The death of Britain's Prince Philip has occurred in the midst of unprecedented times as the country deals with the coronavirus pandemic.
After the turmoil of 2020, 2021 began with a third national lockdown in England as the Covid-19 deaths continued to rise across the UK and around the world.
Prince Philip, 99, who was married to the Queen for more than 70 years, was just weeks from his milestone 100th birthday on 10 June, and the Queen is approaching her platinum jubilee next year.
The royal family, like the rest of the country, spent months separated from one another, with the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge contracting coronavirus.
Now the royal family is grieving, having had to say goodbye to their much-loved patriarch Philip - at a time when the monarchy had already been plunged into crisis.
The Windsors had been experiencing one of their most challenging periods in the modern era with the bitter fallout from the Megxit crisis, and the scandal surrounding the Duke of York.
While Philip was unwell in hospital after surgery on his heart, came the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's damaging Oprah interview.
The monarchy's reputation was hit after Harry and Meghan accused the royal family of racism and the institution of failing to help the suicidal duchess.
In January 2020, Harry and Meghan had released a statement, without warning the Queen, declaring they were stepping down as senior royals for a dual life, combining financial freedom in north America with royal duties.
The Queen called a summit at Sandringham with Charles, William and Harry to find a solution to what was dubbed Megxit.
But ultimately the plan was unworkable and Harry and Meghan had to drop their HRH styles and walk away from the monarchy completely, in favour of earning their own money in the US.
In the aftermath, the Queen issued a statement saying "while some recollections may vary", the issues would be taken "very seriously", but dealt with privately as a family.
William, in a rare move on an official engagement, spoke out publicly, saying: "We're very much not a racist family."
The Queen and Philip had already faced the scandal that engulfed their second son Andrew, who was forced to step back from public duties in November 2019.
The duke faced mounting pressure following his controversial Newsnight interview about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
On the Queen and the duke's 72nd wedding anniversary, Andrew released a statement saying he was withdrawing from royal duty.
Royal writer Penny Junor described the monarchy as "going through very difficult times".
Some commentators described 2019 as the Queen's second "annus horribilis" - the term she used to refer to 1992, when the Princess Royal divorced, the Duke and Duchess of York separated, the Prince and Princess of Wales were splitting up, and Windsor Castle went up in flames.
But the 2021 saga of Harry and Meghan was branded the War of the Waleses 2.0.
Philip concluded his decades of royal duty in 2017, with his decision to retire coming in a surprise announcement from Buckingham Palace.
He carried out his final official royal engagement in August of that year, stepping down from a lifetime of public service at the age of 96 - although he was seen at the occasional engagement in the years that followed.
The duke, who dedicated the majority of his life to supporting the Queen and appearing at official engagements, withdrew from public duties but still remained active and busy.
