UK's Prince Philip hands over patronage of The Rifles to the Duchess of Cornwall
Britain Queen Elizabeth’s husband, Prince Philip made a rare public appearance and transferred his patronage of the Rifles to his daughter-in-law Camilla.
- World News
- 2 min read

Britain Queen Elizabeth’s husband, Prince Philip on July 22 made a rare public appearance and transferred his patronage of the Rifles to his daughter-in-law Camila. The 99-year-old has been Colonel-in-Chief of the Rifles since 2007 and has served the same role for earlier regiments that have made up the infantry unit since the 1950s, however, on Wednesday he attended a military ceremony at Windsor Castle and handed over his long-held ceremonial role to Prince Charles Wife.
The former naval officer married Queen Elizabeth in 1947 and he is by far the longest-serving consort of any British monarch. His connection to the regiment stretches back to 1953, however, on Wednesday, in a separate ceremony, Prince Charles’ wife Camilla was welcomed as the regiment’s new colonel-in-chief.
We can't believe it's been over a year since his last public appearance 😯
— The Royal Family Channel (@RoyalFamilyITNP) July 22, 2020
Today Prince Philip attended a ceremony to pass over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Rifles.
The #DukeOfEdinburgh passed the role he has held for almost 70 years to the Duchess of Cornwall. pic.twitter.com/uHY1nneSOV
Camilla receives role of Colonel-in-chief of The Rifles
According to an international media outlet, the Duke of Edinburgh, at the ceremony, was seen wearing a suit and tie. Four buglers reportedly announced Prince Philip’s arrival and then sounded the ‘No More Parades’ call to mark his final ceremony as colonel-in-chief. On the other hand, in a separate ceremony at Highgrove House, Rifle’s Colonel Commandant General Sir Patrick Sanders welcomed Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, as the new colonel-in-chief.
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The Duchess of Cornwall received the role of Colonel-in-Chief of The Rifles from the Duke of Edinburgh in a parallel ceremony staged at both Highgrove House and Windsor Castle.
— The Royal Family Channel (@RoyalFamilyITNP) July 22, 2020
Prince Philip has held the military role for almost 70 years! pic.twitter.com/EhgzMVvwHy
Prince Philip retired from public duties in 2017 after completing over 22,000 solo engagements. He was recently pictured at Windsor Castle with the Queen to mark his 99th birthday on June 10. While in recent years, he has been rarely seen in public, he, however, did attend Princess Beatrice’s private wedding last week. As per reports, he was last seen at a big event when he was a guest at Lady Gabriella Windsor’s wedding in May 2019.