The touching mementos the Queen carried at Prince Philip's funeral
<p>The Queen sat alone at Prince Philip's funeral on Saturday, but she reportedly carried two touching reminders of her husband with her.</p>
<p>Her Majesty and Prince Philip spent 73 years together and most likely exchanged countless gifts and mementos over that time period.</p>
<p>But the monarch is said to have chosen two simple items to carry with her as she lay her husband to rest.</p>
<p>In her small, black handbag, the Queen kept one of Philip's pocket squares and a photo of them from the earliest years of their marriage, according to reports.</p>
<p>Speaking to the Daily Mail, a royal insider said the Queen carried one of Philip's white handkerchiefs, which he used to use as pocket squares.</p>
<p>The handkerchiefs were made by his Savile Row tailors Kent & Haste, and the Queen kept one on her during the funeral service.</p>
<p>The second item was a photograph of her and Philip during their honeymoon in Malta, which was taken sometime between 1949 and 1951.</p>
<p>"The years the Queen spent in Malta were said to be among the happiest of her life," 9Honey's royal columnist Victoria Arbiter wrote in 2019.</p>
<p>"And the Mediterranean archipelago was the only place outside the UK she ever called home."</p>
<p>She and Philip even returned to Malta in 2007 to celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary, and it is said to hold a special place in the monarch's heart.</p>
<p>It's understandable, then, that the Queen would choose a photo of her and Philip there – at one of their happiest moments – to carry with her at his funeral on Saturday.</p>
<p>The Queen also addressed a handwritten letter to her late husband, which was placed alongside a wreath of white lilies, small white roses, and white freesia chosen by her.</p>
<p>The contents of the note have been kept private.</p>
<p>In the past, the Queen honoured her husband with loving comments, remarking when Philip turned 90: "He has, quite simply, been my strength and my stay all these years."</p>
<p>And it seems Philip was just as in love. In the early days of their relationship, he wrote in a letter: "Cherish Lilibet? I wonder if that word is enough to express what is in me?"</p>
