Prince Philip broke his retirement today for a rare public engagement.
The Duke of Edinburgh, 99, beamed as he waved leaving Windsor Castle, wearing a green and red tie and a navy suit.
The Queen's husband retired in 2017 after decades of loyal service supporting the Monarch, as well as attending 22,000 events for his own charities and organisations.
Today's ceremony, which will see him hand over his position as Colonel-in-Chief of the Rifles Regiment to Camilla, is his first official royal event for more than a year.
However we have seen the Duke at a number of private family events, including Princess Beatrice's wedding on Friday, in the past 12 months.
Philip, nicknamed the ‘Iron Duke’ for his resilience and steadfast commitment helping guide the monarch through many joyous and yet some tumultuous times, was nearly 100 miles away from the Duchess of Cornwall as they both carried out their separate parts of the ceremony.
Philip, was at Windsor Castle in Berkshire, while the duchess was at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire.
The Duke beamed as he stepped out of the door of Windsor Castle to be greeted by representatives from The Rifles, who thanked him for his work over the years.
Camilla is seen as a "fantastic and hugely popular choice" to take over reins and a "safe pair of hands" after the disaster of the last military appointment handover.
In 2017, Prince Harry was made the Captain General of the Royal Marines, succeeding his grandfather, who had previously held the position for 64 years - but was forced to step down this year following his bombshell decision to leave The Firm.
Royal sources confirmed: "The Duke has been involved in house handovers like this before but the Rifles were keen to do something ceremonially and Philip insisted he would be more than happy to facilitate it in person."
During the Windsor ceremony - which only lasted a few minutes but has huge significance and symbolism - Philip was be honoured and thanked for his 67 years of support for The Rifles, and their forming and antecedent regiments, by Assistant Colonel Commandant, Major General Tom Copinger-Symes.
Philip was pictured last year with General Sir Nicholas Carter, the former Colonel Commandant of The Rifles, and General Sir Patrick Sanders, who succeeded him during a visit to the Duke his Sandringham home to mark their official handover.
It's been a busy week for Philip, and he attended his granddaughter Princess Beatrice's wedding on Friday.
He looked happy as he smiled in one of the five official photos which have been released, standing outside the chapel with the Queen.
Philip was also pictured last month outside Windsor Castle in an official snap released to mark his 99th birthday.
He was last seen at a big event when he was a guest at Lady Gabriella Windsor's wedding in May 2019.
The ceremony at midday will be Philip's first engagement in more than a year, marking a remarkable recovery from two major incidents last year including a miracle escape from a car crash in January and a four day hospital stay up to Christmas Eve.
