Prince Philip: Readers share tributes after Duke of Edinburgh dies

There has been an outpouring of tributes after the Duke of Edinburgh died just months short of his 100th birthday.

Prince Philip “passed away peacefully” this morning at Windsor Castle, the Palace confirmed today.

Reacting to the news, readers took to The Scotsman Facebook page to share their tributes and memories of His Royal Highness.

“One of the last few surviving WWII veterans who helped keep our world free,” said Craig Lankester, “His contributions to the young such as the Duke of Edinburgh Award, his interest and support for conservation (before it became fashionable) and of course his love and support for the Queen. RIP.”

Doug McClain recounted how he saw the Duke at the 25th anniversary celebration of NATO in Portsmouth.

He said: “He and the Queen passed in review by my ship and they were standing on deck to view all of the ships from every NATO country that were there. RIP Sir! Thank you for your service.”

Scott Reid said he had been “honoured” to have met and spoken briefly with the Duke.

Also looking back, Angela Bunting said: “I remember going to the cinema to see their wedding on Pathe News. A decent man who took on a very difficult job, and did it with dignity, and not a little humour.”

Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth in June 1962.

And Jacqueline Headon said she couldn’t remember life before the existing Royal Family: “My heart goes out to the whole family”.

In pictures: Prince Philip through the years

Many expressed sympathy for the Queen, who was married to Prince Philip for 70 years.

Alison Braine said: “A huge loss to Her Majesty and I think to the country and to me personally, he's been there all my life. He'll be sorely missed.”

Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh at the formal naming ceremony for HMS Queen Elizabeth in Rosyth Dockyard, Fife.

Laurina Tully expressed her “heartfelt sympathy” to the Queen, while Andrea Sinclair said: “This is so sad for the queen and family, he was the Duke of my home city Edinburgh RIP sir you were one of our greatest assets.”

And Jac Ack said: “I feel so sorry for the queen, she will be lost without him.”

Some readers pointed out the Prince’s legacy of setting up the Duke of Edinburgh Awards for young people.

Alan Mackay said: “How many millions of young lives around the world have been enhanced by the Duke of Edinburgh awards? That's his greatest achievement [in my humble opinion].”

Others remembered his lively personality fondly.

"Bless you Philip, you were never boring, you were a character,” said Edward Lynch.

And Dino Franicevic-Vićan said: “I loved his character and sense of humor, farewell Your Highness.”

Finally, Frantz Labbé wrote of the Prince, who was 99 when he died: “One year shy of a Century! You need some much-needed rest. Rest in peace.”

Buckingham Palace leads tributes to Prince Philip

A message from the Editor:Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.