Prince Philip’s Jokes Offended Nations, Threatened Diplomatic Relations For This Reason

Prince Philip has become known for his off-colored jokes and gaffes in the United Kingdom, but people from other parts of the world were not used to his controversial one-liners.

In the Channel 5 documentary “Scandals at the Palace,” royal author Katie Nicholl said Prince Philip doesn’t necessarily mean to offend others when he makes jokes. But he has unfortunately offended some people and even nations across the globe.

Ten years ago, former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama visited Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh in London. During their conversation, Barack told the royal couple that he has had meetings with the Chinese, Russians, and David Cameron.

“Can you tell the difference between them?” Prince Philip asked the former president of the United States.

Royal biographer Angela Levin said that Prince Philip’s question was actually meant to be a joke but it misfired badly.

“He does have a preponderance of saying something rude about the Chinese,” she said.

And in 1986, the retired royal and Her Majesty went on an official visit to China. Royal expert Richard Kay said that the royal couple was standing behind China’s national flag for the very first time. Their visit to the country was deemed to be huge because of all the trade potentials the came with it.

Everything was going well up until Prince Philip described Beijing as ghastly. While talking to a group of Chinese students, the 97-year-old also made offensive comments about the Chinese.

According to Kay, the students themselves were not offended by Prince Philip’s remarks but the hosts were. Following the incident, an enormous diplomatic mission was undertaken to help smooth things over.

The royal expert said that on the surface, everyone said that they weren’t offended by Prince Philip but behind the scenes, things were actually very fraught.

Robert Jobson, the author of “Queen of the World,” also said that the Queen was unimpressed by her husband’s comments in China.