November 22, 2024, published at 7:00 PM ET
Prince Philip was haunted for years by the tragic death of his beloved sister in a plane crash.
RadarOnline.com can reveal the late Duke of Edinburgh’s heartbreaking words about his sister, Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, long after the November 1937 accident that left him “deeply shaken”.
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About 90 years ago, Cecilie – who was eight months pregnant at the time – died in a plane crash along with six others.
Cecilie, Philip’s “favorite sister”, was the third of Princess Alice of Battenberg and Prince Andrew of the five children of Greece and Denmark.
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She married Georg Donatus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Hesse – her first cousin once removed – and joined the Nazi Party with him in May 1937.
They welcomed three children: Prince Ludwig, Prince Alexander and Princess Johanna.
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In November 1937, Cecilie and her family traveled to Britain to attend the wedding of her brother-in-law, Louis, Prince of Hesse, and Margaret Campbell Geddes.
Tragically, the plane they were traveling in crashed after hitting a factory chimney in dense fog near Ostend.
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Others who died included her mother-in-law, her husband, their two young sons, a lady-in-waiting and the best man.
Cecilie was only 26 years old at the time.
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Firefighters at the scene found the remains of a baby near Cecilie’s body, which appeared to have been prematurely born when the plane crashed.
At just 16 years old, Prince Philip was deeply affected by Cecilie’s death. He later described the moment his director at Gordonstoun called him to deliver the news as one of the most painful experiences of his life.
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Years later he wrote: “I have the clearest memory of the profound shock with which I heard the news of the crash and the death of my sister and her family.”
Cecilie was buried next to her husband and three children (including her stillborn son) on the Rosenhöhe in Darmstadt. Funeral photos showed Philip among grieving relatives, all dressed in Nazi uniforms.
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Cecilie and Georg’s surviving daughter, Johanna, was adopted by Prince Ludwig and Princess Margaret after the loss of her parents and siblings.
Sadly, her life was cut short when she succumbed to meningitis just two years later.
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The plane crash was depicted in season 2 of the hit series The Crown, which showed Prince Charles’ school days in Gordonstoun and included flashbacks of his father’s time there.
The series suggested that Philip would spend six months with his sister Cecilie in November 1937 to avoid her flying to London for a wedding.
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However, after Philip hit a student and was punished by staying at school, Cecilie was forced to move to London with her family. Philip called her, hoping for sympathy, but she agreed with the headmaster’s decision and said she had to fly to the wedding.
The scene ended with her boarding the plane.
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However, Philip was reportedly “very angry” with the way the tragedy was portrayed in the series.
According to the Sunday Times, he contacted royal lawyers Farrer & Co about the scenes but chose to take no further action.