LONDON - Britain's Queen Elizabeth said on Wednesday she was touched by all the tributes that had been paid to her husband Prince Philip, her first public remarks since his death earlier this month aged 99.

"While as a family we are in a period of great sadness, it has been a comfort to us all to see and to hear the tributes paid to my husband, from those within the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and around the world," the queen, who is celebrating her 95th birthday on Wednesday, said.