Prince Philip impressed the Queen by jumping over a tennis net during their first meeting, claims former governess
THE QUEEN and Prince Philip have been married for 72 years this month, but the couple first met in July 1939 when Her Majesty was 13 and the Duke, 18.
According to the Queen’s former governess, Marion Crawford, it was Philip’s unusual skill that first impressed “Princess Elizabeth”.
The Queen was visiting Dartmouth Britannia Royal Naval College – where Philip was training at the time – along with Princess Margaret, King George VI and the Queen Mother.
In her 1950 memoir, The Little Princesses, Marion explained this is when the Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen met properly for the first time.
Due to an outbreak of mumps and chickenpox, the family decided to visit the headmaster’s house, instead of going to a service at the chapel.
Philip was one of the only cadets who wasn’t suffering from the illness and suggested they go to Dartmouth tennis court.
Marion described him as looking like “a viking” with light hair and blue eyes.
And when they arrived at the tennis court, Philip showed off his ability to jump over the nets.
According to Marion, the Queen said: “How high he can jump!”
Later on in the visit, Philip accompanied the family on board the King’s yacht for dinner, during which Marion claimed Elizabeth was “pink-faced” as she laughed with the prince.
It didn’t go unnoticed by Philip’s uncle, Lord Louis Mountbatten, who wrote in his diary that the Duke was a “great success” with the princesses.
Added to that, the Queen’s cousin, Margaret Rhodes also claimed Elizabeth “was truly in love from the very beginning”.
While Philip apparently didn’t reciprocate the feelings at this point, the pair started writing to each other when Philip served in the navy during World War Two.
When the Queen was 17 and Philip 22, they ran into each other at Windsor Castle at which time the Queen performed in a pantomime of Aladdin.
It was after this that Philip reportedly started carrying her photo with him for the duration of the war.
It was a couple of years later in 1946 that the Duke of Edinburgh popped the question.
The pair married on November 20, 1947 at Westminster Abbey, before welcoming Prince Charles just under a year later.
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