Prince Philip has passed away at 99. In many ways he was a bridge from the Victorian/Edwardian eras to the modern age. He was born into the Greek royal family, the grandson of a King and a great-grandson of Queen Victoria and King Christian IX of Denmark. His early life saw the

fall of monarchies across Europe, many of whom, like the Russian Romanovs, were close relatives (the Russian tsarina was his great aunt). The Greek royal family was deposed when he was a baby and his family fled into exile with Prince Philip concealed in an orange crate. He grew

up shuffled between the homes of relatives (his grandmother, his sisters, and his uncle, Lord Mountbatten) and boarding schools. His mother was institutionalized for a large part of his childhood and his father lived away from the family in Paris and Monaco.

With his uncle’s encouragement, he enrolled in the Royal Navy, which provided him with a career and paved the way for his introduction to the 13 year old heir to the throne, Princess Elizabeth. They were cousins—both were direct descendants of Queen Victoria and King Christian IX

They met the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth just before the start of WWII. They corresponded off and on throughout the war. When the war ended, their courtship began in earnest. They were married in 1947. Prince Philip is credited with helping to modernize the monarchy and

bring it into the 20th century. He pushed to televise the coronation, the first ever. But his efforts to concretize the royal family’s value to the public may also have fueled the media frenzy and tabloid culture that we’ve seen arise around the royals in the last 50 years.

He will be remembered as the stalwart pater familias of the Royal Family, though his legacy will no doubt be shaded by the ill-advised comments made over the years.

And it’s worth noting that he lived to a ripe old age—99. No need to blame anyone for his death—just celebrate a long life that saw much and was well lived.