Prince Andrew arrived first at Windsor Castle to comfort Queen just five minutes after Prince Philip's death
Buckingham Palace released the news of the death of Prince Philips, the Duke of Edinburgh, on Friday. He is believed to have been in the company of his wife and a small group of staff at Windsor Castle when he breathed his last just two months before his 100th birthday, this was before his sons could arrive to be by his side. Prince Andrew who lives at the Royal Lodge on the Windsor Estate was the first to arrive at the back entrance to the Queen's private apartments within five minutes of his father's death.
By 11:45 am, almost an hour after Andrew's arrival, another family member believed to be Prince Edward also arrived to be by his mother's side. The Queen's second son made an hour-long journey to the castle from Bagshot Park, Surrey, which has been his home for more than two decades.
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Prince of Wales, Charles, was the last to arrive at Windsor after traveling for two hours from his Highgrove home in Gloucestershire. Prince Charles and Prince Philip were known to have a rocky relationship but were "comforted" by the fact that they had been in regular contact recently and "said all the things that needed to be said," according to a source close to Charles. The source added, "It is some small comfort today that the prince was in much more regular contact with his father in recent weeks and months than he otherwise might have been."
"He was the only family member who was able to visit him in hospital and he was at Windsor as recently as the week before last. They spoke a great deal," the source said. Prince Charles's friends pointed out that the father-son duo had gone back to being warm and their relationship had been better than ever. One of them said, "The idea that their relationship was strained, certainly in recent years, couldn't have been further from the truth. And that's an important thing to remember in all that is being written. There was genuine love, affection, and understanding there. Which is all anyone holds dear at the end."
Prince Philip was in and out of the hospital a great deal in the past couple of years but his death still came as a shock to the family. A source told the Daily Telegraph, "It was a surprise even though he had been in ill health. I think there was a sense that the Iron Duke would keep on going and make it to his 100th birthday but sadly it wasn't to be."
The news of his death was disseminated to members of the royal family after being confirmed by the on-call royal doctor and was later relayed to the prime minister and relevant arms of the government via a simple message, "Forth Bridge is Down", the official codewords for the Duke of Edinburgh's death. Around the country, Union flags began to be flown at half-mast and will remain so until after the funeral next Saturday.