Prince Philip’s Daughter-in-Law Describes His Final Moments

Prince Philip’s final moments were “gentle,” according to his daughter-in-law, Sophie, Countess of Wessex. Two days after the Duke of Edinburgh died, Sophie reflected on his passing when speaking with reporters after the royal family attended a service at the chapel on the Windsor estate on Sunday morning.

Sharing the intimate details of his Friday, April 9 passing, Sophie told ITV News “it was right for him.” She added that his death at the age of 99 was “so gentle,” as if “somebody took him by the hand and off he went. Very, very peaceful. And that’s all you want for somebody isn’t it?” Sophie, who is married to the Queen’s son, Prince Edward, went on to state, “So I think it is so much easier for the person that goes than the people who are left behind. We are all sitting here looking at each other going ‘this is awful.’ But equally, look at all the tributes. It’s just amazing.”

Philip died Friday morning at Windsor Castle as the longest-serving consort to a British sovereign. News of his passing was shared by the Queen in an official statement from Buckingham Palace, which read, “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. His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle.” Her Majesty and Philip had been married for more than 70 years, with Sophie telling reporters on Saturday that “the Queen has been amazing.” According to their son, who also spoke to media following the Sunday church service, the death of his father has left a “huge void” in his mother’s heart and life.

“It’s a great loss. We have lost, almost, the grandfather of the nation. And I feel very sorry and supportive of my mother, who is feeling it probably more than everybody else,” the Duke of York, the couple’s third child, said, E! News reports. “She’s contemplating, is the way I would put it. She described it as having left a huge void in her life, but we, the family, the ones that are closer, are rallying around to make sure we are there to support her.”

Philip’s funeral is set to take place on Saturday, April 17 at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the late prince’s own wishes, the funeral will be on a much smaller scale and only attend by the royal family. Prince Harry, who stepped down from royal duties in 2020, reportedly returned to the U.K. over the weekend to be by his family’s side.