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Why Prince Charles Visited Prince Philip In Hospital, According To Ex-Royal Staffer

Today, Prince Philip concludes his second weekend in hospital while being treated for an infection. Last weekend, the 99-year-old Duke was visited by his son Prince Charles, the only royal to visit in person as the hospital stay nears two full weeks. There never was official word on why the Prince of Wales was permitted to visit, but The Queen's ex-press secretary Dickie Arbiter believes he has the answer.

Prince Philip made a "request" for Prince Charles to visit him in hospital last week, according to Dickie Arbiter, the former press secretary for The Queen.

The Duke of Edinburgh, 99, has been in hospital for 13 days now, but Prince Charles has been the only royal to visit, doing so last weekend on Feb. 20. It came as a surprise, as it was said that visitors would be permitted only under "exceptional circumstances" due to pandemic restrictions. Here's why Arbiter believes it occurred.

Why Prince Charles visited Prince Philip in hospital

As Daily Mail reported, Arbiter spoke on the Feb. 27 episode of The Royal Beat, where he said: "I think it was at the request of the Duke that the Prince of Wales visited."

He continued: "To lay the ground. Look, the man is 99, he is in with an infection. My guess is that he will come out, he will walk out and he will go back to Windsor.

"But eventually he is going to die and he was just saying to Charles, 'one day you are going to be the leading man of the family,'" concluded Arbiter, who is familiar with royal conduct as former press secretary for The Queen from 1988 to 2000.

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Update: Prince Philip spends 13th day in hospital

Prince Charles was pictured upon arriving and exiting from the hospital last Saturday, Feb. 20. Just days before, it had been reported that Prince Philip would receive no visitors unless under "exceptional circumstances."

Prince Charles visits Prince Philip at King Edward VII's Hospital, Feb. 20.

But the Prince of Wales was said to have made a lengthy car journey to King Edward VII's Hospital in London because he hadn't seen his father in 2021 and since his hospital stay had been extended longer than anticipated. If Arbiter's inside perspective is correct, a father-son bedside conversation on the future also may have come into play.

Today is Prince Philip's 13th day in hospital and his second full weekend there. The latest update said he was "comfortable and responding to treatment." Prince Edward also spoke to his father on the phone and said that he is doing "a lot better." The Duke's 100th birthday falls on June 10.