Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth had the rarest of unions: a royal love match. VFArchive
As cousins, Philip and young Elizabeth had crossed paths twice, first at a family wedding in 1934 and then at the coronation of King George VI in 1937. But it wasn't until July 22, 1939, when the King and Queen took their daughters to the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth, that the 13-year-old princess spent any time with 18-year-old Philip, who was a cadet in training at the school.
While Philip was completing his deployment in the Far East, Lilibet enjoyed the freedom of the postwar period. At a party given by the Grenfell family at their Belgravia home in February 1946 to celebrate the peace, the princess impressed Laura Grenfell as"absolutely natural... she opens with a very easy and cosy joke or remark.... She had everyone in fits talking about a sentry who lost his hat while presenting arms." Elizabeth"danced every dance....
The princess"would not have been a difficult person to love," said Patricia Mountbatten."She was beautiful, amusing and gay. She was fun to take dancing or to the theater." In the seven years since their first meeting, Lilibet had indeed become a beauty, her appeal enhanced by being petite. She did not have classical features but rather whatmagazine described as"pin-up" charm: big bosom , narrow shoulders, a small waist, and shapely legs.
Just before his daughter's wedding, the King gave his future son-in-law a collection of grand titles—Duke of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth, and Baron Greenwich—and decreed that he should be addressed as"His Royal Highness." He would be called the Duke of Edinburgh, although he would continue to be known popularly as Prince Philip and would use his Christian name for his signature.
While the bells of the abbey pealed, Elizabeth and Philip were driven to Buckingham Palace in the Glass Coach, preceded and followed by two regiments of the Household Cavalry on horseback. It was the most elaborate public display since the war, and the crowds responded with ecstatic cheers.
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