In memoriam. Queen Elizabeth paid tribute to her late husband, Prince Philip, on the first anniversary of his death.
“Remembering His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh on the first anniversary of his death,” a tweet on the 95-year-old monarch’s official Royal Family Twitter account read on Saturday, April 9, alongside an audio recording of “The Patriarchs – An Elegy” by U.K. Poet Laureate Simon Armitage.
“The weather in the window this morning is snow / unseasonal singular flakes / a slow winter’s final shiver,” Armitage began reading the poem in the clip. “On such an occasion / to presume to eulogize one man is to pipe up / for a whole generation — that crew whose survival / was always the stuff of minor miracle, / who came ashore in orange-crate coracles, / fought ingenious wars, finagled triumphs at sea / with flaming decoy boats, and side-stepped torpedoes.”
He concluded, “The major oaks in the wood start tuning up / and skies to come will deliver their tributes. / But for now, a cold April’s closing moments / parachute slowly home, so by mid-afternoon / snow is recast as seed heads and thistledown.”
Buckingham Palace confirmed in April 2021 that the Duke of Edinburgh died just shy of his 100th birthday.
“It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen has announced 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,” a statement read at the time. “The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss. Further announcements will be made in due course.”
Following the Greece native’s death, the long-reigning sovereign — who celebrated her Platinum Jubilee earlier this year — was “overwhelmed” by the “outpouring of love and support” she received from well-wishers.
“Elizabeth has found it cathartic to soak up all the well-wishes and tributes to the man she loved unconditionally for countless decades,” an insider exclusively told Us Weekly upon Philip’s death. “Seeing how many lives he touched has been nothing short of extraordinary.”
The regent — who wed Philip in November 1947 — attended a memorial service for the late consort last month at London’s Westminster Abbey alongside their children: Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. Grandchildren Prince William, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie also attended alongside Duchess Kate and great-grandchildren Prince George, 8, and Princess Charlotte, 6.
