Princess Anne’s Royal Wedding Marked Significant ‘Turning Point’ For Prince Philip, Royal Family

Prince Philip was present at all of his four children’s royal weddings alongside Queen Elizabeth. But it was Princess Anne’s nuptials that left a huge mark on the retired royal.

Members of the royal family are usually referred to as HRH Prince or Princess, and they don’t usually include their surname. And during the early years of the Duke of Edinburgh and Her Majesty’s marriage, the former has always hoped that his children will use the surname Mountbatten.

During one of his previous interviews, the 98-year-old likened himself to a bloody amoeba because he is the only man in the United Kingdom who isn’t allowed to give his surname to his children. Prince Charles and Princess Anne used the Queen’s Windsor surname for years.

But after Prince Andrew was born, the monarch finally had a change of heart. She allowed her children to use the Mountbatten surname as a tribute to her husband. As such, Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward used Mountbatten-Windsor as their family name for years.

On Nov. 14, 1973, Princess Anne honored her father by using her Mountbatten-Windsor surname on the official documents of her wedding to Captain Mark Phillips. Princess Royal also signed her marriage register at Westminster Abbey with her Mountbatten-Windsor surname.

Prince Philip was reportedly grateful for what his only daughter did. And he was even more grateful when he played a special role at her wedding. The Duke of Edinburgh was the one who walked Princess Anne down the aisle on her special day.

The two royals are reportedly very close to each other. In fact, royal experts have claimed that Prince Philip and Princess Anne get along very well because they share tons of similarities.

A source also told Daily Mail that Prince Philip always had more fun with Prince Anne compared to his three other children. “Charles is more like the Queen, while Anne is very like Prince Philip,” the source said.