Following on from yesterday’s sad news of the death of The Duke of Edinburgh, gun salutes have been fired across the UK, and in other nations that share the British Monarch as their Head of State.
At noon, batteries in London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Hillsborough, near Belfast, rang out with the sound of gun fire to honour the life of Prince Philip.
41 rounds were used in the solemn event, with one round fired per minute. The Tower of London and Edinburgh Castle – two of the oldest fortresses in the UK.
To mark the death of His Royal Highness, The Duke of Edinburgh, at 12pm BST today a gun salute began firing from the Tower of London.
In total 41 rounds are being fired, with 1 round every minute, in unison with other saluting batteries across the UK. pic.twitter.com/0j3lmRwQ8u
— The Tower of London (@TowerOfLondon) April 10, 2021
The salutes were broadcast, as a way for the public to observe the events and mourn the royal death from home due to Covid restrictions.
The Duke died yesterday morning ‘peacefully’ at Windsor Castle, where had been with The Queen since the start of the pandemic. Philip spent a month in hospital, being released home a few weeks ago, after treatment for an infection and a surgical procedure on his heart.
It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen has announced the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle. pic.twitter.com/XOIDQqlFPn
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) April 9, 2021
Royal Navy ships at sea, including HMS Diamond and HMS Montrose, also fired salutes in honour of the Duke, who had a short but distinguished career as an officer before The Queen acceded to the throne. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant during WWII, being mentioned in dispatches at the Battle of Matapan, and later became Lord High Admiral – a gift from The Queen for his 90th birthday.
Across the Commonwealth, a 41-gun salute was fired to mark Prince Philip’s death outside Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, and in Wellington, New Zealand, the army will similarly pay tribute on Sunday.
