Philip’s passion for carriage-driving remembered with poignant possessions
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A small red container placed upon the seat of his driving carriage served as a poignant reminder of the Duke of Edinburgh’s love of equine.
The item was one of four personal effects carefully selected to accompany the four-wheeled carriage, which was pulled by Fell ponies Balmoral Nevis and Notlaw Storm, into the quadrangle ahead of Saturday afternoon’s funeral service.
The red pot itself was actually used to store sugar lumps which Philip would give his ponies after carriage-driving.
The container was delicately placed next to his cap, whip and brown gloves, and served as a visual reminder of the late duke’s carriage-driving.
The polished dark green vehicle was Philip’s most recent carriage, which he began using at the age of 91 for riding around Windsor and other royal estates.
Made of aluminium and steel, the carriage was built to the duke’s specifications eight years ago, drawing on his knowledge of FEI (Federation Equestre Internationale) driving.
Philip, who died a week ago aged 99, was synonymous with carriage-driving and had been designing the vehicles since the 1970s.
He loved nothing more than to go haring through the countryside at high speed, whip in hand, in a horse-drawn wheeled carriage.
“I am getting old, my reactions are getting slower, and my memory is unreliable, but I have never lost the sheer pleasure of driving a team through the British countryside,” he explained in the book he wrote about the sport.
