Prince Philip: Edinburgh gun salute marks duke's death

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media captionThe 41-gun salute was fired from Edinburgh Castle

A 41-gun salute has been fired from Edinburgh Castle in honour of the Duke of Edinburgh, who died yesterday.

The 105th Regiment Royal Artillery fired one round every minute from ceremonial guns as part of a day of remembrance.

Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth II's husband of 73 years, died on Friday at Windsor Castle. He was 99.

The salute was part of a UK-wide tribute by the armed forces to mark the death of the duke.

A large crowd of people gathered outside Edinburgh Castle to witness the tribute to Prince Philip, while people also watched on from the city's Princes Street Gardens.

In the largest visible public gathering to mark his death so far in the city, families and groups of friends stood on the castle esplanade as the sound of the salute echoed across Scotland's capital.

Church bells across Scotland also rang out at midday, with Dunblane Cathedral among those to pay tribute by tolling its tenor bell 99 times to honour each year of the duke's life.

image captionPeople gathered on Edinburgh Castle esplanade as the sound of the 41-gun salute echoed across the city
image copyrightGetty Images
image copyrightGetty Images
image captionThe Death Gun Salute was fired by the 105th Regiment Royal Artillery to mark the passing of Prince Philip

Announcing the duke's death on Friday, Buckingham Palace said: "It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty the Queen announces the death of her beloved husband.

"The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss."

Politicians across the UK also paid tribute to the duke, with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon saying he had "deep and longstanding" ties to Scotland.

Political parties suspended their campaigning on Friday for the Scottish Parliament election on 6 May following the announcement of Prince Philip's death.

The Scottish Parliament is being recalled on Monday, with Holyrood sitting at 11:00 for tributes to the duke.

Flags outside Holyrood were lowered earlier on Friday as a mark of respect.

All UK government buildings have been told to fly official flags at half-mast in tribute to the duke until 08:00 on the day after his funeral.

Final details of the duke's funeral are also expected to be released this weekend.

It will take place at St George's Chapel, Windsor, but the arrangements have been amended in light of the coronavirus pandemic, the College of Arms said in a statement.

The duke will not have a state funeral and there will be no lying-in-state, in line with his wishes, it added.

Members of the public are "regretfully" requested not to attend due to the pandemic, and it is understood the Queen is considering modified funeral and ceremonial arrangements.

Prince Philip was born on the Greek island of Corfu on 10 June 1921.

His father was Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark, a younger son of King George I of the Hellenes.

His mother, Princess Alice, was a daughter of Prince Louis of Battenberg and a great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

image copyright Tim Graham/PA
image captionThe Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen celebrated their Diamond Wedding Anniversary on 20 November 2007

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