Duke of Edinburgh to Retire from Public Engagements in August: May 4, 2017


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:previous: He'll retire just in time to avoid certain unpleasant visit in Autumn :whistling: :D

I think it's just a well-deserved retirement and a very understandable decision to take at 95. It was in fact admirable the fact that he has mantain his public duties with little change until now. I wish him a paceful retired life.
 
Who's visiting in Autumn?


LaRae
 
I think he most likely would be around for that. His retirement in September, from what I gather, is that he'll not be taking on any visits to places, opening things and unveiling things that make up a lot of his royal duties. Charities and patronages will most likely all distributed elsewhere.

He'll very much still be by his wife's side at dinners, events and maybe even throw a sumptious barbeque for the Donald. He's not going into seclusion but just retiring from his own public duties.

I can't imagine this retirement slowing Philip down one bit. He'll just have more time to do the things he really wants to do. Just have to keep an eye on him so he doesn't go tearing through Windsor in his carriage too much.
 
Read More: Prince Philip's farewell tour to include Chelsea Flower Show, trip to Ascot and state visit of the King and Queen of Spain
he Duke of Edinburgh’s busy ‘farewell tour’ will fittingly include a dinner and reception for the charity he founded and bears his name.

Prince Philip will host a dinner for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in a fortnight’s time and follow that with a Buckingham Palace reception for youngsters who have achieved its gold standard.

Details of two of his final engagements are contained on a list of future diary events posted on the Royal Family’s website.

Prince Philip will also attend garden parties, the Chelsea Flower Show, the Trooping the Colour and Royal Ascot, carrying out all the duties already in the diary.

The King and Queen of Spain will pay a three-day state visit, starting on July 12th, which he will also attend. The ‘line in the sand’ will be the Queen and Duke’s annual summer holiday to Balmoral in August. After that, the Prince will largely retire from public duties.

Read More: Outspoken, dutiful, and mischevous: Prince Philip will be a tough act to follow
When he retires from public life this year, all but the most hard-hearted republicans will miss the high-spirited and freewheeling commentary of Prince Philip on our national stage. In an era of a carefully choreographed monarchy and a professional political class, Prince Philip has often provided a refreshing alternative.

The Duke has been unafraid to speak his mind, even under the pressures of political correctness and with the heavy weight of his royal responsibility on his shoulders. Prince Philip has been a quintessential British Royal, but we should never forget that he was a continental European born in Greece, and educated in France and Germany, a perfect success story of integration into British life. He is a man who has won the nation over through hard work and good cheer.
 
So, I wonder?

Anne attended, did she know beforehand and went there as support? Or was she called to the meeting and heard about it there? If the latter, how did the rest of the family find out?

None of the other children attended? Or were there but not captured by cameras driving in?

Family dynamics are interesting in every family, much less in this one. But I am speculating the family knew about this well before we did. I'd go further and say, less speculatively, that contingencies for this were in place and well known in the family. But I do want, someday, to find out how they got this news. Did The Duke tell the kids himself? The Queen? Did her people tell their people?

Whatever, I am personally equally supportive and saddened. Like most, I am sure. :flowers:
 
Our hilarious Prince: Prince Philip's gaffes from decades on royal duty - BBC News

Read more: Prince Philip: A duty to Queen and country - BBC News
Prince Philip was once described by the Queen as "my strength and stay all these years" and his lifetime of public service is testimony to that.

When the Duke of Edinburgh does finally stand down from his royal duties this autumn, it will bring to a close the decades of him being at Her Majesty's side at all kinds of events at home and abroad.

And that is not to mention the 22,191 solo engagements he has undertaken in his role as the longest-serving consort in British history.

He is involved with more than 780 different organisations. When he reached the grand old age of 90, his only concession to his passing years was that he gave up his connections to about a dozen of them.

One of the most successful associations has been with the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, a youth self-improvement scheme, which began in 1956.

But in an interview with the BBC's Fiona Bruce when he turned 90, the Duke said he could not take credit for the highly successful scheme.

"I don't run it - I've said it's all fairly second-hand the whole business. I mean, I eventually got landed with the responsibility or the credit for it.

"I've got no reason to be proud of it. It's satisfying that we've set up a formula that works - that's it."
 
I am not a British or Commonwealth citizen, so it would not be appropriate for me to thank Prince Philip for his service, but I certainly commend him for it.

I guess the inevitable question now will be when the Queen herself will retire, either by abdicating (unlikely) or stepping down to let Charles take over as regent.
 
I am not a British or Commonwealth citizen, so it would not be appropriate for me to thank Prince Philip for his service, but I certainly commend him for it.

I guess the inevitable question now will be when the Queen herself will retire, either by abdicating (unlikely) or stepping down to let Charles take over as regent.
Not going to happen!
 
Justin Trudeau‏ @JustinTrudeau
On behalf of the Government of Canada, I thank Prince Philip for his decades of service and wish him the all the best in his retirement.
 
Well, at least we know that big meetings like this means something serious. Especially with a major group of staff from all over the Kingdom being called to Buckingham Palace. We know stuff like this shouldn't be easily dismissed in the future.

There's going to come a point where, yes, The Queen will reduce her schedule and Charles take over. I'm not talking about abdication. The realities of age is finally taking over and we have to accept it.
 
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Not going to happen!

That discussion should be moved to another forum, but I am pretty confident a regency is likely to happen at some point. The same biological constraints that apply to Prince Philip also apply to the Queen, regardless of how healthy both of them are.
 
A surprise yet not a surprise. I hope he enjoys good health so that he can relax and do the things he loves to do and maybe do some things he's always wanted to do but never had the time.
 
Not going to happen!



Yesterday people would have said that the DoE retiring wasn't going to ever happen. Yet here we are.

I strongly believe the Queen isn't likely to abdicate, but I wouldn't rule out a regency in the future.
 
Yesterday people would have said that the DoE retiring wasn't going to ever happen. Yet here we are.

I strongly believe the Queen isn't likely to abdicate, but I wouldn't rule out a regency in the future.

That's right. People have to come to terms to the reality of these people ages and stop thinking retirement or stepping back is some kind of bad words. Age, health and body has the final say.
 
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Yesterday people would have said that the DoE retiring wasn't going to ever happen. Yet here we are.

I strongly believe the Queen isn't likely to abdicate, but I wouldn't rule out a regency in the future.

To me, the best scenario as far as introducing a regency would be if Philip died before the Queen. She then would take a period of mourning and other than the "must do" business that only the sovereign can do, the rest will lie with Charles and the rest of the royal family. This may indicate not only a passing of the baton to Charles and make for a smooth transition for when the time comes, but also give HM a respite from a very hectic schedule she now has.
 
The Queen has a completely different role than Philip and as long as she is cleare in her head and is capable of meeting the PM and do some things inside the palace, then there wont be need for a regency. Her mother did engagements at the age of 101.
 
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The Duke of Edinburgh may have been the last man still active in public life who fought in the Second World War.
Bravo, and thank you Sir.
 
'I am rude but it's fun': Prince Philip in his own words
Prince Philip may be one of the most controversial royals, but he’s also by far the funniest. In 2015 a book of stories about the Duke of Edinburgh by Nigel Cawthorne, 'I know I am rude, but it’s Fun: The Royal Family and the World at Large - as Seen by Prince Philip' – was published.

The book gives context to some of Prince Philip’s best known gaffes, but also reveals some lesser-known anecdotes. Here are some of the Duke's greatest moments compiled in Cawthorne’s book:

I must admit that I have never been a big fan of Prince Philip, but I admire him for what he has done for the Queen, the UK and the Commonwealth.
 
Prince Philip's career stats:
Total number of solo engagements - 22,191
Total number of solo overseas visits - 637 (Commonwealth countries - 229 visits to 67 countries / other countries 408 visits to 76 countries)
Total number of speeches given - 5,493
Total number of patronages - 785 organisations
Presentation of colours - 54
Number of service appointments - 32
Number of books authored - 14

https://twitter.com/MaxFosterCNN/status/860087892391198721
 
I think we'll be hearing more of a list of patronages, military and other host of organizations he'll be handing down.
 
It is not surprising to hear and read about The Duke's of Edinburgh retirement.
He deserves a retirement, absolutely. But I'm baffled as to how this was handled.
It is the usual way the British courtiers handle issues.
 
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He deserves a retirement, absolutely. But I'm baffled as to how this was handled.

Me too!
I thought it would be something big, like an abdication or an engagement or something.

Why didn't the palace simply issue an announcement (which would have surprised nobody) instead of calling a huge meeting and getting everyone all excited over nothing, really?
 
This may be the first step in a thought-out progression. :ermm: The Queen may be next to withdraw from active public life, except for the occasional event. It may be that it is The Queen, more than Philip, who needs to withdraw. Just a thought.
 
Buckingham Palace confirmed: "Her Majesty will continue to carry out a full programme of official engagements with the support of members of the Royal Family."

Also - It's a job for life. As long as The Queen remains of sound mind, abdication or regency is out of the question.

In 1992, the Queen dismissed any speculation that she would step down, insisting frankly: "It is a job for life."

She was speaking about the death of her father, King George VI, for a BBC TV documentary, Elizabeth R, marking the 40th anniversary of her accession.

"In a way I didn't have an apprenticeship. My father died much too young and so it was all very sudden ... taking on and making the best job you can," the Queen said.

"It's a question of maturing into something that one's got used to doing, and accepting the fact that it's your fate, because I think continuity is very important. It is a job for life.
 
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