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The Queen’s secret dating life revealed

Before there was Philip..
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Queen Elizabeth II is Britain’s longest reigning monarch, celebrating an incredible 67 years on the throne this year.

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The Queen’s remarkable reign is only eclipsed by her over seven decades long marriage to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, which the royal couple will mark with their 72nd wedding anniversary on November 20.

Four children, eight grandchildren and the same number of great-grandchildren later, the royal couple rang in their respective 98th and 93rd birthdays last weekend in true Windsor style.

WATCH this video to see what the Queen gave Prince Philip for his 98th milestone!

But before they said ‘I Do’, what exactly was then Princess Elizabeth getting up to in the romance department?

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After first meeting as children at various royal family events (the two are third cousins), a 13-year-old Princess Elizabeth spoke to her future husband for the first time during a visit to the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth with her father King George VI and sister Princess Margaret.

Royal author Philip Dampier says it was love at first sight for the teenage Princess, Express.co.uk reports, and Princess Elizabeth began writing to Philip, who was living in France following his family’s exile from their home in Greece.

queen philip
(Credit: Getty Images)

As the heiress to the throne, the King of England and British public had to support Elizabeth’s choice of husband, and reports from the time indicate that neither monarch, family members nor country found Prince Philip a suitable match for the Queen.

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Philip’s Greek royal family had been deposed by a Republican revolt and as a result were essentially penniless, while his mother Princess Alice’s struggles with mental health and his siblings connections to Nazism also created concern among British royals.

Three of Philip’s sisters, Princess Margarita, Princess Cecilie and Princess Sophie were all married to German Princes and members of the Nazi party.

queen and prince philip
(Credit: Getty Images)

Philip’s status as a Prince of Greece and Denmark was also a bone of contention, but despite everything love prevailed and in 1946 Prince Philip asked King George VI for permission to marry his eldest daughter.

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Philip adopted the name of his relative and guardian, Lord Louis Mountbatten, a surname used by his descendants to this day.

Prince Philip married Her Royal Highness the Princess of Windsor at Westminster Abbey in London in 1947, two years after the end of World War II.

On her royal wedding day, broadcast across the world by the BBC, the future Queen wore a bridal gown designed by Norman Hartnell made from fabric bought with ration coupons.

The royal couple were married for five years before the death of King George VI in 1952 thrust the crown into their lives forever.

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queen philip
(Credit: Getty Images)

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip went on to have four children – Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward – but before their royal marriage was sealed, author Rhys Hoffman claims Henry Herbert, 7th Earl of Carnarvon was the only other contender for Elizabeth’s hand.

Lord Carnarvon’s family owned the Highclere Estate, also known as Downton Abbey, according to Express.co.uk, and the Earl – best known as Lord Porchester or ‘Porchey’ – went on to be a lifelong friend of Her Majesty and the racing manager of her beloved racing stables.

Their enduring friendship was documented in the Netflix drama The Crown, where Queen Elizabeth tells Philip: “I have nothing to hide from you. Porchey is a friend.”

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