Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh

Prince Philip was born on a dining room table at Mon Repos palace on Corfu, into the Greek and Danish royal families. Exiled from Greece as an infant in an orange crate following a military coup, he was educated in Germany and Gordonstoun in Scotland. He joined the British Royal Navy in 1939, serving with valor on battleships in the Mediterranean and Pacific during World War II, mentioned in dispatches for the Battle of Cape Matapan.

In November 1947, having renounced his Greek and Danish titles to become Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten, he married Princess Elizabeth. Upon her accession in 1952, Philip gave up his active naval career to become the Queen's constant companion and "strength and stay." He modernized Buckingham Palace, pioneered televised royal broadcasts, and in 1956 founded The Duke of Edinburgh's Award, a self-improvement program that engaged millions of youths across 140 countries. The first president of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) UK, Prince Philip completed 22,219 solo royal engagements over seven decades before retiring from public duties in 2017 at age 96, passing away two months shy of his 100th birthday.