Prince Philip stepping down from royal duties

Buckingham Palace has announced the Duke of Edinburgh will step down from all public engagements from the autumn of this year.

The palace released a statement on their social media saying the Queen has given her husband her “full support” in this decision.

“Prince Philip will attend previously scheduled engagements between now and August, both individually and accompanying The Queen,” the statement reads.

“Thereafter, The Duke will not be accepting new invitations for visits and engagements, although he may still choose to attend certain public events from time to time.”

Prince Philip is patron of 780 organisations and although he will remain committed to them all, the royals say he will no longer “play an active role by attending engagements.”

The Queen will continue to carry out her royal duties as usual. 

You can read the full statement here.

An announcement regarding The Duke of Edinburgh. https://t.co/SF1bgo68Un pic.twitter.com/TO9mR70xTk

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) May 4, 2017

After 65 years by the Queen’s side, Prince Philip, 95, has attended thousands of public engagements over the years.

He has become well-known for his quick wit and tendency to speak his mind – often with hilarious results.

In 1965, on seeing an exhibition of “primitive” Ethiopian art, he was heard muttering: “It looks like the kind of thing my daughter would bring back from her school art lessons.”

Later in 1995, he asked a Scottish driving instructor in Oban: “How do you keep the natives off the booze long enough to pass the test?”

He will no doubt be sorely missed by those on the royal circuit.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think the Queen will step down from royal duties soon?