ROYAL ROSE
Queen presented with special rose bred to mark what would have been Prince Philip’s 100th birthday
A SPECIAL rose bred in honour of what would have been Prince Philip’s 100th birthday is presented to Her Majesty — by a man called Weed.
The flower was planted in the gardens of Windsor Castle yesterday after being handed over to the Queen by Keith Weed, president of the Royal Horticultural Society.
🔵 Read our Royal Family live blog for the latest updates
6
The deep pink commemorative rose was officially named in memory of the Duke, who died aged 99 on April 9.
Today would have been his 100th birthday.
Mr Weed told the Queen: “It’s a rose named the Duke of Edinburgh Rose to mark his centenary and it’s a commemorative rose for all the marvellous things that he did over his lifetime and for everyone to remember so much that he did.”
The Queen replied: “It looks lovely.”
She added the tribute was “very kind”.
Royalties from sales of the flower will go to the Duke of Edinburgh Award’s Living Legacy Fund, which gives more youngsters the chance to take part in the popular scheme.
6
6
The Queen wore shades and a blue floral dress with white cardigan for the visit.
She watched Winsdor’s head gardener Philip Carter plant it at the front of the mixed rose border.
But she remarked that after the cold May “nothing has flowered here much”.
The Duke of Edinburgh passed away "peacefully" at Windsor Castle on April 9.
He is believed to have spent his last few days reading and writing letters and sleeping in the sun weeks before his 100th birthday.
He and the Queen celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary in November last year — a remarkable achievement for any couple.
The Queen - who was just 13 years old when she met her future husband - was said to have been struck by 18 year old Philip's "Viking" good looks and sportsmanship.
When the Queen was 17 and Philip 22, they again ran into each other at Windsor Castle at which time the Queen performed in a pantomime of Aladdin.
6
6
It was after this that Philip reportedly started carrying her photo with him for the duration of the war.
It was a couple of years later in 1946 that the Duke of Edinburgh popped the question.
The pair married on November 20, 1947 at Westminster Abbey, before welcoming Prince Charles just under a year later.
The couple reached the rare personal milestone of their platinum wedding anniversary on November 20, 2017, and in a touching gesture the Queen appointed Philip a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order for his years of devotion and duty.
They shared an unbreakable bond, united at key moments of history, witnessed from the unique viewpoint of a monarch and her consort.
While private secretaries and household staff have come and gone, Philip remained a constant in the Queen’s life.
They travelled the globe together, endured state visit after state visit and thousands of engagements over the years, all made more bearable with one another’s company and through the knowledge they were in it as a duo, albeit with one wearing the crown.
They also witnessed the changing world from a shared standpoint, with just five years’ difference in age between them.
Most read in News
They saw the rapid advances in technology, from man walking on the moon for the first time to the arrival of the internet.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Philip was a moderniser, overhauling the running of Buckingham Palace and their private homes, Sandringham, in Norfolk, and Balmoral in Scotland.
Behind the scenes, he was also the head of the family, dubbed The Firm.
6
Prince Harry seen for the first time since row with Palace over using Queen's name Lilibet for baby daughter
Topics