Peter Mark Andrew Phillips
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Peter Mark Andrew Phillips (born November 15, 1977), is the eldest grandson of Queen Elizabeth II. He is not technically a member of the Royal Family, as he is a female line descendant, and is therefore not entitled to hold a royal title. However, he usually appears with the family on most official occasions and frequently appears on the balcony of Buckingham Palace. He is currently tenth in line to the British throne.
Peter Phillips was born on November 15, 1977 at St Mary's Hospital, Paddington in West London. His father is Mark Phillips, a former Captain in the Queen's Dragoon Guards. His mother is The Princess Anne, Princess Royal, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He also has a younger sister named Zara and two half-sisters, Felicity Tonkin born in 1985 to his father and his former mistress, and Stephanie, born in 1997 from his father's second marriage.
It is said that on his birth, the Queen offered to create Peter a Prince, but this was refused by his mother, Princess Anne, who did not wish her children to have titles. As Peter's father had already declined a peerage from the Queen upon his marriage to Princess Anne, Peter did not have any title at birth. It is widely accepted that both Captain Phillips had partly declined a title so that his children would not be unnecessarily burdened. Therefore, at the time of his birth, Peter went into the history books for being the first royal baby to be born a commoner for more than 500 years.
Official announcements of his birth were posted on the railings of Buckingham Palace and the Home Office in Whitehall. A 41-gun salute was fired at the Tower of London to welcome the baby, who in 1977 was fifth in line to the throne. On a much smaller scale, his paternal family in Great Somerford, Wiltshire shared his birth with the public too -- by having their local church bells rung in celebration.
His parents' wishes that he lead a normal life were granted and Peter first attended the local village school until he was mature enough to attend Port Regis Co-Educational Preparatory School, Shaftesbury, Dorset. Later Peter attended Gordonstoun school in Scotland, which his grandfather Prince Phillip and maternal uncles had all attended. A keen sportsman, he earned a cap for the Scottish Schools rugby team and was an equally impressive student, gaining excellent grades. He was also Head Boy at Gordonstoun. After leaving school, he studied at the University of Exeter, graduating with a degree in sports science.
Peter does not carry out any official royal engagements and generally maintains a low public profile. He receives no money directly from the civil list, although The Princess Royal's accounts show that she settles £15,000 p.a. on both her children. Despite his lack of royal status, he is evidently very much a member of the Royal Family. He regularly attends major royal events and has appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace at events such as the Queen's Golden Jubilee and on many a Remembrance Sunday. It is said that he is both the Queen and Prince Philip's favourite grandson, with the latter referring to him as the "Golden" boy and he is also popular among his royal family, loved by his elders and peers alike. Family is obviously very important to Peter for not only does he ensure he lends his support to his grandmother, he also ensures he turns out to encourage his younger sister Zara at the various equestrian events she competes in. The two are evidently very close and are a real credit to their parents. Both his parents tried their hardest throughout his and Zara's childhood to ensure they were kept out of the limelight as much was possible. Anne even went as far as to once declare "They're not royal, the Queen just happens to be their grandmother".
Despite this, Peter still managed to catch the eye of the press and has made many headlines around the world. In 1998, America's People Magazine named him "Sexiest Royal". An accolade which was, no doubt, linked to his then relationship with the American cod-liver oil heiress Elizabeth Iorio. Peter met Elizabeth, a member of the United States Eventing Team, through his father who is the Chef D'Equipe of the United States Eventing Team. They had a long relationship and even took the step of moving in together in 2001. They lived together for eight months at Peter's upmarket Belsize Park apartment until they decided to go their separate ways. The subsequent break up of the relationship came as quite a shock for there had even been whispers of marriage and the British newspapers had frequently commented on the ease at which Elizabeth would fit in with the Windsor Dynasty, her first love being horses. Elizabeth returned to the United States, however, before doing so, took the time to tell a reporter she thought Peter need to "mature". Peter has since been linked to a number of women, notably enjoying a four month romance with air hostess Tara Swain. Since 2003, however, Peter has been steadily dating girlfriend Autumn Kelly. He met the Canadian at the Montreal Grand Prix and the two have been inseparable ever since. They reside together in a cottage on his mother's Gatcombe Park estate in Gloucestershire.
Following graduation, Peter worked for both the Jaguar and BMW-Williams Formula One racing teams. He was the Sponsorship Accounts Manager at BMW-Williams until September 2005 when he left to work at the global headquarters of the Royal Bank of Scotland in Gogarburn, Edinburgh.
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