Jersey – The wedding of HM Queen Elizabeth II and HRH Prince Philip took place at Westminster Abbey on 20th November 1947. The pair first met in 1934, at the wedding of Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark and Prince George, Duke of Kent. They were re-introduced to each other several years later, when the 13 year old princess accompanied her parents to the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, where 18 year old Philip was a cadet. After an exchange of letters to one another, Philip asked King George VI for his daughter’s hand in marriage. The young couple became secretly engaged in 1946 but delayed the formal announcement until Princess Elizabeth turned 21.

The relationship was a true romance and during the breakfast held on the couple’s wedding day, Elizabeth’s father declared that his daughter was marrying the man she loves. Seventy years later, The Queen and her Consort appear as committed to each other as they were at the time of their betrothal and marriage. From chairing the committee responsible for organising The Queen’s Coronation in 1953, to accompanying his wife during her official duties and State visits, HRH Prince Philip has continued to support his wife in every aspect of their lives together. During a speech delivered on the occasion of their Golden Wedding Anniversary, The Queen said of her husband, “[he] has, quite simply, been my strength and stay all these years”, a notion which is evident in the many images of them together, a selection of which feature within this stamp issue.