Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip return to Buckingham Palace in a carriage on June 17. Photo/AP
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip return to Buckingham Palace in a carriage on June 17. Photo/AP
The Duke of Edinburgh has been discharged from hospital after he was admitted for an infection this week.
Prince Philip, 96, spent two nights at King Edward VII Hospital after being rushed there on Tuesday night as a precautionary measure for a pre-existing condition.
Buckingham Palace confirmed he left hospitalabout 9.30am London time today.
The Duke left quietly via a back entrance.
Although there was concern for the Duke given his age, he was said to have been in "good spirits".
A spokesperson for the palace said confirmed the Duke had left hospital but declined to discuss the Duke's condition. He has previously suffered from a bladder infection. He had been scheduled to accompany his wife, Queen Elizabeth, to Westminster to deliver a major speech on Wednesday morning.
Prince Charles instead accompanied his mother.
Prince Philip was then supposed to accompany Her Majesty to Royal Ascot for the second day of a five-day event at the famous Ascot racecourse in Berkshire, England.
Despite his age, the Duke has maintained relatively good health over the years with only a handful of minor illnesses.
"The Duke of Edinburgh was admitted to King Edward VII Hospital in London last night, as a precautionary measure, for treatment of an infection arising from a pre-existing condition," a palace spokesman said yesterday.
"Prince Philip is in good spirits and is disappointed to be missing the State Opening of Parliament and Royal Ascot."
The Duke's illness came just over a month after he announced he would stand down from official public duties in August.
False death rumours on social media sent shockwaves around the world the morning of May 4 after an "urgent meeting" was called at the palace in the early hours to discuss his future.
King Edward VII's Hospital in London where Prince Philip was admitted. Photo/AP
It was later announced he would simply be retiring from public life from the autumn, due to his advanced years.
The Duke's admission to hospital followed a busy week of public appointments.
He attended Royal Ascot on Tuesday, accompanying the Queen for a big day at the races in Britain's heat wave, the hottest temperatures the UK has seen in decades, reaching heights of 30C.
Prince Philip seemed in good spirits at Trooping the Colour on Saturday, an annual ceremonial event celebrating the Sovereign's birthday, and waved to massive crowds during a carriage ride. Later, he stood on the palace balcony with the royal family for a fly-past by the RAF.
Despite news of his retirement last month, and celebrating his 96th birthday on June 10, the Duke has been in good health and experienced mainly minor health issues over the years.
In June 2013, he had an exploratory operation on his abdomen which was said to have gone "as planned".
Queen Elizabeth II waves to the crowd with Prince Philip appearing in good health as they arrive on the first day of the Royal Ascot horse race meeting on June 20. Photo/AP
He did have a serious health scare over Christmas 2011, which he spent in hospital for treatment for a blocked coronary artery.
He underwent a "minimally invasive procedure" of coronary stenting to unblock it, which was declared a success and he was discharged four days later.
The heart operation led courtiers to carry out a radical rethink of the couple's working partnership from the beginning of 2012 with the Duke carrying out just one public engagement in January and one in February, the anniversary of his wife's accession.
Later the same year, during the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations, he was admitted to hospital with a bladder infection, spending five days on a ward and missing the final part of the jubilee festivities.
In 2016, however, he carried out official meetings and visits on 110 days of the year, remaining patron or president of around 800 organisations and taking an active interest in his Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme.
