Prince Philip’s relationships with some of his children have shown significant differences over the years.
Sources claim he had a special bond with his daughter, Princess Anne, but his relationship with his son, Prince Charles, was tense.
Anne, Princess Royal, 70, is the second child and only daughter of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II and Charles, Prince of Wales, 72, is both their eldest and heir to the throne.
In a 2004 interview Prince Philip said: “Charles is a romantic – and I am a pragmatist.
“That means we do see things differently and because I don’t see things as a romantic would, I am unfeeling.”
Experts suggests that the rocky relationship between Prince Philip and his son could have been caused by Philip’s early duties as the Queen’s consort and by his own absent parents.
Penny Junor, royal biographer and author of the 1988 book Charles, said: “He had a very difficult relationship with Charles.
“They didn’t speak to each other as normal father and son.”
Princess Anne, on the other hand, supposedly had a special relationship with Prince Philip due to their similar personalities.
Whilst Prince Charles is described as sensitive, Princess Anne is seen as being strong and opinionated like her father.
Ashley Walton, former royal reporter for the Daily Express said: “She’s just like Prince Philip.
“She’s as strong as he is, takes no nonsense, takes no prisoners.”
He is said to have encouraged her boisterous behaviour as a young child, and since then they had a close relationship for many years.
Prince Philip and Prince Anne also shared a love for sports, including horse riding.
Embed from Getty ImagesWhereas Prince Charles, an introvert with a sensitive nature who preferred the arts over sports, shared a closer relationship as a child with his grandmother Elizabeth, The Queen Mother.
The father and son always had their differences but as Prince Charles’ 200-mile round trip to visit his father at the King Edward VII Hospital in London indicates, they may have grown closer.
Check out all of SWL’s Prince Philip coverage here.
Featured image credit: Jamie McCaffrey on Flickr.
