Prince Philip’s unusual farewell to Prince Harry before Afghanistan deployment

As a naval officer during World War II, Prince Philip witnessed the harsh realities of war firsthand. So when his grandson, Prince Harry, was deployed to Afghanistan, the Duke of Edinburgh offered him a farewell that was both touching and uniquely his own.

Prince Harry was deployed twice on active duty in Afghanistan in 2007 for ten weeks in Helmand Province, then with the Army Air Corp for 20 weeks in 2012-2013.

In the documentary Prince Philip: The Royal Family Remembers, Harry recounted the moment fondly.

“Going off to Afghanistan, he was very matter of fact and just said, ‘Make sure you come back alive’,” Harry said.

For royal watchers, it seems like a typically blunt comment for which he was well known, but it also revealed another layer to the man – that of a supportive grandfather.

When Prince Harry returned from active service, it was the Duke of Edinburgh who gave him the time and space to talk about his front-line experiences.

“Then when I came back, there wasn’t a deep level of discussion, more a case of, ‘well you made it. How was it?'” Harry said.

“That’s how he was. He was very much a listener, he sort of set the scene for you to be able to share as much as you wanted to share but he would never probe.”

It’s not the first time Prince Harry has opened up about his relationship with his paternal grandfather or shared a lighter side to Prince Philip with royal fans.

During a previous appearance on an episode of The Late, Late Show, the Duke of Sussex couldn’t help but laugh as he spoke to host James Cordon about the late Duke of Edinburgh’s eccentricities.

During the segment, Prince Harry shared how he kept in touch with his royal relatives through Zoom, an online meeting platform and revealed that both his grandparents used the platform frequently to chat with his family and watch his son, Prince Archie playing in the background.

However, the Prince laughed as he told Cordon his grandfather did not get the hang of ending Zoom calls politely.

“My grandfather, instead of pressing leave meeting, he just goes ‘duff’,” he said at the time.

Prince Harry then imitated his grandfather abruptly closing down his laptop to end the chat.