London — According to British media, the British royals are all to wear civilian clothing at Prince Philip’s funeral to avoid awkwardness over which princes are entitled to military uniform.
Prince Philip died last Friday (April 9) at the age of 99. He will be buried on Saturday at Windsor Castle, west of London with just 30 mourners, who are close family. The Sun tabloid and other media reported that Queen Elizabeth II has decided that all the royals will wear civilian clothing.
Otherwise, the funeral would have highlighted former British Army captain Prince Harry’s loss of honorary military titles after his shock departure from royal life last year.
As reported by AFP, Harry, the Duke of Sussex was stripped of his military titles after he stepped down from senior royal duties and relocated to California with his wife, Meghan Markle. Harry did two tours of duty in Afghanistan. He is only allowed to wear a suit with service medals.
Another potential clash might arise with the monarch’s second son, Prince Andrew, who is a former Royal Navy helicopter pilot who saw action in the 1982 Falklands War. His friendship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has caused him to be sidelined from public duties. Prince Andrew was set to take the honorary rank of admiral for his 60th birthday but the appointment was put on hold.
According to The Sun, there would have been “serious displeasure” in the Navy if he went ahead with the uniform plan. It has been reported by the Daily Telegraph that the royals had held “intense discussions” to allay concerns about embarrassing the family if Andrew and Harry — the only royals to have seen frontline service — were not wearing uniforms.
It also reported that the Queen makes the final decision. The Sun cited sources as saying that she “personally stepped in” to suggest the civilian clothing rule.
The decision would see the royal family present a united front, at least sartorially, while the funeral will have a strong military element due to Prince Philip’s past as a naval commander.
Harry’s appearance at the funeral will be the first time he has been seen in public with the royals since he and Meghan gave an explosive television interview broadcast last month, accusing unnamed royals of racism./TISG