The choir of St George’s Chapel at Windsor is world famous. Its primary function is to sing the daily services, the Opus Dei, and it has a large repertoire of music drawn from all ages and traditions. The ‘Jubilate Deo’ was written by Benjamin Britten in 1961 for St George’s Chapel at the request of Prince Philip. He also put up money for an organ scholarship at St George’s College, although his interest in religion has not always been so apparent.

Looking back to the time in 1962 when the Rt Revd Robin Woods was appointed Dean of Windsor, Prince Philip said: ‘I was dragged into religious things by being invited to become involved in the reorganisation of St George’s, Windsor. Theological dialogue was really forced on me. I never had any great difficulty in being an ordinary Christian.’ Through his father, who was Bishop of Litchfield and as Lord High Almoner had a royal connection, Woods was invited to hold a service for the royal family at Queen Victoria’s Chapel in Windsor Great Park.

Together, the Queen and Prince Philip soon formed a close relationship with Dean Woods. They invited him to come up to the castle for discussions at the weekends, which was very flattering for the dean. On one occasion, he was working in his garden behind the chapel when the Queen’s page was sent to tell him that the Queen wanted to see him in a hurry. The dean said he would need a few minutes to change into his clerical garb, but he was told to come at once and not to worry about his outfit as the Queen was herself in riding clothes. From then on, their meetings became more informal. However, what the Queen discussed with her chaplain at their weekly get-togethers is not public knowledge.

St George’s Chapel is exempt from the jurisdiction of the local bishop and is under the direct control of the monarch. So Woods got the job when the Queen made a personal request for him to become Dean of St George’s after hearing him preach. It was at a time when the chapel services were poorly attended. Woods said: ‘When I took the job it was made clear that I would be expected to turn everything upside down.’ Prince Philip, with his abundance of organisation skills, worked with Woods to raise funds to set up a residential conference centre called St George’s House. It opened in 1966, providing a centre where influential people from all walks of life could meet to explore and communicate their views and analysis of contemporary issues against a religious background.