Prince Harry to attend Prince Philip's funeral sans Meghan Markle
The funeral of the British Royal family's patriarch, Prince Philip, will be held on April 17. Queen Elizabeth's husband of 73 years, Prince Philip passed away on Friday at the age of 99. The Buckingham Palace said that Prince Harry will be attending the funeral, but not his wife, Meghan Markle. Markle, being pregnant, has been advised not to travel outside the US.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, paid tribute to Prince Philip through their foundation, Archewell. The landing page of Archewell.com was edited on Saturday to honor the Duke of Edinburgh. Currently, the website reads, "In Loving Memory of His Royal Highness, The Duke of Edinburgh, 1921-2021. Thank you for your service...You will be greatly missed."
Notably, it will be Harry's first visit to Britain since the tell-all Oprah Winfrey interview. During the televised conversation, Markle revealed that a senior Royal had fretted over the skin color of their firstborn Archie. Later, the host explained that neither the Queen nor Prince Philip had made the racist comment. Markle also shared how the hounding by media affected her mental health.
Meanwhile, the Duke of Edinburgh's death has triggered eight days of national mourning in England. The funeral will have limited attendees due to coronavirus pandemic and will be held at 14:00 GMT in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle. It will be followed by a minute of national silence. British PM Boris Johnson will also give the funeral a miss due to COVID-19 restrictions.
In his heartfelt tribute, Prince Philip's son, Prince Charles, wrote a special message. He remembered him saying, "My dear Papa was a very special person who I think above all else would have been amazed by the reaction and the touching things that have been said about him, and from that point of view we are, my family, deeply grateful for all that."
