Prince Philip's funeral includes final nod to Australia where he visited 20+ times
PRINCE PHILIP'S funeral will giving a final nod to Australia.
Prince Philip's funeral: A look at the planned procession
The Duke of Edinburgh, 99, died in his sleep on April 9. Philip’s funeral will take place this Saturday, with the service ending at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. It will include Australian representative, Commodore Guy Holthouse.
Australia's Defence Advisor in the UK will reportedly be positioned in front of the 15th century chapel on Saturday.
He will appear alongside representatives of other Commonwealth nations, including Canada, New Zealand and Trinidad and Tobago.
Cdre. Holthouse met with Queen Elizabeth II on March 31 - at an event marking the 100th anniversary of the Royal Australian Air Force.
The Duke of Edinburgh's coffin will be carried on a specially-modified Land Rover.
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Philip visited Australia more than 20 times throughout his life. His first visit was in March 1940.
The then-18-year-old was serving in the Royal Navy at the time - and sailed into Sydney Harbour with the HMS Ramillies.
In April of that year, he visited Melbourne and spent a week at a sheep station.
Years later, the Duke described the time as the best holiday he ever had.
He said it was a “perfectly natural life; no frills and no fads".
The Duke’s first royal visit to Australia with Her Majesty came in 1954, marking the first ever visit from a reigning monarch.
The couple spent eight weeks touring 70 cities and towns, with 75 percent of the population estimated to have turned out for the royals.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison paid tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh on Monday, saying he “embodied a generation that we will never see again”.
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Recalling a story Philip told him about his 1954 visit, Mr Morrison said: “It was an exhibition of Queensland wood chopping, who chops through the piece of timber first – it’s a thing we do in rural Queensland, my father used to do it as well.
“He and the Queen were observing this and they get to present the sash to the chap who wins and the duke says something like, ‘well, you must be able to chop a lot with shoulders like that’, to which the winner said, ‘ah well, duke, I can chop a ton a bloody hour’.
“Prince Philip says ‘steady on, old chap, Her Majesty the Queen’s here’.
“[The winner] then said, ‘OK, I can actually chop half a bloody ton an hour’.”