Royal moderniser Prince Philip went through Palace ‘like a whirlwind,’ says biographer
AS there is no official position within the monarchy for the husband of a reigning Queen, Prince Philip was forced to carve a life for himself.
He started to do this within weeks of moving into Buckingham Palace in 1952, going through the place like a whirlwind.
And his modernising influence is felt to this day.
Philip discovered there were two separate kitchens, one for the Royal Family, the other for everyone else.
And nothing that was prepared and cooked in the royal kitchen was allowed to be eaten by mere commoners.
At first he was highly amused at this antiquated system, which had been in existence since Queen Victoria’s reign.
Then he was furious at the obvious waste of food and manpower.
So, he ordered one kitchen to be closed immediately and the meals for everybody, royals included, to be served from the one that remained.
He then found out more than 400 domestic staff worked at the Palace.
Dozens had no particular job, were nearing retirement and just wandered around waiting for the next meal or sat dozing in their third-floor rooms.
So he fired 100. It didn’t make him popular. But then Philip was never a man to court popularity.
However, he did earn the gratitude of every footman in the Palace when he dispensed with the need to powder their hair.
The rule had been in existence for more than 100 years, but it was a ridiculous and unhygienic custom that they hated. Philip agreed, so out it went.
Some of the old guard at the Palace were horrified at the way this “upstart foreigner” charged around the place.
He seemed to be poking his nose into every nook and cranny, asking questions about the inefficiency that characterised the Royal Household in those days.
It was mainly through his efforts to modernise the Palace that it became the smooth and much more economical organisation it is today.
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The Queen never interferes with Philip’s plans even if, privately, she doesn’t always see the need for them.
But if Philip was happy, she was content for him to do whatever he wanted.
A man of great spirit who has never let Queen down
Brian Hoey
Anyway, in those early years, the Queen was busy learning the business of monarchy so Philip had to try and find some way of occupying himself.
Part of his enthusiasm for change evolved from the frustration he felt through having no official role.
In constitutional terms he did not exist. Elizabeth was on the throne for ten years before making him a Prince.
Throughout his life he has been denied the right to see State papers.
The Queen may occasionally discuss with him informally some of the contents of the red boxes she receives every evening from Government ministers.
Officially his opinion counts for nothing. Unofficially, though, his influence is greatly felt and gradually he forged a unique position in the life of the nation.
It was never easy. He was a promising naval officer when he married Princess Elizabeth in 1947.
Within five years he had to put aside his own personal ambitions to become, in the Queen’s own words, “the rock” upon which she was able to lean whenever she felt the need.
A man of great independent spirit, to whom the idea of having to walk the mandatory two steps behind his wife in public must have been completely alien, never once did he let her down.
And never once did he allow anyone to slight her. Whereas she must keep her opinions to herself, avoiding controversy, Philip was never so constrained.
At times he appears to court it deliberately, knowing that few would dare to challenge his opinions.
He is also the only person in the world who could tell the Queen if he thought she might have handled a particular situation differently.
He insisted royalty and staff no longer had food cooked in separate kitchens
Brian Hoey
Courtiers and Prime Ministers invariably tell her what they think she wants to hear.
Philip is not afraid to tell her what she needs to hear.
Philip was involved with hundreds of organisations, both military and civil, and took an active interest in them all.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme has helped more than two million young people from 52 countries to take part in its challenging activities.
And he has worked tirelessly for the Worldwide Fund for Nature.
He has been described as being rude, overbearing, aggressive and arrogant, although he preferred to think of it as supreme self-confidence.
But his personal staff would never hear a word said against him. To them he is a hero and his was the longest-serving and most loyal team in the Royal Household.
The Queen is said to occupy the loneliest position in the world. Without the unfailing support of Prince Philip for more than half a century, both she and the monarchy would be the poorer today.