Prince Philip鈥檚 absence from an Easter Sunday church service at St. George鈥檚 Chapel is 鈥渁 little bit鈥� concerning, but not out of step with the 96-year-old鈥檚 retirement from public life, according to CTV royal commentator Richard Berthelsen.
The Duke of Edinburgh was listed on the program at the event, where he was expected to appear alongside the Queen, Prince William, the Duchess of Cambridge and several other members of the Royal Family. He backed out due to what Kensington Palace described as a hip issue that affected his mobility, and has now missed three public events in 10 days.
鈥淚t is a bit unusual for the prince to miss the Easter Sunday Service,鈥� Berthelsen told 麻豆影视 Channel on Monday. 鈥淭he Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are both very devout Christians, and they take that part of their lives very seriously so for the Duke to actually miss Sunday Service at Easter 鈥� which is one of the most important days in the Christian calendar 鈥� is pretty unusual.鈥�
Prince Philip retired from his official duties as a member of the Royal Family last August, so it鈥檚 not entirely surprising to see him skip an event that he might not have felt healthy for, Berthelsen said. But it鈥檚 hard not to notice his absence, given the importance of the event.
鈥淗e鈥檚 an incredibly proud man, and if he is walking with a limp or any other thing like that, he may just feel he doesn鈥檛 want to appear in public and have all the pictures, and have all the speculation,鈥� Berthelsen said.
However, Berthelsen suggests he may simply be taking it easy on his body ahead of a whirlwind stretch on the Royal Family鈥檚 calendar. Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge is expected to give birth to her third child with Prince William later this month, and Prince Harry鈥檚 wedding to Meghan Markle is scheduled for May 19.
鈥淭his was the whole intent of their official announcement of retirement,鈥� Berthelsen said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 probably looking ahead to this wedding in May that he really wants to be there, and he really wants to be in the best form he can possibly be.鈥�
Harry and Markle were also absent from the Easter service at St. George鈥檚 Chapel, although Berthelsen chalks that up to a desire to avoid stealing the spotlight from the Queen. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 where (Markle) is going to be married herself in a few weeks鈥� time,鈥� he said. 鈥淢embers of the Royal Family are preserving what strength they have to get through all of this.鈥�
But there will be no rest for Queen Elizabeth II, who will attend what might be her final meeting of the Commonwealth members on Apr. 16. The is a voluntary group of 53 countries formerly under British rule, including Canada, with the Queen at its head. The issue of successor is expected to top the agenda, Berthelsen says.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 going to be a very major occasion, and there may be some comment and some direction about the future of the Commonwealth in the new reign,鈥� he said. He added that Prince Charles is not guaranteed to take over for the Queen, and that other members of the family, including Prince Harry, will likely play important roles in the Commonwealth鈥檚 future.
鈥淲e may get some sense of that in the weeks ahead,鈥� he said.
