Queen Elizabeth II penned one final goodbye to her husband Prince Philip.
At the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral on April 17, a card could be seen on top of the late royal’s coffin. The note, written on the Queen’s stationary and placed alongside flowers, appeared to read in part, “I love you.”
The couple, who wed in 1947, had been married for 73 years before he passed away on April 9. In fact, handwritten letters were how the duo first communicated when their romance began, so a final, heartbreaking note feels especially fitting.
“It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen has announced the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh,” Buckingham Palace said in an April 9 statement. “His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle. The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss.”
At the funeral, the queen, dressed in all black and a mask, sat alone at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle to abide by health protocols amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. A total of 30 guests were at the service, including the couple’s children Prince Charles, Prince Edward, Princess Anne and Prince Andrew, as well as grandchildren Prince Harry and Prince William, who walked in a group for Philip’s procession.
On April 16, one day before the funeral, the monarch shared a never-before-seen photo of her and Philip. The image of the smiling couple was taken at the top of the Coyles of Muick in Scotland in 2003.
