princess Andrew to English speakers) appealed to her British relative, King George V, for help. Remembering what had happened to his Russian cousin the Tsar when he had refused his cry for rescue, the King quickly dispatched the HMS Calypso to remove Andrew, his wife, their four daughters, and Baby Philip from Greece. Prince Andrew boarded the ship carrying his 18-month-old son in an orange crate. They sailed for France.
For the next eight years, Prince Philip’s family lived in exile in Paris. Philip learned to speak English, French, and German, but no Greek. His family was royal – but not rich – and depended upon the charity of relatives and friends to feed, house, clothe, and educate them while in exile from their mother country.
Prince Philip of England's family poses for a photograph ca. 1930. A young Prince Philip stands to the right of his mother, Princess Andrew (Alice of Battenberg) and Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark (called Andrea). From left to right are Philip's sisters, all Princesses of Greece & Denmark: Margarita, Theodora, Sophie, and Cecilie.
In 1930-31, the family fell completely apart. All four of Philip’s sisters, who were educated in Germany, married German noblemen and moved to Germany. Then Prince Andrew abandoned his wife and Philip and ran off to live with his mistress on her yacht anchored in the Mediterranean off Monte Carlo where Andrew quickly became addicted to the gaming tables.
Philip’s mother collapsed under the strain. She suffered a nervous breakdown and was institutionalized in Switzerland at the famed Bellevue Sanatorium. That left little Philip all alone in Paris, with no one to care for him. He was only nine.
Philip was then sent to England to be cared for by his maternal grandmother. But then she died. Next he moved in with his Uncle George, who, by 1938, was dead also. Philip was 17 at the time.
Then another of his maternal uncles, Lord Louis Mountbatten, British sea lord and the last Viceroy of India stepped in and took Philip under his wing. “Uncle Dickie” took an intense interest in his promising nephew. He made grand plans for him.
Prince Philip as a young midshipman in the Royal Navy, ca. late 1930s
Even though Philip was a Greek citizen, Uncle Dickie pulled a few strings so that Philip could join the Royal Navy as a midshipman. Then Uncle Dickie began to pave the way for Philip to marry the future Queen of England. In 1939, he arranged for Philip to entertain King George VI‘s two daughters, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, while the King and Queen Elizabeth toured Dartmouth Naval College.
When Princess Elizabeth met Philip, she was only 13. She fell head-over-heels in love with the tall, handsome, and athletic young man. The two became pen pals and wrote constantly to one another during the next six years of world war. He celebrated the Christmas of 1943 with her and her family at their Scottish estate, Balmoral. The press hailed the romance as the love match of the century.
In this July, 1951 photo (a year before King George VI's death and Princess Elizabeth's ascension to the British throne), Princess Elizabeth and her mother, Queen Elizabeth, arrive at Westminster Abbey to attend the wedding of Lady Caroline Montagu-Douglas-Scott to Mr. Ian Hedworth Gilmour. Princess Elizabeth's mother - who styled herself "Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother," after her daughter became Queen Elizabeth II - had a fussy, overdressed sense of fashion. Her hats were generally broadbrimmed, trimmed in lace or swaths of chiffon, or piled high with feathers. Her neckline was often V-shaped and adorned with her trademark triple strand of pearls. Her dresses were feminine, flirty, and accented by enormous brooches and rings. As she aged, she dressed in fruity colors like pink, lime, and yellow. Her dresses and hats always matched in color. Her girlish style, peaches-and-cream complexion, pudginess, and sunny smile suggested a sweetness and wholesomeness that made her extremely popular at home and abroad. The Queen Mother, nee Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, died in her sleep in 2002 at the age of 101. (Lisa's History Room)
It was no surprise when, on July 9, 1947, the Palace announced that Prince Philip of Greece and Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain were officially engaged. Philip was 26; Elizabeth, 21. The wedding was set for November 20, 1947, at Westminster Abbey. The King and Queen were not wild about the idea of Elizabeth marrying before the age of 25, but it didn’t matter what they wanted. Elizabeth wanted Philip and she was going to have him.
Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain and Prince Philip of Greece announce their engagement, July 9, 1947. (Lisa's History Room)
Buckingham Palace shifted into high gear planning the royal wedding:
“This was not simple a marriage ceremony, but an affair of state that would focus world attention on the British monarchy. Consequently the King and Queen told him [Prince Philip] that his sisters and their German husbands, some of whom had supported Hitler’s Third Reich, could not possibly be included. So they remained in Germany and listened to the service on the radio.” (1)
Still focused on the guest list, the Queen addressed the issue of Philip’s mother, Princess Andrew, whom she considered “pleasant but odd.” Although Philip’s mother had had nothing to do with Philip since he was 9, Princess Andrew had nevertheless been quite busy while others raised her son. After several years of Swiss therapy in the early 1930s, she had rejoined society and taken up charitable works. During WWII, she saved a Jewish family named Cohen from being sent to the death camp by sheltering it in her Greek home.
After the war, Princess Andrew founded a religious order called the Christian Sisterhood of Martha and Mary dedicated to helping the sick and the needy in Greece. Princess Andrew became a nun, taking a vow of celibacy, although she had born 5 children. She had a habit – a nun’s habit – that she wore all the time. It consisted of a drab gray robe, white wimple, cord, and rosary beads. She was commonly referred to as ”Sister Andrew.”
Queen Elizabeth was understandably terrified that Princess Andrew would show up at the wedding at Westminster Abbey wearing her nun’s habit and embarrassing the family in a large way. The Queen pressed the issue with Philip. As a result, Princess Andrew appeared at her son’s wedding wearing a demure hat and a simple silk dress, which the Queen later described as “very pretty and most appropriate.”
Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip marry on November 20, 1947
Six years later King George VI was dead. Elizabeth and Philip returned to Westminster Abbey for Elizabeth to be crowned Queen.
The coronation was held on June 2, 1953 and televised, at Elizabeth’s request, so that all her subjects could see her crowned. Twenty million viewers watched the seven-hour BBC-TV marathon. The ceremony began as the guests began their stately procession down the long aisle of Westminster Abbey, ahead of the Queen, to take their seats.
Prince Philip’s mother was among the guests. She turned heads as she processed up the aisle wearing a long grey dress and a flowing head-dress that looked remarkably like a nun’s habit! She had had it especially made for the coronation.
Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark, Prince Philip's mother (bottom left) processes down the aisle of Westminster Abbey for her daughter-in-law Elizabeth's coronation as Queen Regnant of Great Britain. June 1953. Princess Andrew is dressed in an outfit resembling her usual attire - a nun's habit. (Lisa's History Room)
Princess Andrew, 1965
Princess Andrew died at Buckingham Palace in 1969. According to her wishes, she was buried in Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. On October 31, 1994, Princess Andrew’s two surviving children, Prince Philip and Sophie, Princess George of Hanover, went to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial, in Jerusalem to witness a ceremony honouring their mother. Princess Andrew was called “Righteous among the Nations” for having hidden a Jewish family in her home in Athens during WWII.
(1) Kelley, Kitty. The Royals. New York: Warner Books, Inc., 1997.
I knew Phillip’s role as Queen’s Consort would understandably make him a bit obscure within Britain and the House of Windsor, but I had no idea his youth was so detached from normalcy– even a royal variation of normalcy.
Thanks for sharing!
His rootlessness gave him social skills that complemented the shyness of the Queen, who, prior to ascending the throne, had led such a sheltered life. Good to hear from you, Winston.
Being a grandmother I suddenly wondered about the Queen’s childrens grandparents on Phillip’s side…I had no idea about this history and about Phillip’s life before Elizabeth. The story touched my heart.
I was re-reading this post and suddenly I was struck by the contrast of Phillip’s life before marriage into British royalty with the childhoods of others who married into British royalty– namely, Diana and Fergie. I’ve never known of Phillip complaining of “the Royal way” as those two did. He must have been awed as a young man how he, such a thrown away child of such a dysfunctional household, could have become the great love of the heir to the British throne.
Philip was grateful for whatever handout he got!
Very well done portrait of Prince Phillip. It also seems to account for his terrible parenting style, as he apparently had no good role model to copy.
He didn’t seem to have any family structure growing up.
Norma, I think I am not alone in believing that Princess Alice – in a nun’s habit – called quite a bit of attention to herself at Princess Elizabeth and Phillip’s wedding. I have met quite a few women like Princess Alice, steeped in the public glory of helping the world’s poor while neglecting their own flesh and blood. I feel sorry for Phillip, who got a rotten set of parents. Princess Alice was mentally ill but her charitable works and claims of mystical experiences made people think she was “holy” rather than severely deranged and lacking judgment.
I do believe that the above story indicates that Princess Alice wore a simple silk dress and hat to the Royal Couples’ wedding. Whatever her reasons for desiring a simple life in later years…I do not believe she can be held respon sible for her mental breakdown after her husband’s infidelity.
Katy, we all make choices and Prince Philip’s mother did, too. The ones she made were selfish. I think she was a kook and I feel sorry for the childhood misery she inflicted on Philip. The word kook is a mild way of expressing the resentment I feel for her abandonment of her family in favor of taking on more public causes that reaped her public acclaim. Raising a family well is quiet business with precious few public rewards. There are many among us who neglect that critical work and Alice was one of them. She sought the limelight. Why else would she put on a martyr’s outfit and appear at the coronation so dressed? She was an attention-seeking hound. A kook. Very selfish. It was Elizabeth’s day to shine. No wedding attendee in good conscience wears an outfit that distracts from the bride’s. And Alice was Elizabeth’s mother-in-law! She knew better.
Lisa, above in the original post you wrote that she wore the strange outfit to the coronation, not the wedding. Read through the post again. Remember at the wedding she wore a “demure hat and a simple silk dress” that Elizbeth approved of. I am not saying the woman was or was not a kook, just wanted to point out the conflicting info.
Fascinating read regarding Prince Philip.
That’s funny you should mention that. Over the weekend, I noted that in a book I was reading on Philip. I will change that right away. Good eyes, “loving and laughing,” and thank you.
Alice the nun was excellent l
Parent. Andrew and girls and alice ‘s. mom were the. Cruelest to destroy alice and separate her beloved son Philip!!! She still had loved him to her death and she inspired to the world. ThAt she got her calling . She is 100 percent sane princess! Stupid. Alice’s hubby and daughters did not care about her ! I admired alice for her silence and gave a heart to help withthe charity. Philip should be proud of his beloved mom !
Anyone else think Prince Harry looks like his granddad Prince Phillip? I wish there were more photos of young Phillip to compare.
Supposedly Harry looks more like the Spencer clan.
if you look back on the spencer side … harry does look alot like that family…. and many red heads too.
I find little resemblance between Prince Harry and his brother Prince William. There’s been speculation of Prince Harry not being Prince Charles’ son, so I have wondered about that, also.
I placed a head shot of Prince Harry alongside that one of the young Prince Philip, and the resemblance is remarkable, to say the least. Try it, you’ll see what I mean.
No more speculation for me, especially when that of Prince Harry’s red hair enters the picture. It is a genetic strain on his mother’s side and not attributable to one of Princess Diana’s lovers.
As for Prince William, it then can be determined that it is he who bears little facial resemblance to the rest of the Royal Family, even though his parentage is not under question.
I thought. Harry. Resemble. Diana’s brother charles spencer! Thus charles is the father!
So I have read else where, yet somewhere I saw a photo of a very young Prince Phillip and it reminded me of Harry. And not too long ago I saw a picture of Prince Phillip’s father and his brothers and I’m not sure if I remember correctly which one it was, but I think it was Phillip’s dad who looked a bit like Harry. Though he does seem to get his coloring from his mum’s family. Though it is funny, I’ve always been told,since I was a very small girl that I look like my Dad.We have the same coloring, eyes and hair, yet a few years ago I bumped into an old neighbor who I hadn’t seem in years and he told me how he couldn’t get over how much I look like my mum. This totally startled me because my mum is much darker in eye and hair coloring than me. Yet in the last few years I’ve noticed I do have mum’s facial expressions and I can now see how some folks see me as looking like mum. Though it does still amaze me a bit. So I guess at some point each of us looks a bit like one or another of our relatives.
wow! i learned a lot in reading this. thanks for an interesting bit of history!
i am happy i found your interesting blog….its fun when others share my interest in history… alot of new things i learned about phillip…thx
Happy Birthday to Prince Philip today, he is now 90 years old. He is one of my favorite members of the British royalty.
what a touching story about the Prince’s life. This made me cry with a smile in my heart!!! May you live long… you’re my IDOL. – Vic Rollon, PHP
I loved reading about Prince Phillip’s early years although I was 10 years old when he and Princess Elizabeth married and have read as much as I could find about the the family. I knew that there was some Nazi scandal about his family, but I never understood what it was or that his sisters were married to German military/aristocracy. Nor did I know about his kookie father and his brave though mentally problemed mom. I can sympathize with her because I have known that same kind of hurt of being abandoned by a so-called life partner.
If you look at Prince Phillip’s smile in the engagement photo with Princess Elizabeth I think you will see William’s smile reflected there. I can see both Elizabeth, Phillip, Charles and Diana in William.
I do see both the Montbattens and the Spencers in Harry. He’s so darned cute that he doesn’t have to resemble anyone except himself! I know it will never happen but I would so like to see Harry marry Pippa! (OK, I’m a crazy fairy-tale believer. LOL)
Carole, I love your comments, esp. the ones regarding family resemblances. I particularly see Prince Philip’s looks in William.
I think it should be noted that the Sisterhood of Martha and Mary was founded, after the assassination of her husband, uncle to the last Tzar, in 1905 by Grand-Duchess Elizabeth of Russia, sister to Phillip’s grandmother –both princesses of Hesse of the same era like the last Tzarina — and thus Princess Alice’s aunt. “Ella” like her husband was brutally assassinated east of the Urals by revolutionaries, with other members of the Russian imperial family near the same time as the Imperial family.
A loyal follower was eventually able to remove her body and accompany it to the same resting place in Jerusalem as Princesse Alice chose so we see the connection. The Grand Duchess was considered very beautiful and we can see the same in the earlier pictures of Princesse Alice, even when she was no longer in the first flush of youth during Prince Phillip’s infancy.
In case we Americans feel we have no connection to aristo’s, royals and semi-royals, the Grand Duchess helped to raise her nephew whose son became the much-liked and respect mayor of Palm Beach who has only recently passed away(in terms of my 69 years) , a lovely man and former US Marine in whose company I was only priviledged to be once.
If we will think back before the time of women working and to the isolation of both aristos and the deaf, and consider a royal princess in her “forties,” impaired in her hearing and deserted by a feckless husband, virtually on the dole from cousins, perhaps we would feel more charitable towards the prior Princesse Alice of Battenberg, great grand-daughter to Queen Victoria, who was herself deprived of her mother at a young age and yet was recognised as a Righteous Gentile for the very great risk she assumed to save a family during the Hollocaust. How could this bravery and commitment to right-thinking few of us would reach out to in peril of our lives exist in a “kook”? (It was another member of the Hessian family by marriage, Mafalda of Savoy and Hesse, who perished in a concentation camp largely because of only her identity.)
It is good that the questions persons might ask about Prince Phillip’s early life, during the Queen’s year of celebration of her great length of time and achievements on the throne, are being made easier to answer by a recent book publication and blogs such as this.
I’ve been criticized for my harsh assessment of Prince Philip’s mom before. Sorry, everyone; I just have a hard time with her wearing that garb to the royal wedding.
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hello, in the photo of princess alice leading her family out of the abbey at the coronation, who are the people behind her? were they philips sisters and their husbands? because i didnt think they would be invited? regards
Anyone?
No, I believe those in that picture are not Prince Philip’s sisters and / or their husbands. In the official biography of the Queen Mother (Queen Elizabeth) released by Buckingham place, it says that due to the growing tensions between Britain and Germany at that time, all of Philip’s sisters and Brother-in-laws were not invited, as they feared a public outcry. Also, they believed that the emergence of new kind of journalism which was seen during Edward VIII abdication, was not something that they were used to, and hence they did not want to jeopardize the Royalty by feeding fodder into this Britain-German tensions by inviting his relatives (Hope this helps
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Yes, I believe you are right, Bhargavi.
Prince Philip’s mother was obviously catholic if she went by the name of “Sister Andrew”, & most likely the Queen Mother didn’t want people to think her daughter was marrying into a catholic family since Catholics we’re barred from marrying a British Monarch at that time, even though Philip converted from Greek Orthodox to the Church of England. And quite frankly, I would have worn it to their wedding as well. Plus I would have put the Queen Mother in her place.
Jett, why are you mad at the Queen Mother?
Interesting read. I wonder though, why was it only Philip who seems to have been “lost” in the parents’ drama? Was the family life ok before Philip came into the picture?
Was it a happy family life with just the daughters? Did, perhaps, the four daughters help keep the house-hold or family unit together? Could it have been the loss of her four daughters, married and out of the house, that began a down-ward spiral for Princess Andrew? And that that in turn sent her husband into the arms of another?
And was a despondent Princess, once sent away, to lose interest in a son? But I think I’ve read that she missed her son desperately when she was first “put away”?
There are orders of nuns in the Greek and Russian Orthodox churches, as well as in the Episcopal church (Church of England). Not all nuns are Roman Catholic (you’re right, that would have ruffled British feathers, had Princess Andrew been a Catholic nun — but she wasn’t). Interestingly, Queen Elizabeth II and her husband invited Princess Andrew to live with them in her final years, which she did. Her remains were later moved from Windsor to Jerusalem to be with those of her beloved Aunt Ella at the Mt of Olives church.
I think Philip had a sorry life but came a very good man enjoyed reading this story like the royals
The article implies that Philip’s maternal grandmother died some time before 1938. That is not correct. His maternal grandmother, the Dowager Marchioness of Milford Haven (neé Princess Victoria of Hesse), died in 1950.