Queen Elizabeth II, 91, and Prince Philip, 96, first met at the 1934 wedding of Prince Philip’s cousin, Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark and Queen Elizabeth II’s uncle, Prince George, Duke of Kent.
It wasn’t until 1939 when they met again at Royal Naval College in Dartmouth that romantic sparks began to fly.
In the lead up to their engagement in 1947, the Duke of Edinburgh served as an officer in the Royal Navy.
But a series of unexpected home postings meant Philip was able to make frequent trips to London to visit Elizabeth.
According to Philip Eade, the author of Young Prince Philip: His Early Life, Philip would stay either with his grandmother, Princess Victoria at Kensington Palace or on a camp bed at the home of his uncle, Dickie Mountbatten.
Among the habits the Mountbatterns’ butler, John Dean, picked up during Philip’s stays, was a particular item he always packed.
Philip Eade revealed that when he had gone to bed, the butler would wash and iron his shirt and darn his socks.
But as he unpacked Philip’s weekend bag he would notice there was always a photograph of Princess Elizabeth in a battered leather frame.
John Dean, who later became Philip’s valet, also noted the Philip’s civilian wardrobe was “scantier than that of many a bank clerk” and that all he brought with him sometimes was a razor.
The Queen and Prince Philip have been married for almost 70 years now, and will be celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary on November 20, but how do they show their love when in public?
The Queen and Prince Philip have always been rather subtle in public when it comes to their relationship, preferring not to indulge in displays of public affection.
But, while the pair are subdued in their body language, the signs of their love, which has lasted for seven decades, are obvious to the trained eye.
What does a body language expert have to say about their relationship? Judi James looked at four recent snapshots of the royal couple to give her professional opinion.
Judi said: “The Queen has historically combined duty with a suppression of body language displays in public, but Prince Philip has always seemed to be her very charming Achilles heel when it comes to those odd moments of emotional ‘leakage’.
“Unlike other royal couples like Charles and Camilla and William and Kate there is a large height difference between the Queen and her husband, plus a rather traditional style of male-female posing, with Philip always looking as though he’s on the parade ground while the Queen has a rather county lady vibe.
“Despite these differences though, they are often quite tightly choreographed with some unexpectedly strong mirroring, showing like-mindedness.”