Young Prince Philip And Prince Harry Look Like Identical Twins In Royal Photographs

Feb 17, 2021 by apost team

We love seeing family resemblances when it comes to celebrities but are overjoyed when we can find the same in the royal family. While we know that the great-grandchildren of the late queen have taken after her in many ways, we rarely hear about adult royals resembling their closest family. It is amazing when an older photo is compared to the newer ones, and we suddenly see the family genes show up in a big way.

One such photo was shared on social media after the royal photographer Chris Jackson re-discovered an unforgettable photo with quite a lot of heritage behind it. Prince Harry has completely taken after his grandfather, the late Prince Philip, and this photo will leave you as amazed as we were by the uncanny resemblance! 

While most fans of the royals claim that Prince Harry most closely resembles his late mother, Princess Diana, a royal photograph is demonstrating how much he looks like his late grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh. Getty’s Royal photographer Chris Jackson posted a picture on Instagram comparing two photos of Prince Harry and young Prince Phillip. The comparison shows Harry at age 34 compared with a then-36-year-old Prince Phillip.

This resemblance is no surprise, of course, as the two royals had always been close. Even though there is a whole generation between them, their looks are uncannily similar. They both have also led similar lives in terms of their service to the Crown and the nation. Prince Harry took a divergent path to his late grandfather, however, after he and his wife Meghan Markle left the royal family on Mar. 31, 2020.

Prince Philip was born June 10, 1921 in Mon Repos, Corfu, Greece. In fact, Prince Philip was born as a royal, originally inheriting the title of the prince of Greece and Denmark. However, Biography.com reports that his family was exiled from Greece when he was only an infant, which led to a lot of turbulence in his early life. He was then reared mainly in Great Britain, being educated at Gordonstoun School in Scotland, which was followed by his attendance of the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, England. He met his future wife, Elizabeth, for the first time in 1934, when both families attended the marriage of his cousin to Elizabeth's uncle and met once again when Elizabeth's father, George VI, was crowned.

Their love story began when 13-year-old Elizabeth developed a crush on the 18-year-old Prince Philip, who was a naval cadet at the time. The relationship truly blossomed when young Prince Philip saw young Elizabeth perform in the pantomime Aladdin in 1943 according to Biography.com. Their relationship continued to become stronger through the years and Prince Philip asked Elizabeth to marry him in 1946. 

Before he got married, he was required to give up his titles and succession to the throne in Greece. He did so willingly and took on his mother's surname Mountbatten. According to Britannica, Prince Philip served with the Royal Navy during World War II. Prince Philip continued active service in the Royal Navy until Elizabeth's accession to the throne on February 6th, 1952. Until the conclusion of his service, he commanded the frigate Magpie. On Friday, Apr. 9, 2021, Prince Philip passed away in Windsor Castle. 

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He was an active and dedicated member of the Royal family ever since the late Queen Elizabeth's crowning. 

From a young age, Prince Harry had similar interests to that of his grandfather, including hunting, riding, and serving his country. Prince Harry was born on Sept. 15, 1984 in the Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London to his mother, Princess Diana, and his father, King Charles III. While his childhood had its share of setbacks and difficulties, such as his parents splitting up, Prince Harry was always known for his "happy-go-lucky" disposition. The tragic and untimely death of his mother in 1997 affected him deeply and left him with a lot of emotional scars, according to Biography.com. 

As he grew up, his interest in military service matured and in 2005, he enrolled at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. He served for 10 years and officially ended his duties in May 2015. While he was no longer involved in active combat, Prince Harry continued volunteering to assist wounded servicemen. The Duke of Sussex's military duty included two tours in Afghanistan and he was eventually promoted to the rank of Lieutenant with The Household Cavalry, according to the Royal Website. In 2017, Prince Harry was made the Captain General of the Royal Marines, succeeding Prince Philip who had previously held the same position. However, Prince Harry stepped back from all of his military duties when he chose to leave behind his title as a senior royal member of the family back in January 2020.

When it comes to their relationship, Prince Harry and late Prince Philip were always close. Town And Country Magazine wrote, "Prince Philip has always got along well with his grandson Prince Harry, whose sporting abilities both with a gun and a polo pony he admired." However, after Prince Harry's departure from the royal family, there have been difficulties in continuing and maintaining personal relationships within the royal family. A new book by writer Ingrid Seward, "Prince Philip Revealed" sheds light on Prince Philip's life, and excerpts from the book show that he was not happy with how Prince Harry handled leaving behind the royal family for a life in North America. He reportedly said, "Everything I have worked for 40 years has been in vain."

In an Instagram post on Jan. 8, 2020, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wrote, "After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen." This announcement rocked the royal family, according to NBC News, and came as a shock to the world. Town And Country Magazine reported that this announcement was a surprise even for the royal family and that the Queen was only informed of the post 10 minutes beforehand. 

After taking some time, the Queen released a message of support for Prince Harry's decision, saying "Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the royal family, we respect their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family."

After this statement, the works began and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle began working towards leaving for North America. Their official last day as senior members of the royal family was Mar. 31, 2020. Away from the constraints of royal duties, Vanity Fair reported that Prince Harry has found new freedom for his passions and projects. "As a royal who was not particularly high up the ladder within the institution, Harry wasn’t always able to go at it full force,” said author Omid Scobie. “Now he’s in control. He gets to juggle multiple projects at the same time; the budget is there, the space is there.”

While there have been tensions between Prince Harry and William, Prince of Wales, Vanity Fair reported that they have been smoothed over after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex moved to California in March 2020. Moreover, there are regular video calls to his father, Charles, and his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth. Vanity Fair also reported that "according to a family friend, the queen loves watching Archie onscreen and has commented on his streak of red hair." A wonderful thing about family is that often, there is healing when there has been genuine love and care between members over the years. It is clear that despite the controversy surrounding Prince Harry and Markle's move to North America, the royal family has continued to lend their support to the couple in one way or another. 

Coming to the resemblance between Prince Harry and his grandfather, the photos show a striking similarity between the two.

The 1957 vintage picture of the Duke of Edinburgh is even more striking because both royals are wearing their military uniforms. Prince Phillip is all decked out in his Tropical Dress of the Blues and Royals. Military service is something that the royals really take pride in. Prince Philip actively served from 1939 until 1952, while Prince Harry actively served for a total of ten years.

This is the same uniform that Prince Harry wore to open the ANZAC memorial at Hyde Park in Sydney back in 2018. According to The Sun, the memorial paid tribute to thousands of Australians who lost their lives in battle during World War I.

While the picture of Prince Phillip may have been colorized, the similarities certainly make you do a double-take. Prince Philip and Prince Harry seem to share the same eyes and nose, probably passed through Prince Harry's father, Charles. Their features are simply uncanny, even though there is an entire generation in between them. 

Chris Jackson, the royal photographer for the last 15 years and the man who originally posted about the uncanny resemblance between grandfather and grandson, said that he found the photo when visiting France while looking at wedding venues. The photographer said that while today's royals pride themselves on being a modern monarchy, pictures like this remind everyone that their heritage is steeped in deep tradition. In an interview with Tatler, Jackson reflected on social media's role in terms of royal photography and his photographer relationship with the royal family in general:

"Instagram and Twitter, as well as other forms of social media, have affected the way we communicate around the world – this change has certainly been embraced by all members of the Royal family and we often see key messages and statements released on social media. I remember being with the Queen as she sent her first ‘tweet’ in 2014 during an exhibition at the Science Museum in London."

Jackson continued:
"Fast forward a few years and the Royal family can now boast tens of millions of followers across all their social accounts, giving the family a great platform to communicate directly with the public. The Royals embrace this amazing power of celebrity and social media..."

Modernity also questions the need for a continuing monarchy, especially considering that the British Monarchy still holds strong importance in the United Kingdom as compared to other European nations that have long moved past a sitting monarch. However, the British Throne continues to be a beacon of identity for the citizens. 

As per the official Royal website, Her Royal Highness "acts as a focus for national identity, unity and pride; gives a sense of stability and continuity; officially recognises success and excellence; and supports the ideal of voluntary service," and the Queen's family supports her in these endeavors. Though she may not be the Head of State that has a parliamentary or executive role, the Queen is in many ways the face of Britain and its long and glorious history. The royal family has also been a sort of guiding light in terms of what "modernity" means for royal leaders of a nation. 

While there remain other royal families that play an important role in a country's identity, such as Saudi Arabia and Thailand for example, no other families have held as powerful a role as the current royal family of the United Kingdom. 

With the advent of social media, the Royal family has come more into view than ever before. The Royals' ability to embrace modern forms of communications has given the world a more meaningful look into their lives, which has made the curtain of mystery that once separated the Royals from their citizens more transparent. In many ways, we see that the Royals are more often than not just like us. 

Most recently, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry announced that they are expecting their second child. Sharing the happy news on social media, the radiant couple looked joyful in a gorgeous black and white photograph that was able to evoke many emotions in the viewers. The news came after Markle announced that she had suffered a miscarriage in July 2020 in an op-ed piece in the New York Times from November 2020. The couple already shares a son, Archie, who has come to resemble his father in many ways, much like how Prince Harry resembles his grandfather. 

Reacting to the news, Buckingham Palace released the following statement on Sunday, February 14, “Her Majesty, Duke of Edinburgh, Prince of Wales and entire family are ‘delighted’ and wish them well.” No other details have officially been released from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, yet but this is not surprising as they had also previously kept the sex of baby Archie a secret till he was born. William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, have done the same with all three of their children. Speaking to Us Weekly, a source close to the couple said that this is “a dream come true” for the couple.

Social media has given us a portal of sorts to see the difference between what used to be and what is, but sometimes we come across the similarities that travel through time. Today, the Royal family certainly has a lot of photos that show how times have changed, but it's always cool to see a resemblance as uncanny as this one!

Royals watchers are giddy about the new side-by-side comparison. If you missed the two amazing shots, now is your chance to check them out. It will be fun to watch Prince Harry's new bundle of joy grow up to see if he also resembles his father and late great-grandfather.

After you have viewed these photos, be sure to spread the family love to everyone else that you know!