Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip: milestones in their marriage

Warm-up task – the correct word

Elizabeth and Philip were first introduced to each other / one another when the first / former was
just eight years old, at / on the wedding of Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark (Philip’s cousin)
and Prince George, Duke of Kent (Elizabeth’s uncle) in 1934. Five years later / then, when Elizabeth
was 13 and Philip was 18, they /them met again at the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth. This / It
was here, reportedly, that Elizabeth fell in love with her future husband, and they later began
exchanged / exchanging letters.

Reading task – Multiple choice test

(the first paragraph is upper)

In 1946, Philip asked King George VI for his daughter’s hand in marriage. The king agreed on one
condition – that the formal announcement of the engagement was delayed until Elizabeth turned 21
the following April. According to reports, both the king and his wife Queen Elizabeth were reluctant
to approve the marriage out of fear that their daughter was “too young”.

In postwar Britain, there were also fears over how Philip – who was born in Greece, considered
himself Danish and had German relations – might be accepted as a member of the royal household.
Indeed, upon becoming engaged to Elizabeth, Philip dropped his Greek and Danish royal titles,
becoming a naturalised British subject and taking the surname Mountbatten from his maternal
grandparents. Later, on the eve of their wedding, King George conferred upon him the titles of Duke
of Edinburgh, Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich.

Elizabeth and Philip’s wedding day took place at Westminster Abbey on 20 November 1947. The
event did not go without incident: Elizabeth’s tiara snapped on the morning of the wedding, and
Philip was stopped for speeding through central London on the day of the rehearsal dinner (19
November). He reportedly said at the time: “I’m sorry officer, but I’ve got an appointment with the
Archbishop of Canterbury.”

On 14 November 1948, Elizabeth and Philip became parents for the first time to a son,  Prince
Charles – now the longest-serving heir apparent in British history. Three more children arrived  in the
years that followed: Princess Anne, on 15 August 1950; Prince Andrew, on 19 February 1960; and
Prince Edward, on 10 March 1964.

The birth of children, and Elizabeth’s accession to the throne in 1952, brought with it a discussion on
the family’s surname. The royal family had held the surname of Saxe-Coberg and Gotha until 1917,
when King George V decreed that the family name would be the less Germanic-sounding Windsor.
When Elizabeth became queen – just over three years after the birth of Charles – the name of the
Royal House remained the same.

Whether this caused any contention with Prince Philip is debatable. According to a biography of
Elizabeth by Sally Bedell Smith, he once privately complained: “I am nothing but a bloody amoeba. I
am the only man in the country not allowed to give his name to his own children.” Surely enough, on
8 February 1960, a declaration made in Privy Council ensured that Mountbatten-Windsor would be
the surname of Elizabeth’s and Philip’s male-line descendants.

(Source:https://www.historyextra.com/period/20th-century/queen-elizabeth-prince-philip-
milestones-marriage-relationship/ )
 1. They met for the first time when

a, Elizabeth was at the age of 8

b, Philip was at the age of 8
c, they were both 8 years old.

2. They got married because

a, their parents decided it

b, they had romantic feelings
c, it was the requirement of the Monarchy

3. Elizabeth’s father, King George VI

a, didn’t support the idea of marriage for the first time

b, agreed with the marriage with no strings attached
c, had a criterion in connection with the marriage

4. The ancestry of Philip was kept

a, advantageous
b, derogatory
c, risky

5. Philip became the Duke of Edingurgh

a, because of his ancestors

b, consequently of his marriage with Elizabeth
c, the former Duke of Edinburgh died suddenly

6. The wedding

a, happened on a nice summer day

b, was held completely according to plans
c, was special because Philip had a conflict with a bobby.

7. Elizabeth and Philip became a family

a, with three descendants

b, two years before the middle of the 20th century
c, with the birth of Princess Anne

8. With the reign of Elizabeth

a, there was no change in the royal family name

b, the name of the royal family had to be changed
c, she decided to change the name of the royal family
 9. The question of the royal family’s name

a, led to a conflict between Elizabeth and Philip unquestionably

b, was a thorn in Philip’s eyes
c, couldn’t be cleared up to now.

10. Which word describes best the text writer’s approach to the topic?

a, propagative
b, passionate
c, hostile