Mark Phillips

Mark Phillips was the first husband of Princess Anne. He was born 22 September 1948 and educated at Marlborough College. He attended the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst and was commissioned in 1969 into the Queen’s Dragoon Guards initially as Lieutenant and later Captain. Although he has now left the Army he continues to style himself Captain Mark Phillips.

His keen interest is horse riding and equitation events. He won the Badminton Horse Trails in 1971, 1972, 1974 and 1981. In 1972, he was a member of the British three-day event team, which won the gold medal at the Munich Olympics, and silver in the Seoul Olympics.

It was through these events that he met Princess Anne, daughter of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. They were married in Westminster Abbey on 14 November 1973 and had two children, Peter born in 1977 and Zara in 1981. They were divorced on 28 April 1992.

On 1 February 1997 he married Sandy Pflueger, an American dressage rider. The couple have a daughter Stephanie born in October 1997. He is a regular columnist in Horse & Hound magazine, and remains a leading figure in British and American equestrian circles.

Peter Phillips

Peter Phillips was born on 15 November 1977 at St Mary’s hospital, Paddington in London. He is the eldest child of Princess Anne and her first husband Mark Phillips. He was educated at in Shaftesbury, Dorset, and then like other members of the Royal Family at Gordonstoun School in Scotland where he became head boy. He is a keen sportsman and played rugby for the Scottish Schools team. He went on to Exeter University and graduated with a degree in Sports Studies.

After his graduation he worked for Jaguar cars as a hospitality manager and then for Williams Formula One motor racing team as a sponsorship manager. Since September 2005 he has worked for the Royal Bank of Scotland.

Peter and Autumn were married at St Georges Chapel, Windsor, on 17 May 2008. He is the first of the Queen's grandchildren to marry. Autumn Kelly was a Roman Catholic so that under the 1701 Act of Settlement Peter would have had to give up his place in line of succession to the throne. However she renounced her Catholic faith and converted Church of England, so he remains 11th in line to the throne. The couple do not undertake any royal duties. He works for the Royal Bank of Scotland and they lived in Hong Kong from 2008 to 2010 before returning to England. Their daughter Savannah was born in Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on 29 December 2010, and is the first great-grandchild of Queen Elizabeth II. Savannah was baptised on Saturday, 23 April 2011, at Holy Cross Church in Avening, Gloucestershire, near the Princess Royal's home Gatcombe Park. On 29 March 2012 their second daughter Isla Elizabeth Phillips was born.

Date: 2015-02-03; view: 744