Prince Charles Shares Rare Childhood Photo With Father Prince Philip

Prince Charles continues to remember his late father Prince Philip after the royal’s death last month, choosing a touching throwback photo of himself with Philip to be included in thank-you cards to royal fans sharing message of sympathy. Instagram user Lise M recently gave fans a look at the thank-you card she received after sending her condolences, revealing a black-and-white photo from 1958 of a young Charles and Philip on a boat alongside in a small motorboat at Cowes, Isle of Wight.

The photo appeared next to a note from Charles that read, “The Prince of Wales thanks you so much for your very kind message of sympathy. His Royal Highness has been enormously touched by the many generous messages that have been received in recent days; they have provided great comfort at this very sad time.” The note concluded, “The Prince of Wales sends you his warmest thanks and best wishes.” Liese wrote, “This is such a beautiful card, and it made me very emotional to read it. Will treasure this card forever.”

The card features a black border, which is typically used by members of the royal family in periods of mourning. Queen Elizabeth broke with this tradition during the period following Philip’s death and will use use personalized stationery featuring her crest in black instead of the customary red.

Philip died on April 9 at age 99, and his funeral was held at Windsor Castle on April 17. One day after his father’s death, Charles shared a video message remembering Philip, beginning by reflecting on his father’s life of service. “I particularly wanted to say that my father, for I suppose the last 70 years, has given the most remarkable, devoted service to The Queen, to my family and to the country, but also to the whole of the Commonwealth,” the Prince of Wales said.

“As you can imagine, my family and I miss my father enormously,” he continued. “He was a much loved and appreciated figure and apart from anything else, I can imagine, he would be so deeply touched by the number of other people here and elsewhere around the world and the Commonwealth, who also I think, share our loss and our sorrow.”

The 72-year-old concluded, “My dear Papa was a very special person who I think above all else would have been amazed by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him and from that point of view we are, my family, deeply grateful for all that. It will sustain us in this particular loss and at this particularly sad time.”