Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, died on Friday at age 99. The prince married Queen Elizabeth II five years before she became queen – but when she was crowned, he wasn't given the title of king. That's because Prince Philip, who is actually a former prince of Denmark and Greece, was never in line to the British throne.
Prince Philip married Queen Elizabeth II in 1947 and she became queen in 1952 after the death of her father, King George VI. She later gave her husband the title of prince.
This title wasn't a slight to Prince Philip – he wasn't supposed to be called king or prince. His title was Duke of Edinburgh until February 22, 1957 when the palace released a statement: "The Queen has been pleased by Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm bearing date 22nd February, 1957, to give and grant unto His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh, K.G., K.T., G.B.E., the style and titular dignity of a Prince of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Whitehall."
