Mark Phillips

Mark Anthony Peter Phillips (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. 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) and Anne Patricia Phillips (née Tiarks; 1926–1988); they married in 1946. Anne was educated at Downe House and served in the Women's Royal Naval Service during the Second World War. 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). Phillips was educated at Stouts Hill Preparatory School near Uley, Gloucestershire, then at Marlborough College, then the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. 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, He was promoted to Lieutenant in January 1971. By the time of his wedding to Princess Anne in November 1973, Phillips was an acting Captain. In January 1974, he was appointed a Personal aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II. Phillips was substantively promoted to captain in July 1975, and retired from the Army on 30 March 1978.