Peter Phillips, the eldest grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and his Canadian wife decided to divorce after 12 years of marriage.

Phillips and his wife Autumn in today's announcement said they presented their intention to divorce Queen Elizabeth II and her family last year. The couple married in 2008, having two daughters, Savannah, 9 years old and Isla, 7 years old.

"They all conclude that this is the best plan for their children and friendships today. The decision to divorce and share child care is made after months of discussion," the statement said. "This is reconciliation, though sad. The couple's first priority is to maintain their happiness and nurture their two wonderful daughters, Savannah and Isla."

Buckingham Palace said it did not respond to requests for comment because it was a private matter, but added that both families were deeply saddened by the news.

Phillips, 42, son of Princess Anne, met Autumn, 41, in 2003 at the Formula One Montreal Grand Prix. Phillips was at that time working for the BMW Williams team, and Autumn was working in the receptionist section of BMW. Phillips has no royal title and tends to avoid public attention.

According to the Sun, the first company to post the divorce, Queen Elizabeth II may be extremely upset with this, after her nephew Harry and his wife Meghan, a former American actor, decided to leave the royal family.

Prince Andrew, the second son of the Queen, also resigned from public duties in November last year, after getting into trouble because of relations with American pedophile billionaire Jeffrey Epstein. He was also accused of sexual abuse by a woman in 2001, when she was 17, but the 59-year-old prince denied it.

"The queen must be wondering what she did to get these things back," Sun quoted an unnamed source in the royal family. "The fact that Peter Phillips has always been a grandson loved by the Queen and Prince Philip will probably disappoint her."