The Queen will be strengthened today by the love and respect of millions around the world
sir – The Queen will be sitting alone at today’s funeral. Physically that may be true, but she will also be surrounded by the love, affection and respect of millions around the world, and it is certain that will give her strength. David Miller
Newton Abbot, Devon
sir – I am no more than an ordinary citizen of the United Kingdom. I am not, particularly, a royalist or monarchist.
And yet I was taken by surprise by a powerful sense of personal loss after the death of the Duke of Edinburgh. He formed a part of our lives to a far greater extent than we had realised. Christopher Macy
Wellingore, Lincolnshire
sir – I am 72 and I do not remember a time when Prince Philip was not at the forefront of public life. He was not a self-promoting celebrity and until his death I had not appreciated the breadth of his service and the number of people he had touched. “More than we will ever know,” said the Queen.
Yes, press and broadcast coverage has been extensive, but I suspect it only scratched the surface of this complex man.
David Kenny
Tredunnock, Monmouthshire
sir – It would be a tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh if all of his Award holders wore their lapel badges today, the day of His Royal Highness’s funeral. Murray Leslie
Askrigg, North Yorkshire
sir – Sheila Farrell (Letters, April 14) recalled an occasion during the Diamond Jubilee tour in 2012. It was my elderly mother who was wrapped in a foil blanket against the cold, and the Duke did indeed stop and ask her if she was ready to go into the oven next.
This made my mother’s day, though she was sorry not to respond with an equally witty quip. The family a week later came for her 90th birthday lunch dressed, of course, in silver foil.
The press got hold of the comment and it went viral in many countries, later appearing in a book called Prince Philip: Wise Words and Golden Gaffes. It declared that his “down-to-earth humour and no-nonsense approach have brought colour to our lives”. His impromptu comment certainly did just that on that cold May day.
Pam Shaw
Beckenham, Kent
sir – My own abiding memory is of the afternoon of Tuesday June 2 1953, after the Coronation. With thousands of others, as a young Rada student, I had spent the previous day and night crouched in the rain on the Mall (second flagpole on the right from Buckingham Palace).
Excitement reached fever pitch as we waited for the Queen and the Duke to appear on the balcony. We were witnessing “the dawn of a new Elizabethan Age”, in the words of Churchill.
We surged forward on a tide of emotion, breaking through lines of good-natured police. Then suddenly there they were. We were dazzled and moved to tears. Our beautiful young newly crowned Queen and by her side the Duke – her “liegeman of life and limb and of earthly worship”.
Almost 68 years later, I too mourn the loss of the Duke, the Queen’s “strength and stay”. But in my mind’s eye still is that dashing figure – always by the side of the Queen.
Diana Travers
Burnham-on-sea, Somerset sir – In 1962 the Duke visited South America. In Chile my father, working for a British-owned bank, was privileged to accompany him on various tours.
They shared the same sense of humour until the Duke was on the receiving end of a few rotten tomatoes. My father, understandably, was upset and embarrassed. Prince Philip just shrugged it off and carried on. Carolyn Macdougall
Berwick St James, Wiltshire
sir – I never met the Duke, but as a police constable in Westminster I saw him on many occasions.
The most memorable was the Royal household ball, Christmas 1952. I was recruited to escort a young lady from the “Linen Closet”. In attendance were the Queen, the Duke, the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret and Group Captain Townsend.
The family had butlers or pages to select partners for each dance, except the Duke, who dashed about the floor choosing his own, enjoying himself immensely.
My partner was an excellent dancer, and it was a thrill to mingle with the Royal family in such a relaxed setting. Michael Deeprose
Morden, Surrey
sir – I met the Duke at the Eccentric Club annual dinner in London.
He asked me why I was eccentric. I said: “I can speak to insects and they respond.” He raised an eyebrow and said: “I bet they have listened in to some intriguing conversations.” Edward Rupert Boisier
Duffield, Derbyshire
sir – How sad that the world has not been able to benefit from the Duke’s views on the new cricket language. John Bennet
Totland Bay, Isle of Wight