NONFICTION - Oct. 20, 1991

PHILIP: A Portrait of the Duke of Edinburgh by Tim Heald (William Morrow: $23; 352 pp.). In 1952, when Elizabeth II ascended the English throne, Prince Philip vowed to be his wife’s “liegeman of life and limb and of earthly worship; and faith and truth I will bear unto you, to live and die against all manner of folks.” Not a congenial thing to have to say, certainly in this age--even if the pledge is more symbolic than real, and even if it means access to enormous fame and fortune. “Philip,” written by a former London Observer correspondent in commemoration of Philip’s 70th birthday, doesn’t mean to make the prince consort’s life seem burdensome, but that’s the net effect. Always scrutinized, usually underestimated and able to escape his formal duties only rarely, Philip comes off as a man to be sympathized with rather than envied.