It has just been announced that His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh has passed away. Prince Philip was 99 years of age, leaving behind four children, eight grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
The Royal Family's Twitter shared the heartbreaking news, as seen below. The Duke passed away earlier this morning at Windsor Castle.
Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth II were no strangers to the Maltese Islands, having lived here between 1949 and 1951 while the Duke was stationed here as a navy officer. They lived in Villa Guardamangia in Pieta.
They visited the islands a number of times after that, even up until a few years ago. The royals visited in 1954 on an official tour of the Commonwealth countries, in 1967 on a state visit, 25 years later in 1992 on another state visit, 2005 for a CHOGM meeting, in 2007 for a one-night stay to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary and in 2015 for another CHOGM meeting.