Prince William and Kate Middleton lead wedding anniversary tributes for Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's 72nd year of marriage

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip are celebrating their 72nd wedding anniversary today, following a seven decade marriage that spans four children, numerous grandchildren and retellings of their romance in projects including Netflix’s The Crown.

Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge have led tributes to the monarchs on social media, who reportedly first met at a wedding when Queen Elizabeth was just eight years old.

The official Twitter account for Kensington Palace, which represents the couple, tweeted, “Wishing Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh a very happy 72nd Wedding Anniversary!”

It was accompanied by two pictures of Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth in their youth, as well as a more recent shot of the pair.

The Clarence House Twitter account, which represents Queen Elizabeth’s son Prince Charles and Camilla Parker-Bowles, also shared a tribute.

Retweeting a post from the Royal Family’s account, the message read, “Happy 72nd Wedding Anniversary to The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh, who were married on this day in Westminster Abbey. #HappyAnniversary”

A photo of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip on their wedding day waving from a balcony was also shared, alongside a picture of them in 2017 (the same year as their platinum 70th anniversary).

According to the official royal website, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip first met in 1934 at the wedding of Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark and the Duke of Kent. At the time, the distantly related pair first met when the Queen was eight years old and Prince Philip was 13.

The pair reportedly began falling in love after meeting again in 1939, according to royal biographer Sir John Wheeler-Bennett. Queen Elizabeth joined her family at a tour of the Dartmouth Royal Naval College, where Prince Philip was introduced to her and entertained the then-13 year old princess by reportedly leaping over tennis nets.

According to Queen Elizabeth’s governess Marion Crawford, Prince Philip “showed off a good deal”. She continued, “[Queen Elizabeth] never took her eyes off him the whole time.”

Following their reunion at the naval college, they began to exchange letters and became closer until they were eventually engaged in 1947. Prince Philip told biographer Basil Boothroyd that back in 1939, he had no idea he would go on to marry the royal.

They were wed on November 20, 1947 at Westminster Abbey and Queen Elizabeth’s sister Princess Margaret was one of her bridesmaids.

Prince Philip told Boothroyd, “Well, we’d met at Dartmouth, and as far as I was concerned it was a very amusing experience, going on board the yacht and meeting [the royal family], and that sort of thing, and that was that.”

The pair have four children: their eldest Prince Charles, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. They also have a number of grand- and great-grandchildren, ranging from the Duke of Cambridge through to Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, the newest addition to the family.