Queen Elizabeth ‘Was Not There’ When Prince Philip Died, Royal Historian Claims: She Was ‘Furious’

Queen Elizabeth allegedly wasn’t present when her husband, Prince Philip, passed away.

The Duke of Edinburgh died amid the COVID-19 pandemic on April 9, 2021, at 99 years old in Windsor Castle.

Royal historian and biographer Hugo Vickers explained in his upcoming book, Queen Elizabeth II: A Personal History, that in 2020, Elizabeth and Philip “entered a strict isolation” at Windsor Castle, per an excerpt published by the Daily Mail on Saturday, March 28.

According to Vickers, Philip — who the author claimed was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2013 — was admitted to the hospital in 2021 but eventually returned home, noting “during those last 24 days at Windsor, he was up and about.”

“On the last night of his life, he gave his nurses the slip, shuffled along the corridor on his [walker], helped himself to a beer and drank it in the Oak Room,” Vickers penned. “The following morning, he got up, had a bath, said he did not feel well and quietly slipped away. By this point, he had lived with pancreatic cancer for nearly eight years – far longer than the usual survival time from diagnosis.”

Vickers added that the monarch “was not there when he died.”

“There had often been times in earlier days when she had asked the staff to let her know when Philip was leaving, only to be told ‘His Royal Highness left 20 minutes ago,’ ” Vickers shared. “She took the line, I was told, that she was ‘absolutely furious that, as so often in life, he left without saying goodbye.'”

In the aftermath of Philip’s passing, Vickers said that the sovereign “pressed on.”

“In the days between Philip’s death and the funeral, spoke to the Prime Minister, bade farewell to the retiring Lord Chamberlain in person and received his successor the following day,” Vickers detailed. “The day before the funeral, the Governor-General of Australia and Prime Minister of Canada had telephone audiences with her.”

As for Philip’s funeral, it took place on April 17 at St George’s Chapel, and due to COVID-19 restrictions, only 30 people were allowed to attend. Vickers wrote in his book, “the most poignant image of the day was of the Queen sitting alone, with her mask on.”

The day after Philip’s funeral, the queen watched a regular church service via Zoom, Vickers shared. “It ended with some light music every week. The music chosen that Sunday was You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

Queen Elizabeth II: A Personal History will be available on Thursday, April 9.