# Prince Philip has died **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 9, 2021, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670 "2021-04-09T11:08:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/81 "2021-04-09T23:02:17Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I can’t think of a similar case in the modern era where a religion based around a living person had their god die. Well, _any_ religion based around a living person will eventually have their god die. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/82 "2021-04-09T23:06:12Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I can’t think of a similar case in the modern era where a religion based around a living person had their god die. Rastafarianism and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/83 "2021-04-09T23:45:37Z")
I’m glad he made it home from hospital to have his last days in the familiarity of home with his wife. ---
**Author:** ![Bootb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@Bootb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootb)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2021, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/84 "2021-04-09T23:50:35Z")
> [@DeathPool](#): > > She is 94 but she seems to be a healthy 94, he was in and out of the hospital and probably would have died at least ten years ago without modern medicine. On the contrary, he didn’t retire until he was 96. He worked harder than most people 30 years younger than him. > **[Prince Philip is retiring from royal duties](https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/39802253)** > > The Queen's husband Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, will take part in his final public meeting today before he retires from royal duties. Find out more about him here. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/85 "2021-04-10T00:00:42Z")
> [@Bootb](#): > > He worked harder than most people 30 years younger than him. Did he? Really? I am not trying to dump on the guy but royalty working their ass off is an oxymoron. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/86 "2021-04-10T01:32:19Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > The leader of the Commonwealth of Nations is called Head. Queen Elizabeth II is the monarch of only 16 of the 33 members of the Commonwealth. Huh. Something for me to look up. But I’d guess that most of the people who are really upset at his passing consider Liz to be their queen. Well, except queen Elizabeth herself, of course. I imagine she’s pretty sad. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/87 "2021-04-10T01:32:51Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > “How long before the Queen can start dating again?” The Jewish tradition says one year. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/88 "2021-04-10T01:32:59Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Did he? Really? > > I am not trying to dump on the guy but royalty working their ass off is an oxymoron. It’s estimated that in the last 66 years, Prince Phillip did 22,000 solo engagements, at community events, charity events, commercial conferences and so on. He’s also believed to have made 5,500 speeches. That averages 83 speaking events a year, and 333 solo engagements a year. That’s a pretty impressive workload, especially considering he was still doing it (albeit at a reduced pace) until just 3 years ago, when he turned 96. That doesn’t count the engagements when he was accompanying the Queen, two steps behind. Stats from this article: > **[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, dead at 99 | CBC News](https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/prince-philip-dead-dies-obit-obituary-1.5981009)** > > Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh and husband of Queen Elizabeth, died today at 99. He was the longest-serving royal consort in British history, and deeply devoted to his duty in that role. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/89 "2021-04-10T01:35:51Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > The leader of the Commonwealth of Nations is called Head. Queen Elizabeth II is the monarch of only 16 of the 33 members of the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth has 55 member states. > **[Commonwealth of Nations](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_of_Nations)** > > The Commonwealth of Nations, often simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is an international association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire from which it developed. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Commonwealth Secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental aspects, and the Commonwealth Foundation, which focuses on non-governmental relations among member states. Numerous organisations are associated with and o The C... ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/90 "2021-04-10T01:38:22Z")
I think of a woman working 16 hours a day scrubbing floors as working your ass off and you put this up as working your ass off. Not the same thing. At all. Not even close. YMMV ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/91 "2021-04-10T01:40:50Z")
Thanks. No idea why I typed 33. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/92 "2021-04-10T01:41:56Z")
And I mistyped myself. 54, not 55. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/93 "2021-04-10T05:39:59Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > The Jewish tradition says one year. In the shorter term, she will be [sitting shiva](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva_(Judaism)) for a week. ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/94 "2021-04-10T10:48:33Z")
There are hundreds of obituaries and articles about Prince Philip, but this is probably the one that’s most worth reading. Highly recommended. > **[The Philip I knew was the best of company – and the best of men](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2021/04/09/philip-knew-best-company-best-men/)** > > As the Duke's biographer, Gyles Brandreth found him to be a brave man who showed unexpected moments of sensitivity > “And when you are dead,” I said, “how do you think you will be remembered?” > > “I’ve no idea,” he replied. > > “No idea?” I persisted. > > He looked gloomily about him and sighed (we were at Buckingham Palace, sitting in what is known as The Duke of Edinburgh’s Sunshine Room). > > “If the media have anything to do with it, ‘cantankerous old sod’, I suppose.” He leant forward and looked me straight in the eye. “Isn’t that what I am? A cantankerous old sod. Isn’t that it?” > > On that particular day, it was. The Duke had his moods. He could be irritable, contrary, pig-headed and ungiving. > > But on the whole and as a rule – and I knew him for almost 50 years – he was the best of company: funny and surprisingly tolerant. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/95 "2021-04-10T11:48:04Z")
> [@slash2k](#): > > I would assume probably not. Duke of Rothesay is the traditional title of the heir to the Scottish throne, the counterpart to Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall for the English throne, so he’ll probably stick with that one, and Edinburgh will only be mentioned if they need to trot out the full thing: I would assume he would not use it out of respect for his father except for as you say when the full list of his titles is to be used and also when he is doing duties inherited from his father, such as charities. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/96 "2021-04-10T12:08:28Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > I would assume he would not use it out of respect for his father I use my parent’s name out of respect for my parents. I’ve never heard that the royals were any different. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/97 "2021-04-10T14:13:22Z")
Yeah, I am not very close to how titles are used or anything, but it seems odd to me that it would be thought of as disrespectful to use a title inherited from your deceased father. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/98 "2021-04-10T14:20:02Z")
I’ve read most of the obit that I got phone alerts for. i guess the two that I’ve found most interesting were from [The Economist](https://www.economist.com/obituary/2021/04/09/prince-philip-duke-of-edinburgh-is-dead) and [al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2021/4/9/prince-philip-obit). The al Jazeera one was surprisingly (to me) warm. I would have expected them to have a dimmer view of an embodiment of Empire. Of course, they did have a tag for this trending article: [https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2017/8/13/the-priceless-racism-of-the-duke-of-edinburgh](https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2017/8/13/the-priceless-racism-of-the-duke-of-edinburgh) Reading about his life, I think it must have been very hard for him to always be the second fiddle. ---
**Author:** ![Bootb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@Bootb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootb)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/99 "2021-04-10T15:09:22Z")
From what I’ve read, he would have been much happier staying in the Navy. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670/100 "2021-04-10T15:12:59Z")
> [@PatrickLondon](#): > > Sitting here in London, I feel oddly dislocated, but that’s probably simply because the familiar broadcasting schedules have been upended, at least on the main channels, with the BBC switching all channels to a single obituary-plus-talking-heads programme. And one of the other channels seems to have dropped ads, just showing an animated version of its logo (not surprising, most of the ads in the afternoon are for funeral insurance and prepaid cremations - I’m wondering if they’ll have dropped the re-runs of Waiting for God). There’s an AP story that some in the UK think the wall-to-wall coverage on the BBC is excessive, while others think it’s entirely appropriate. In short, they can’t make everyone happy. (Although surely those who want to avoid the coverage just have to change the channel or switch to streaming something. I’m visiting my parents who are complaining about the endless coverage of the Derek Chauvin trial in Minneapolis, but I haven’t noticed as I don’t watch the channels that offer all-day coverage.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prince-philip-has-died/939670.md?page=6)