The heartbreaking reason Prince Philip will be spending Valentine’s Day alone

We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip have been married for 72 years, but they are spending today apart.

Prince Philip lives full time on the royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, where the Queen has been staying for an extended winter break.

But now, she has returned to her home at Buckingham Palace in London to return to royal duties full time.

The monarch took the train from King’s Lynn train station in Norfolk to return to her base in London.

View this post on Instagram

✈️🎖The Queen, Honorary Air Commodore visited @rafmarham in Norfolk today. The Royal Family have long supported the air base. Swipe ➡️ to see a photograph of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother visiting personnel in 1988. RAF Marham is a military airbase, with over 3600 working personnel. The airbase provides engineering support across the RAF and is home to the F-35B Lightning, a military aircraft. The Queen visited the Integrated Training Centre, which provides future pilots with thorough training and enables them to qualify as a Lightning Plane pilot. Her Majesty watched a demonstration of simulation-based training. This special training enables new pilots to practice flying planes without being in the air.

A post shared by The Royal Family (@theroyalfamily) on Feb 3, 2020 at 5:11am PST

Meanwhile, Philip lives in Wood Farm, a red-brick five-bedroom home in the grounds of Sandringham Estate.

A friend of Philip said the Queen feels he has earned himself a ‘proper retirement’ after being ‘on duty’ since the pair married in 1947.

They said, ‘She knows him too well, if he was still at the centre of royal life he’d feel he had to be involved.

‘Being at Wood Farm means he’s not too far away, but far enough to be able to relax.’

View this post on Instagram

Today, The Queen visited the Royal British Legion Industries (RBLI) village to celebrate the charity’s centenary year. The charity supports Armed Forces personnel and veterans, and their families, as well as people who have been long-term unemployed. During the visit in Kent Her Majesty opened the new Appleton Lodge care facility and visited the Centenary Village housing project. The lodge provides care for residents as well as local people in the area. She also met RBLI Village’s eldest resident, 99-year old WWII veteran John Riggs, and his family. Finally, The Queen visited the RBLI Centenary Village, to see the completed first phase of the development, which includes specially-adapted apartments for wounded former military personnel. And she buried a time capsule which included a personal message congratulating the charity on their Centenary. For more on today visit our website via the link in our bio! 📸 Press Association / Royal Communications

A post shared by The Royal Family (@theroyalfamily) on Nov 6, 2019 at 9:01am PST

It’s no wonder the Queen is keen for her husband to focus on relaxing, given his recent health problems.

During the Christmas break, Prince Philip, 98, was admitted to King Edward VII’s hospital in London to receive treatment for a ‘pre-existing condition.’

But he was seen walking out of the hospital after just a few days of treatment and returned to Sandringham in time for Christmas celebrations.

The Queen’s return to the capital comes after news that her grandson, Peter Phillips, and his wife Autumn are divorcing.

They announced their divorce in a statement, saying they would continue to live in Gloucestershire and will co-parent their daughters Savannah and Isla.

A source revealed that while the Queen is ‘sad at the decision, both families are hugely supportive of them both and the girls.’