Duke who gave a human touch to the monarchy
I AM reminded of Tennyson’s ode: ‘Bury the Great Duke / With an empire’s lamentation.’
The Duke of Edinburgh could be controversial but, like the Queen, he has been a fixture in our lives.
Royalty may no longer attract universal deference, but we can all acknowledge Prince Philip lived his life according to his deep principles of duty and patriotism.
Massed public grieving is not possible during the pandemic, but I have no doubt most of us will, in one way or another, pay respect to our Great Duke. We will surely not see his like again. Rev ANDREW McLuSKEY,
Ashford, Surrey.
Lifetime of service
PRINCE Philip served and supported the Queen and the nation. He saw active service in the Second World War in the Royal Navy and carried on his loyal service to this country until the end.
Condolences to the Queen and the Royal Family. The nation mourns with you.
N. WOODS, Chilton, Co. Durham.
WHILE we are all saddened by the loss of Prince Philip, we can take comfort knowing he lived an incredible life.
Prince Philip has taught us many lessons: to enjoy what you do work and hobby-wise; to be humble, a necessary lesson for many today especially loud-mouth reality stars; and to provide a loving support to your spouse and family. By following his example we can all live happily and in better harmony with nature.
ANNABEL ROBB, Stirling.
AN AMAZING man who gave a human touch to the monarchy. Rest in peace, dear Sir.
C. THOMPSON, Ripley, Derbys.
PRINCE Philip’s passing marks the end of male values little regarded in this age of snowflakes and safe spaces: duty, self-sacrifice, hard work and dedication allied to a cheerful, unapologetic masculinity now held to be toxic. DR JOHN CAMERON,
St Andrews, Fife.
Fitting tribute
A LASTING memorial to Prince Philip would be for Britain to lead in the preservation of wildlife and protection of our planet. This would reflect his time as President of the World Wildlife Fund.
BARRY DAVIES, Chorley, Lancs.
Witty and affable
I WAS deeply saddened when I heard the news of the death of the Duke of Edinburgh.
As well as having a reputation as being something of a wit, he was affable company and a rich source of wisdom. If his funeral is to be a low-key affair without any pageantry, then I’m sure that’s how he would have wanted it.
JENNY PAIN, Chatham, Kent.
A GREAT man who so often stood in the shadow of his wife and Queen, offering his support as and when it was needed, and not seeking any praise for himself.
JOHN BOWLER, Portsmouth, Hants.
Boundless energy
I ORGANISED scores of events with the Duke of Edinburgh over the past ten years. He was chairman and then patron of Outward Bound from 1953 until he retired from public duty.
He was a fundraiser’s dream and was delighted to help us in any way possible, including dinners with Tom Cruise, Eric Clapton and Carole King. There were many events and they were great nights.
What most people don’t know is that every single year he made time in his diary to visit an Outward Bound centre.
He spent hours talking to everyone and participating in some of the activities — even in his 90s!
ALAN BOLCHOVER, Outward Bound Trust, London SE1.
Respectful BBC
CREDIT where it’s due. I would like to praise the BBC for the way in which it covered the events on the day of Prince Philip’s passing.
It cleared its schedules to give full coverage.
ANDY LAWRIE, Cheltenham, Glos.
WHILE the nation was justifiably sad at the passing of the Duke of Edinburgh, was there really any need for all the BBC channels to scrap scheduled programmes? He would not have approved, as he didn’t like a fuss. RICK EMERSON, Bagshot, Surrey.
PERHAPS now all the antimonarchists will realise the value and service given by the Royal Family to our country.
CHRIS ABBOTT, Maidenhead, Berks.
Honour his memory
FOLLOWING the death of Diana, 15 tons of bouquets were left in her honour around London.
Dead flowers can be composted and used as plant-nourishing mulch. This is not true of the plastic they are wrapped in.
If we have any respect for Prince Philip’s work as an environmentalist, we’d realise the irony of adding to the ecological burden of this planet by laying floral tributes wrapped in plastic. JILL DAVIES, London SE27.
I THINK it would be nice to plant a tree or a plant in your garden in his memory rather than cut flowers to avoid people gathering.
B LOGAN, Falkirk, Stirlingshire
IT HAS always puzzled me why some people feel the need to leave non-biodegradable offerings, such as soft toys and balloons, in homage. A donation to a charity would be so much more meaningful. ROY CONOLLY, Haverfordwest,
Pembs.