18 photos show how the Queen and Prince Philip's relationship has changed through the years
Mikhaila Friel
Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh through the years.Tropical Press via Getty Images, AP Images, Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
- Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip have been married since 1947, and have known each other far longer.
- After meeting at a wedding as children, they didn't cross paths again until years later, when the then-Princess Elizabeth was just 13, and Philip was 18.
- The couple have been through a lot together, and this certainly shows in photos from over the years.
- Here are 18 photos that show how their relationship has changed.
After falling in love as teenagers, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip announced their engagement in July 1947, when the couple were 21 and 26 respectively. This photo was taken to mark their upcoming wedding.
Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip in 1947.
Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Another pre-wedding photo shows the young couple were careful not to show PDA as they stood side-by-side in Buckingham Palace.
This photo was taken before the couple's royal wedding.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
They tied the knot on November 20, 1947 at Westminster Abbey. Elizabeth and Philip did not end their wedding ceremony with a kiss. In fact, this did not become tradition among royal couples until Princess Diana and Prince Charles kissed on the Buckingham Palace balcony after their wedding in 1981.
The royal wedding.
AP
The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh linked arms during their honeymoon in Romsey, Hampshire.
Upon his marriage to Elizabeth, Philip became the Duke of Edinburgh.
Tropical Press Agency/Getty Images
They shared a rare dance at a ball organized by the Royal Navy in 1950.
Philip and Elizabeth on the dancefloor.
AFP via Getty Images
Soon, their family started to grow. Here they are with Prince Charles, right, and Princess Anne, left, in 1951.
The royal family.
Gamma Keyston via Getty Images
Prince Philip kneeled before the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II at Her Majesty's coronation in 1953.
The Queen's coronation.
PA Images
In the years that followed, the couple still appeared as equals together in public, as shown in this photo of them at Trooping the Colour in 1963.
This photo was taken a decade after Her Majesty's coronation.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their silver wedding anniversary at Buckingham Palace on November 20, 1972. Here, they appeared more relaxed than in previous official photographs — although they still refrained from physical contact.
The Queen and Prince Philip on their 25th wedding anniversary.
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
In 1992, the Queen had what was famously known as her "annus horribilis" or "horrible year." The marriages of three of her children had ended, and there had been a catastrophic fire at her Windsor Castle residence. Always the professional, Her Majesty made many public appearances with her husband that year.
The monarch, smiling at her husband.
Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images
Philip planted a rare kiss on the monarch's cheek as the couple rang in the new millennium on New Year's Eve 1999.
A rare royal kiss.
Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
The Queen and Prince Philip re-visited their honeymoon location for their diamond wedding anniversary in 2007.
The Queen and Prince Philip released an official photo to mark their anniversary.
REUTERS/Fiona Hanson/Pool
The pair held hands — another rare form of PDA — during an outing in London in 2015.
The Queen and Prince Philip rarely show PDA.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
That same year, the couple adorably shared a blanket as they watched the Braemar Highland Gathering.
Prince Philip and the Queen attend the Braemar Gathering in 2015.
Max Mumby/ Indigo/ Getty Images.
It was one of Elizabeth and Philip's most relaxed appearances together as a married couple.
They shared a smile at the event.
Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images
They celebrated the monarch's 90th birthday the following year with "The Patron's Lunch" on the Buckingham Palace mall the following year.
Elizabeth and Philip outside Buckingham Palace.
Arthur Edward/WPA/Getty Images
Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh attended Trooping the Colour together in June 2017. Prince Philip announced his retirement just two months later, leaving the Queen to attend all of her engagements solo for the first time during her reign.
The couple shared a carriage during the event.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Nonetheless, Prince Philip still accompanies his wife to events from time to time, including this photo from the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018. The couple still share the same loving look that we first saw in their engagement photos all those years ago.
This was one of their most recent appearances together.
Alastair Grant/WPA/Getty Images
The royal couple have now been married for more than 70 years. In that time, they have welcomed four children, eight grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.
It's clear from recent photos that they are less concerned with protocol than they were at the start of their marriage — whether that be shown in the form of a kiss on the cheek or by them sharing a blanket together in public.
And while the Queen and Prince Philip do not appear together as often as they used to, due to the duke's retirement in 2017, their marriage still seems stronger than ever.
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