Queen Elizabeth And Prince Philip’s Big Feud That Angered The Duke

Queen Elizabeth’s marriage to Prince Philip is a perfect example of stability and commitment. They have been together for decades and have weathered many storms together. That’s why it’s surprising to learn that there was one particular feud in the past that angered the Duke of Edinburgh and left Her Majesty in tears.

Queen Elizabeth ascended the throne in 1952 when her father, King George VI, died. As every father would probably wish, Prince Philip wanted their two children, Prince Charles and Princess Anne, to carry his Mountbatten family name.

However, there were some who were opposed to the idea of Her Majesty’s children carrying the Mountbatten family name. Among these where Queen Mary, the Queen Mother and Winston Churchill, who firmly believed that the British royal family name should be Windsor.

With so many within her own family pressuring her, Queen Elizabeth ultimately opposed Prince Philip’s wish to have Prince Charles and Princess Anne carry his Mountbatten family name. She issued a public declaration on April 9, 1952, stating that “her children will be styled and known as the house and family of Windsor.”

Naturally, the Queen’s decision devastated her husband and put a strain on their relationship. Prince Philip complained to close friends that he is the “only man in the country not allowed to give his name to his own children.”

Then the Queen became pregnant with Prince Andrew in 1960. This time, Her Majesty wanted to do something to appease Prince Philip.

“The Queen only wishes to do something to please her husband — with whom she is desperately in love,” Prime Minister Harold Macmillan wrote on his diary. “What upsets me is the Prince’s almost brutal attitude to the Queen over all this.”

Queen Elizabeth was probably hurt by Prince Philip’s “brutal attitude” when demanding he include his Mountbatten family name. “By one account, Butler confided to a friend that Elizabeth had been in ‘tears,’” biographer Ms Bedell Smith narrated.

Eventually, a compromise was reached. The Queen made a new declaration stating that her descendants who do not have the title of His or Her Royal Highness will have the Mountbatten-Windsor family name.

While compromise might have solved this feud, the fact remains that Her Majesty and Prince Philip deeply loved each other. And the Queen has that steely resolve to do whatever it takes to make their marriage work.

“Her Majesty may look like a sweet little old lady, but that woman has steel running down her spine,” royal family observer Eileen Wood said on Quora. “She is one tough cookie … When she first saw Philip, she was 13 … She fell in love and there has been no other man in her life or her mind since.”

Of course it was difficult for Prince Philip as well. But the fact they lasted this long proves that he is committed to the Queen.