London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Aug 13, 2025

Queen attends Prince Philip memorial service at Westminster Abbey

Queen attends Prince Philip memorial service at Westminster Abbey

The Queen has joined her family at a memorial service to celebrate the life of the Duke of Edinburgh.

Her son the Duke of York - in his first public appearance since settling a civil sex assault case - accompanied her to Westminster Abbey.

Prince Philip, who died last year aged 99, was described as a "remarkable man" committed to "down-to-earth" causes.

The service was organised as Covid rules meant his funeral, held almost a year ago, had only 30 people present.

Representatives of many of his charities - including the Duke of Edinburgh Award - attended Tuesday's service, which had 1,800 people in attendance.

It was the first major event this year attended by the 95-year-old monarch, who travelled by car from Windsor Castle with Prince Andrew.

There had been doubts she would attend, and she only made the final decision in the hours before the service.

The Queen has had mobility problems and had to pull out of the Commonwealth Service earlier this month. She also tested positive for Covid in February.

Special measures were put in place for her comfort, including keeping the length of the service to 45 minutes.

Amid these health concerns, there was nervousness on Tuesday morning among people awaiting confirmation that the Queen would be able to attend, our BBC's royal correspondent Sean Coughlan says.

The Queen arrived at the service with Prince Andrew


Unlike the funeral in Windsor last April, where the Queen was poignantly pictured sitting alone, she had close family members in all the seats around her.

The Queen and Prince Philip's two elder children, Prince Charles and Princess Anne, were sitting in the same row as her.

Prince William and his wife Catherine were in the row directly behind along with two of the Queen's great-grandchildren, Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

The Queen's other two sons, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward, also had front row seats, across the aisle from the Queen.

But Prince Harry, who has been in a legal dispute over the provision of security, did not travel from California, where he lives.

Prince George and Princess Charlotte attended the service with their parents

The Duchess of Cornwall was among those - including the Queen and Princess Royal - choosing to wear dark green for the service

Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie attended with their husbands


Political leaders including Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer were among the guests, as were representatives from European royal families, including from the duke's native Greece.

The service was stamped with the personality of Prince Philip, with many of the elements originally intended for his funeral at St George's Chapel included.

Those elements included the entry to Westminster Abbey being lined by Duke of Edinburgh gold award winners as mourners arrived.

Duke of Edinburgh gold award winner Doyin Sonibare gave a speech describing the opportunities the award had opened up to her


One winner of the prestigious award, Doyin Sonibare, gave a speech where she explained she originally wasn't "sold on the idea", as she had never been camping before and had a fear of climbing steep hills.

The 28-year-old award ambassador from east London said: "I kept thinking I was going to trip up, roll down the mountain and 'it's lights out for Doyin'. Fortunately for me, that didn't happen.

"I remember thinking to myself, if I could complete this expedition, I can do anything."

The hymn Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer, also intended for the funeral, was sung, and there was music by Beethoven, JS Bach, Wagner, Vaughan Williams and William Byrd heard during the service.

The Queen is also said to have been closely involved in the planning of the service.

Dean of Windsor David Conner - a long-time friend of Prince Philip who also conducted his funeral - told the congregation at this service that the duke's life "bore the marks of sacrifice and service".

"Certainly, he could show great sympathy and kindness. There is no doubt that he had a delightfully engaging, and often self-deprecating, sense of humour.

"It is quite clear that his mind held together both speculation and common sense. Moreover, nobody would ever doubt his loyalty and deep devotion to our Queen and to their family."

The Queen and Prince Philip, pictured in 2020, were married in November 1947


He told the congregation the duke was "practical" and "devoted his astonishing intellectual and physical energy, his enormous capacity for sheer hard work, to a host of down-to-earth enterprises".

"These included the equipping of young people to face tomorrow's challenges, the encouragement of respect and care for the natural order, and his pioneering work in facilitating conversation between representatives of the different world faiths," he said.

He also pointed out that the duke could be "abrupt" and sometimes "forget just how intimidating he could be".

"A kind of natural reserve sometimes made him seem a little distant. He could be somewhat sharp in pricking what he thought to be bubbles of pomposity or sycophancy.

"On the other hand, we should not forget that he himself was sometimes wounded by being unfairly criticised or misunderstood.


A long life lived fully

This thanksgiving service brought together the strands of Prince Philip's life: his wife of 73 years, his family, his charities, his military connections, his sense of public duty.

But in his sermon, the Dean of Windsor, David Conner, said Prince Philip would have hated to have been remembered as a "plaster saint".

He described a real-life man, full of energy and ideas, but who had no patience for pomposity or flattery.

There was also attention on the real-life frailties of the Queen, who walked to her seat as the first hymn had started.

She sat in the same church where she was married to Prince Philip, stick at her side, with four generations of her family present and decades of memories.

Prince Andrew, making his own reappearance at a public event, had helped her to walk into the abbey.

It was an historic setting for an historic occasion, with prayers for a "long life lived fully".

With the abbey bells ringing, a choir singing and crowds in the streets outside, this was something of the bigger funeral that Covid prevented last year.

The Queen and Prince Philip had been married for 73 years and in her Christmas message the Queen spoke in unusually personal terms about the loss of her "beloved" Philip.

The flowers on display at the memorial service included orchids, a reference to the orchids in the Queen's wedding bouquet. She and Prince Philip were married in 1947 at Westminster Abbey.

The Queen and Prince Philip on honeymoon in 1947

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh with Prince Charles and Princess Anne as children in 1951


Representatives of some of the 700 charitable organisations that he supported were present, ranging from the Outward Bound Trust and Voluntary Services Overseas to the Caravan and Motorhome Club.

Many of his charities had a focus on inspiring young people and giving them wider opportunities. There was also an emphasis on conservation and protecting the environment.

Prince Philip's love of the sea and his links with the Armed Forces were heard during the service in the music of the Royal Marines band, which concluded with a piece called The Seafarers.

The Queen, Duchess of Cornwall and Princess Royal all wore dark green for the service - a similar shade to Edinburgh Green, the duke's livery colour.


Watch: Service of remembrance to honour Prince Philip


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Investigation Reports No Russian Interference in Romanian Election First Round
Oasis Reunion Tour Linked to Temporary Rise in UK Inflation
Musk Alleges Apple Favors OpenAI in App Store Rankings
Denmark Revives EU ‘Chat Control’ Proposal for Encrypted Message Scanning
US Teen Pilot Reaches Deal to Leave Chile After Unauthorized Antarctic Landing
Trump considers lawsuit against Powell over Fed renovation costs
Trump Criticizes Goldman Sachs Over Tariff Cost Forecasts
Perplexity makes unsolicited $34.5 billion all-cash offer for Google’s Chrome browser
Kodak warns of liquidity crisis as debt obligations loom
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Taylor Swift announces 12th studio album on Travis Kelce’s podcast after high-profile year together
South Korean court orders arrest of former First Lady Kim Keon Hee on bribery and corruption allegations
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
JD Vance to meet Tory MP Robert Jenrick and Reform’s Nigel Farage on UK visit
Trump and Putin Meeting: Focus on Listening and Communication
Instagram Released a New Feature – and Sent Users Into a Panic
China Accuses: Nvidia Chips Are U.S. Espionage Tools
Mercedes’ CEO Is Killing Germany’s Auto Legacy
Trump Proposes Land Concessions to End Ukraine War
New Road Safety Measures Proposed in the UK: Focus on Eye Tests and Stricter Drink-Driving Limits
Viktor Orbán Criticizes EU's Financial Support for Ukraine Amid Economic Concerns
South Korea's Military Shrinks by 20% Amid Declining Birthrate
US Postal Service Targets Unregulated Vape Distributors in Crackdown
Duluth International Airport Running on Tech Older Than Your Grandmother's Vinyl Player
RFK Jr. Announces HHS Investigation into Big Pharma Incentives to Doctors
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Security flaws in a carmaker’s web portal let one hacker remotely unlock cars from anywhere
Street justice isn’t pretty but how else do you deal with this kind of insanity? Sometimes someone needs to standup and say something
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign U.S.-brokered accord at White House outlining transit link via southern Armenia
Barcelona Resolves Captaincy Issue with Marc-André ter Stegen
US Justice Department Seeks Release of Epstein and Maxwell Grand Jury Exhibits Amid Legal and Victim Challenges
Trump Urges Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan to Resign Over Alleged Chinese Business Ties
Scotland’s First Minister Meets Trump Amid Visit Highlighting Whisky Tariffs, Gaza Crisis and Heritage Links
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
×