Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh mark 25 years married

Image source, Buckingham Palace/PA

Image caption, The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary
  • Author, Mallory Moench
  • Role, 大象传媒 News

The Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh have marked their 25th wedding anniversary by releasing a new portrait.

In a relaxed photograph taken in the gardens of their home at Bagshot Park, Surrey, Prince Edward stands behind his wife Sophie and wraps his arms around her, her hands on his.

They married on 19 June 1999 at St George鈥檚 Chapel in Windsor Castle and have two children - Lady Louise Windsor, 20, and James, Earl of Wessex, 16.

The couple met at a real tennis event in the early 1990s when Sophie Rhys-Jones was a public relations professional.

Ahead of Edward鈥檚 60th birthday in March, Sophie, 59, gave her husband a tearful tribute, calling him "the best of fathers, the most loving of husbands" and "still my best friend".

Edward, in a TV interview, described his wife as his "rock", adding he was 鈥渋ncredibly lucky that I found Sophie and she found me".

The Duke of Edinburgh is King Charles III鈥檚 brother and the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, the former Duke of Edinburgh.

Edward and Sophie announced they would become full-time royals in 2002, and the prince received the title Duke of Edinburgh from the King in 2023.

In the first half of this year, they became key members of a small number of working royals as the King and Princess of Wales temporarily stepped back from public duties following their cancer diagnoses.

As a working royal, Edward has focused on youth, sport, the arts and the military.