The Duke of Edinburgh has been admitted to hospital as a “precautionary measure” after feeling unwell, Buckingham Palace has said.

A palace spokesperson said the 99-year-old is “expected to remain in hospital for a few days of observation and rest”.

A royal source said Prince Philip does not have a coronavirus-related illness and walked into hospital unaided on Tuesday evening.

The source added he travelled there by car and was not an emergency admission.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement: “His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh was admitted to the King Edward VII Hospital in London, on Tuesday evening.

“The Duke’s admission is a precautionary measure, on the advice of His Royal Highness’s Doctor, after feeling unwell.”

Philip retired from public duties in 2017 and rarely appears in public.

He was last seen in public in July 2020 when he transferred his role as colonel-in-chief of The Rifles to his daughter-in-law Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.

He has been staying with the Queen at Windsor Castle since coronavirus restrictions were first introduced last year.

Philip has suffered a number of ailments over the years, including being treated for a blocked coronary artery at Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire in December 2011.

He was later treated for a bladder infection in June 2012, forcing him to miss the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

Exploratory surgery on his abdomen followed in June 2013 and he began to use hearing aids by 2014, aged 93.

He later pulled out of a Battle of Jutland anniversary event in June 2016 citing a minor ailment which was followed soon after by his retirement from public duty in 2017.

Philip was involved in a car accident in January 2019 but was unhurt and did not go to hospital.

He spent four nights at the King Edward Hospital in December 2019, where he was treated for a “pre-existing condition” and was later discharged on Christmas Eve.

Earlier this month the palace confirmed the Queen and Prince Philip had both received their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

It is understood the Queen decided the information should be made public to prevent inaccuracies and further speculation.

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