The Untold Truth Of Prince Philip

Despite his position as the patriarch of the world's most famous family, Prince Philip remained something of an enigma. But there are a few things we do know about the Duke of Edinburgh's life. This is the untold truth of Prince Philip. Prince Philip was born in 1921 on the Greek island of Corfu — and his family was basically a who's who of European royalty. For example, he is directly descended from Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, while his great grandfather was Christian IX of Denmark. Despite being born on an island paradise as sixth in line to the Greek throne, the young prince's childhood was anything but easy. When his grandfather, King George I, was assassinated, his uncle became king in his place — but was then forced to abdicate after the Greco-Turkish war. Philip's father was subsequently accused of treason and fled to Paris, with his son passed from relative to relative, rarely seeing his parents. His mother, Princess Alice, experienced a nervous breakdown in 1931 and was institutionalized; Philip, just 10 at the time, wouldn't see or hear from her for the next several years. While his father developed a reputation as a degenerate gambler in exile in the south of France, Philip's aunts and uncles arranged to send him to boarding school in Scotland. The prince's first private secretary, Michael Parker, later told The Independent: "When he needed a father, there just wasn't anybody there." Watch the video for more about The Untold Truth Of Prince Philip. #PrincePhilip #Royals #RoyalFamily Early days | 0:00 A fairy tale romance | 1:25 Family ties | 2:37 Warrior prince | 3:44 Palace favorite | 4:52 The island god | 5:46 Heritage | 7:03 A long life | 7:55 Simple pleasures | 8:59 The prince and the oyster | 9:41 Painting | 10:42