King Charles heart-breaking last words to Prince Philip hours before his death

Daily Mirror

2 days ago

King Charles once revealed the poignant and emotional last conversation he had with his father Prince Philip just hours before he died. Philip, who was born on this day in 1921, passed away in 2021 at the age of 99, seeing out his final peaceful days surrounded by his family in Windsor Castle.
In a BBC documentary film celebrating the life of the late royal, King Charles reminisced on the last conversation he had with his father the day before he died, highlighting his quick wit and cheeky sense of humour. During the intimate interview, Charles recalled how he gently broached the subject of Philip's upcoming 100th birthday and suggested a party, knowing it was something his dad was not that excited about.
Knowing his elderly father was hard of hearing, he clarified what he was talking about as he spoke loudly to Prince Philip, emphasising: 'We're talking about your birthday! And whether there's going to be a reception!'
To which Charles said Philip replied sharply, without missing a beat: "Well, I've got to be alive for it, haven't I?" Charles then said: "I told him 'I knew you'd say that!'"
Despite Philip's morbid sense of humour and candid comments about his morality, King Charles said the conversation made for an unforgettable and happy memory with his dad.
According to royal expert Katie Nicholl and her 2022 book, The New Royals: Queen Elizabeth's Legacy and the Future of the Crown, the father and son shared another touching moment before his death in April 2021.
Nicholl said that it was during one of their last visits together that Philip made a special request of the heir, as she wrote: "Charles got time with his father as well and Philip told him, 'Whatever you do, promise me you will take care of your mother.' Charles was very emotional.'"
Following Philip's death, then-Prince Charles paid a loving tribute to his father, telling reporters outside his Gloucestershire estate of Highgrove: "As you can imagine, my family and I miss my father enormously."
He described his father as "a much-loved and appreciated figure and apart from anything else, I can imagine, he would be so deeply touched by the number of other people here and elsewhere around the world and the Commonwealth, who also, I think, share our loss and our sorrow".
He said: "My dear papa was a very special person who I think above all else would have been amazed by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him and from that point of view we are, my family, deeply grateful for all that. It will sustain us in this particular loss and at this particularly sad time."
In the days after his death, Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, also spoke to parishioners outside a church service, making her own comments about the death of Prince Philip, while assuring the congregation that the royal passed away peacefully.
She told the members of the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge in Windsor: 'It was right for him. It was so gentle. It was just like somebody took him by the hand and off he went. Very, very peaceful and that's all you want for somebody isn't it? So, I think it's so much easier for the person that goes than the people that are left behind.'
Today marks what would've been Prince Philip's 104th birthday, with the royal born on June 10th 1921 in Corfu, Greece. In February 1947, Philip took his mother's maiden name of Mountbatten while renouncing his rights to the Greek and Danish throne.
In November the same year, Prince Philip married Queen Elizabeth at Westminster Abbey, with the royal couple going on to have four children: King Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward.
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