The Duchess of Edinburgh took her late father-in-law’s carriage out in Windsor today – joining her brother-in-law Prince Andrew who rode on horseback.
Sophie, 58, shared her love of carriage driving with the late Prince Philip, who famously took up the sport in his fifties.
The mother-of-two is known to take the late Duke’s old horse carriages out for a spin on occasion, and today was snapped driving around Windsor Castle.
She wore a navy jacket and baseball cap as she took the reins of the carriage the Spring sunshine.
Also out for a ride was Prince Andrew, who was pictured riding on horseback around the sprawling estate, wearing a navy outfit and matching helmet.
Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh (pictured) was snapped taking one of the late Prince Philip’s carriages out for a spin around Windsor Castle today
The prince, 63, was seen driving himself away after the ride, snapped at the wheel of his Range Rover.
Sophie’s appearance comes amid reports the late Queen suggested to Meghan Markle that she ask for help from the then-Countess of Wessex ahead of her wedding to Prince Harry.
Sophie had become a ‘second daughter’ to Queen Elizabeth II, after marrying her youngest son, Prince Edward, in a lavish ceremony at St George’s Chapel in 1999.
But according to Robert Jobson’s new book Our King: Charles III — The Man And The Monarch Revealed – Meghan offered only a curt reply to the monarch, saying: ‘I’ve got Harry.’
The Queen had been determined that Harry and Meghan’s marriage would be off to a good start and offered the Duchess the help of one of her most trusted aides in Sophie.
Her late Majesty had likely expected her suggestion to be met with gratitude, and was surprised to be rejected by the American actress, who believed that the help of her husband would be enough.
Queen Elizabeth II believed strongly that Meghan would be a a breath of fresh air and a great asset to the monarchy.
And while things started positively, after the royal couple stepped back from duties at the beginning of 2020, their relationship with the rest of the family began to disintegrate.
Prince Andrew was also snapped riding in Windsor today. The 63-year-old is regularly spotted enjoying a weekly horseback ride in the area
The royal was also snapped in his Range Rover as he drove himself away following his weekly Windsor ride
Prince Andrew (pictured, right) was photographed riding on Saturday, a day before royals were expected to come together to attend an Easter service in Windsor
The Duchess of Edinburgh, who was recently given the new title, an upgrade from her previous title of the Countess of Wessex, became a mainstay of the Queen’s household after the death of Prince Philip.
It was said after she was granted her new rank, alongside her husband, Prince Edward, who inherited his fathers’s title, that the new Duchess was ‘relieved’ she would no longer have to curtsey to Meghan.
Sophie had previously been duty-bound to defer to Prince Harry’s wife who, as a Duchess, was of a higher rank.
A friend of the couple said: ‘Sophie is relieved. She no longer has to curtsey to someone in the family who has not only left Royal duties but has spent the past three years criticising the institution that Sophie works so hard to support.’
Sophie has become a popular and trusted senior member of the Royal Family, despite weathering her own scandals throughout the years.
She shared a famously close bond with the Queen, who was said to treat her as a ‘second daughter’.
The Queen cared for Sophie in 2005 after her mother, Mary Rhys-Jones, 77, died from stomach cancer.
Prince Edward was promoted to Duke of Edinburgh to mark his 59th birthday, meaning that Sophie is now a Duchess too. The former Countess of Wessex had previously been duty-bound to defer to Prince Harry’s wife (pictured together in 2019) who, as a Duchess, was of a higher rank
Prince Edward’s and Sophie’s house, Bagshot Park, is only a short trip from Windsor, meaning the Queen’s youngest son and his family would regularly visit.
Walking their dogs together was a favourite past-time of the pair. They also shared a love of military history, spending hours poring over ancient documents in the Royal Archives at Windsor, where Sophie and her mother-in-law indulged in their shared hobby, researching military history.
Even if she was unable to see the Queen in person, Sophie would always make sure to call ‘mama’ every day, and she was the first royal to speak about Prince Philip’s death.
In 2021, a tearful Countess described the queen as ‘amazing’ as she and her husband Prince Edward comforted Her Majesty at Windsor Castle following the death of her husband Prince Philip.
She has also become a source of advice for the new Princess of Wales, who is said to admire the way Sophie balances her royal duties with motherhood.
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk