Mark Phillips

Mark Anthony Peter Phillips CVO ADC (born 22 September 1948) is an English Olympic gold medal-winning horseman for Great Britain and the first husband of Anne, Princess Royal, with whom he has two children. He remains a leading figure in British equestrian circles, a noted eventing course designer, and a columnist for Horse & Hound magazine.

This article is about the former husband of the Princess Royal. For other people with the same name, see Mark Phillips (disambiguation).

Mark Phillips
CVO ADC
Mark Philips smiling
Phillips in 1980
Personal information
Birth nameMark Anthony Peter Phillips
Born (1948-09-22) 22 September 1948
Tetbury, Gloucestershire, England
Alma mater
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1973; div. 1992)​
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1997; sep. 2012)​
    Children4, including Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall
    Sport
    SportHorse riding
    Medal record
    Representing  Great Britain
    Olympics
    Gold medal – first place 1972 Munich Team eventing
    Silver medal – second place 1988 Seoul Team eventing
    World Championships
    Gold medal – first place 1970 Punchestown Team eventing
    Silver medal – second place 1974 Burghley Team eventing
    European Championships
    Gold medal – first place 1971 Burghley Team eventing
    Military career
    Allegiance United Kingdom
    Service/branch British Army
    Unit1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards
    AwardsCommander of the Royal Victorian Order

    Family background and early life

    Mark Anthony Peter Phillips was born on 22 September 1948. He is the son of Major Peter William Garside Phillips, MC (1920–1998)[1] and Anne Patricia Phillips (née Tiarks;[2] 1926–1988);[1] they married in 1946. Anne was educated at Downe House and served in the Women's Royal Naval Service during the Second World War.[2] Her father John Gerhard Edward Tiarks (1896–1962), who served in the First and Second World Wars, attained the rank of Brigadier. John Tiarks was aide-de-camp to King George VI from 1947 to 1950. Mark had a younger sister, Sarah Anne Staples (née Phillips; 1951–2014).[3]

    Phillips was educated at Stouts Hill Preparatory School near Uley, Gloucestershire, then at Marlborough College, then the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.[4]

    Military career

    Upon passing out from Sandhurst, Phillips was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards in July 1969,[5] He was promoted to Lieutenant in January 1971.[6] By the time of his wedding to Princess Anne in November 1973, Phillips was an acting Captain.[7] In January 1974, he was appointed a Personal aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II.[8] Phillips was substantively promoted to captain in July 1975,[9] and retired from the Army on 30 March 1978.[10]

    Phillips continued to style himself Captain Mark Phillips,[11] as it is usual for retired cavalry captains to keep using their rank if their civilian job involves working with horses in racing or equestrian sports.[12]

    Equestrian career
    Mark Phillips in 1973

    Phillips was a reserve member of the British equestrian team for the 1968 Olympics. He was part of the British three-day event teams that won a world title in 1970, a European title in 1971, and Olympic gold medals in 1972; individually, he finished in 35th place in 1972. At the 1988 Olympics, his horse sustained a pulled muscle and could not complete the individual three-day event, but Phillips won a silver medal with the British team. Phillips was a four-time champion at the Badminton Horse Trials, in 1971 and 1972 on Great Ovation, in 1974 on Colombus, and in 1981 on Lincoln. It was through his equestrian activities that he met Princess Anne, the only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, whom he married. Their own daughter Zara later won a silver medal in the three-day event with the British team at the 2012 Olympics.[4]

    In 1998 Phillips designed the cross-country venue for the Red Hills Horse Trials, a qualifying event for the Olympics located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. He is now a regular columnist for Horse & Hound magazine. He also remains a leading figure in British equestrian circles and serves as Chef d'Equipe of the United States Eventing Team.[13][14]

    Personal life
    See also: Wedding of Princess Anne and Mark Phillips

    Phillips first met his future wife Princess Anne at a party for horse lovers in 1968.[15] They married on 14 November 1973, at Westminster Abbey.[16] They have two children: Peter (born 1977) and Zara (born 1981). It is believed that Phillips declined a peerage from Queen Elizabeth II, which would have allowed his children to use courtesy titles.[17] The Queen bought Gatcombe Park, near Minchinhampton, for the couple as a wedding present.[18][19]

    In August 1989 the Princess Royal and Phillips announced their intention to separate, as the marriage had been under strain for a number of years.[20] The couple had rarely been seen in public together, and both were romantically linked with other people.[21] They continued to share the custody of their children, and initially announced that "there were no plans for divorce."[22][23] Meanwhile, Phillips continued to work at the couple's estate at Gatcombe Park.[22] In 1991, a DNA test confirmed that Phillips had fathered a girl, Felicity Tonkin, born in August 1985 in New Zealand to art teacher Heather Tonkin.[24] Phillips and Princess Anne divorced on 23 April 1992.[25][26]

    On 1 February 1997, Phillips married Sandy Pflueger, an American Olympic dressage rider. Their daughter Stephanie was born on 2 October 1997.[26] She grew up at Aston Farm, Gatcombe Park, close to the family of Princess Anne, and served as a bridesmaid at the wedding of her half-sister Zara Tindall. In 2000 conferred as an Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Farmers.

    On 3 May 2012, it was confirmed by Phillips' solicitors that Phillips and Pflueger had separated, intending to divorce, with Phillips becoming involved with American equestrian Lauren Hough.[27]

    Phillips' personal wealth is thought to be around £15–20 million.[28] The settlement he received when his marriage to Princess Anne ended was described as "modest"[28] and reported to be around "$3 million".[29]

    Honours and arms

    Military ranks

    British honours
    See also: List of honours of the British Royal Family by country

    Honorary military appointments

    Foreign honours

    Arms
    Coat of arms of Mark Phillips
    Notes
    These arms were granted to Peter Phillips, the father of Captain Mark Phillips, in October 1973. Mark used these arms differenced with a three point label until he inherited the undifferenced arms from his father in 1998.[35] He was granted hereditary supporters, a rare privilege for untitled people.
    Crest
    On a Wreath of the colours, a spur rowed upward or, winged argent, enclosing a lozenge sable.
    Escutcheon
    Per chevron azure and Or, in chief a horse courant argent, and in base a sprig of forget-me-not flowers, slipped and leaved proper.[35]
    Supporters
    On the dexter side a winged lion, and on the sinister side a winged horse Argent, each gorged with a representation of the Coronet of HRH The Princess Anne proper.
    Motto
    Pro rege et patria (For king and country).
    Orders
    Royal Victorian Order

    Issue
    By Princess Anne
    NameBirthMarriageIssue
    Peter Phillips15 November 197717 May 2008
    Divorced 14 June 2021[36]    		Autumn KellySavannah Phillips
    Isla Phillips[37]
    Zara Phillips15 May 198130 July 2011[38]Mike TindallMia Tindall
    Lena Tindall
    Lucas Tindall[39]
    By Heather Tonkin
    NameBirthMarriageIssue
    Felicity Tonkin10 August 1985March 2015Tristan WadeJames Wade[24]
    By Sandy Pflueger
    NameBirthMarriageIssue
    Stephanie Phillips2 October 19978 July 2022[40]William Hosier

    References
    1. "Princess Anne Attends Funeral". AP News. 18 September 1998. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
    2. Tiarks, Frank. "Tiarks of Foxbury as researched by Charles A. H. Franklyn-". tiarks.co.uk. Retrieved 30 May 2015. Educated, Downe House, Newbury, Berks....served in the WRNS...
    3. "Zara Tindall mourns the sudden death of her aunt Sarah Staples". Hello!. 17 December 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
    4. "Mark Phillips". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
    5. "No. 44923". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 August 1969. p. 8768.
    6. "No. 45287". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 January 1971. p. 912.
    7. Morgan, Gwen. "A Royal Wedding Album". Chicago Tribune 15 November 1973. Retrieved 4 March 2016. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Michael Ramsey, blesses Princess Ann and Capt. Mark Phillips....
    8. "No. 46174". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 January 1974. p. 267.
    9. "No. 46644". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 July 1975. p. 9641.
    10. "No. 47508". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 April 1978. p. 4411.
    11. Mark Phillips. Britroyals.com. Retrieved on 8 May 2014.
    12. Retired and Former Officers, The Army, Armed Forces, Professions, Forms Of Address | Debrett's Archived 27 December 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Debretts.com. Retrieved on 8 May 2014.
    13. "Phillips and Ransehousen Named 2011 USEF Coaches of the Year". United States Equestrian Federation. 18 January 2012. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
    14. "Captain Mark Phillips". United States Eventing Association. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
    15. Longworth, R. C. (1 September 1989). "Princess Anne To Separate From Husband". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 14 May 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
    16. "1973: Crowds cheer marriage of Princess Anne". BBC. 14 November 1973. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
    17. As female-line grandchildren of the Sovereign, Princess Anne's children were never eligible for the style "Royal Highness" or the title "Prince/Princess" under the terms of George V's letters patent of 1917. If Phillips held a peerage, however, his children with Princess Anne would have been entitled to be addressed as "The Honourable", or as "Lord" or "Lady", depending on the substantive peerage created.
    18. Glasgow Herald, 24 June 1976, p. 1
    19. The Australian Women's Weekly, 21 July 1976, p. 4 Archived 2020-10-07 at the Wayback Machine
    20. "But No Divorce Is Planned : Princess Anne, Husband Split". Los Angeles Times. 31 August 1989. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
    21. Kaufman, Joanne; Cooper, Jonathan (24 April 1989). "A Crisis Rocks a Royal Marriage". People. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
    22. "1989: Royal couple to separate". BBC. 31 August 1989. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
    23. Rule, Sheila (1 September 1989). "Princess Anne and Husband Agree to Separate". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
    24. "Royal scandal: Zara Tindall's 'secret' nephew born in NZ". The New Zealand Herald. 19 August 2017. Retrieved 24 June 2022. A DNA test in 1991 confirmed Phillips as her father, paving the way for a reported £350,000 settlement from Phillips, money which helped pay for fees at one of Auckland's finest private schools and some profitable property investments to secure Felicity's future.
    25. Brozan, Nadine (24 April 1992). "Chronicle". New York Times.
    26. "Princess Anne's ex-husband a father again". Reading Eagle. Reading, PA. 7 October 1997. p. A10.
    27. Rayner, Gordon (3 May 2012). "Captain Mark Phillips to divorce for second time after falling for 35-year-old Lauren Hough". Retrieved 10 December 2018 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
    28. William Langley "Captain Mark Phillips: He's found love in the saddle (again)", telegraph.co.uk, 6 May 2013
    29. "With No Hope for a Happy Ending, Princess Anne Brings Her Storybook Marriage to a Close". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
    30. The London Gazette
    31. Krebs, Albin (15 August 1974). "Notes on People". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
    32. "Anne Mark Guildhall". Getty Images.
    33. Medal Yearbook 2021. Honiton, Devon: Token Publishing. 2021. p. 295. ISBN 978-1-908828-53-8.
    34. "Platinum Jubilee Medal revealed". Gov.uk.
    35. "News & Views". The Heraldry Gazette (57): 17. March 1974.
    36. Gallagher, Sophie (14 June 2021). "Divorce settled for Princess Anne's son Peter Phillips and Autumn Phillips". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
    37. "Queen a great-grandmother again". ITV News. 30 March 2012. Archived from the original on 25 April 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
    38. "Zara Phillips wedding: Ceremony at Edinburgh church". BBC News. 30 July 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
    39. "Zara Tindall and husband Mike confirm birth of baby boy - a new great-grandson for the Queen". Sky News. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
    40. Cope, Rebecca (11 July 2022). "Princess Anne attends the wedding of her ex-husband's daughter, Stephanie Phillips". Tatler. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
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