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Prince Philip

Gun salutes and peals of bells to celebrate Prince Philip’s 94th birthday

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The Duke of Edinburgh is 94 on June 10th 2015

There have been gun salutes and peals of bells to mark the 94th birthday of The Duke of Edinburgh. But the man at the heart of the celebrations is keeping a low profile – it’s thought Prince Philip will spend the day quietly with his family. He has no public engagements planned.

At noon there was a 41 gun salute in Green Park. The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery left Wellington Barracks just after 11am and rode past Buckingham Palace on their way to Green Park for the salute. Just before their arrival the Band of the Royal Artillery played some celebratory music to mark the royal birthday. Six First World War era Field Guns were used in the salute.

An hour later, at 1pm, there was a 62 gun salute at the Tower of London to mark The Duke’s birthday. At the same time, the bells of Westminster Abbey were rung to celebrate the special occasion.

Philip was born at Mon Repos on Corfu on June 10th 1921, the fifth child and only son of Prince Andrew of Greece and Princess Alice of Battenburg and he had four older sisters. Through his father he is descended from the Kings of Greece and of Denmark and through his mother he is a descendant of Queen Victoria. He married the then Princess Elizabeth in 1947 and he is now the longest serving consort in British history.

Although he may be spending his birthday out of the public eye, this has been a busy week for The Duke of Edinburgh. He began it in Richmond, south west London where he quipped that he was the ‘world’s most experienced plaque unveiler’ and on Tuesday he accompanied The Queen to the outdoor pageant marking 200 years of service to the Crown by the Gurkhas. And he will be helping his wife mark her official birthday on Saturday at Trooping the Colour.

Photo credit: UK Ministry of Defence via Flickr