Royal Dukedoms in the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
A Royal Duke is a duke
who is a member of the British Royal Family
, entitled to the style
of "His Royal Highness". The current Royal Dukedoms are, in order of precedence:
of Cornwall and Rothesay (which can only be held by the eldest son of the Sovereign), these dukedoms are hereditary according to the Letters Patent
that created them, which contain the standard remainder "heirs male of his body". The British monarch also holds and is entitled to the revenues of the Duchy of Lancaster
, and within the borders of the County Palatine
of Lancashire
is by tradition saluted as "The Duke of Lancaster" (even when the monarch is a Queen regnant, she does not use the title Duchess). She also rules the Channel Islands
as Duke of Normandy
.
Past Royal Dukedoms include:
The Hanoverians
occasionally combined two territorial designations into a single royal dukedom — for example, the Duke of York and Albany
. Other combinations included Gloucester and Edinburgh
, Cumberland and Strathearn
, Clarence and St Andrews
, Kent and Strathearn
, Cumberland and Teviotdale
, Connaught and Strathearn
and Clarence and Avondale
. The idea was often to combine an English title with a Scottish one, emphasising the unity of the (then new) United Kingdom. Such Hanoverian Dukes were generally also given an Irish title.
The dukedoms of Albany and Cumberland-and-Teviotdale are not vacant but were suspended in 1919
, as their holders were also reigning German rulers when Britain was at war with Germany in World War I
; there still exist heirs to these titles who could apply for their restoration. There was speculation that Prince Edward
would receive a dukedom such as Cambridge or Sussex upon his marriage in 1999, but instead he received the lesser title Earl of Wessex
. At the same time as his creation as Earl of Wessex, it was announced that Prince Edward will be created Duke of Edinburgh on the death of both of his parents as Prince Charles will succeed to the title on his father's death. The Dukedom of Edinburgh will become a non-royal dukedom with Prince Edward's descendants.
In the United Kingdom, there is nothing about a particular dukedom that makes it "royal". Rather, these peerages are called Royal Dukedoms because they are held by a member of the royal family who is entitled to the style Royal Highness
. Although the term Royal Duke therefore has no official meaning per se, the category "Duke of the Blood Royal
" was acknowledged as a rank conferring special precedence
at court in the unrevoked 20th clause of the Lord Chamberlain's order of 1520. This decree accorded precedence to any peer related by blood to the Sovereign above all others of the same degree within the peerage. The order did not apply within Parliament
, nor did it grant precedence above the Archbishop of Canterbury
or other Great Officers of State
such as is now enjoyed by royal dukes. But it placed junior Dukes of the Blood Royal above the most senior non-royal duke, junior Earls of the Blood Royal above the most senior non-royal earl, etc. It did not matter how distantly related to the monarch the peers might be (presumably they ranked among each other in order of succession
to the Crown). Although legally "time does not run against the King", so that the 1520 order is theoretically still in effect, in fact the "Blood Royal" clause seems to have fallen into desuetude
in 1917 when George V. limited the style of Royal Highness to children and male-line grandchildren of the Sovereign. Thus peers of the Blood Royal who are not grandchildren of a Sovereign no longer enjoy precedence above other peers.
Under the 20 November 1917, Letters Patent of King George V
, the titular dignity of Prince or Princess and the style Royal Highness are restricted to the legitimate children of a Sovereign, the children of a Sovereign's sons, and the eldest living son of the eldest son of a Prince of Wales. For example, when the current Duke of Gloucester and Duke of Kent are succeeded by their eldest sons, the Earl of Ulster and the Earl of St. Andrews, respectively, those peerages (or rather, the 1928 and 1934 creations of them) will cease to be royal dukedoms, instead the title holders will become ordinary Dukes. The third dukes of Gloucester and Kent will each be styled "His Grace" because as great-grandsons of George V, they are not Princes and are not styled HRH. Similarly, upon the death of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught (1850–1942) (the third son of Queen Victoria
), his only male-line grandson, Alastair Arthur Windsor, Earl of MacDuff (1914–43), briefly succeeded to his peerages and was styled "His Grace". Before the 1917 changes, his style and title was His Highness Prince Alastair of Connaught.
The sovereign's eldest daughter is typically created Princess Royal
, and her marriage may create an interesting situation. Princess Louise
, daughter of King Edward VII
, married the 6th Earl of Fife
in 1889; he was elevated to the title Duke of Fife
, and his wife was styled HRH The Duchess of Fife. The dukedom was a non-royal one and it continues today. Princess Mary
, daughter of King George V
, married Viscount Lascelles—who succeeded as the 6th Earl of Harewood—in 1922, retaining her HRH; there was no elevation to a dukedom. Anne, Princess Royal
, daughter of Queen Elizabeth II
, has taken no title for herself or either of her commoner husbands, though there is absolutely nothing to impede the Sovereign creating a title—almost certainly an earldom, as for HRH Princess Margaret
on her marriage to a commoner as Earl of Snowdon
in 1961—at any time.
Sons of the sovereign are usually granted a dukedom upon marriage. On the occasion of his marriage, 29 April 2011, The Queen created Prince William Duke of Cambridge
.
, royal dukes are entitled to princely coronets (four crosses patée alternating with four strawberry leaves). The coronets of the royal family are dictated by letters patent. The Duke of York bears by letters patent, and the Duke of Edinburgh was granted in 1947 use of, the coronet of a child of the Sovereign (four crosses patée alternating with four fleurs-de-lis), while the Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay has use of the Prince of Wales Coronet
, the Duke of Cambridge the coronet of a child of the heir-apparent and the current Dukes of Gloucester and of Kent, as grandsons of a Sovereign bear the corresponding coronet.
At coronations, apart from the differentiation in Princely coronets to ducal coronets, a Royal Duke also bears six rows of black dots in the ermine, as opposed to four rows of dots for a duke.
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
who is a member of the British Royal Family
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
, entitled to the style
Royal and noble styles
Styles represent the fashion by which monarchs and noblemen are properly addressed. Throughout history, many different styles were used, with little standardization...
of "His Royal Highness". The current Royal Dukedoms are, in order of precedence:
- LancasterDuke of LancasterThere were several Dukes of Lancaster in the 14th and early 15th Centuries. See also Duchy of Lancaster.There were three creations of the Dukedom of Lancaster....
(EnglandOrder of precedence in England and WalesThe Order of precedence in England and Wales as of 11 May 2010:Names in italics indicate higher precedence elsewhere in the table or precedence in the table for the other sex.- Royal Family :* The Sovereign , regardless of gender...
), held by queen Elizabeth II - CornwallDuke of CornwallThe Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in the peerage of England.The present Duke of Cornwall is The Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning British monarch .-History:...
(EnglandOrder of precedence in England and WalesThe Order of precedence in England and Wales as of 11 May 2010:Names in italics indicate higher precedence elsewhere in the table or precedence in the table for the other sex.- Royal Family :* The Sovereign , regardless of gender...
) and RothesayDuke of RothesayDuke of Rothesay was a title of the heir apparent to the throne of the Kingdom of Scotland before 1707, of the Kingdom of Great Britain from 1707 to 1801, and now of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland....
(ScotlandOrder of precedence in ScotlandThe order of precedence in Scotland was fixed by Royal Warrant in 1905. Amendments were made by further Warrants in 1952, 1958 and most recently in 1999 to coincide with the establishment of the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government....
), held by The Prince of WalesCharles, Prince of WalesPrince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay... - EdinburghDuke of EdinburghThe Duke of Edinburgh is a British royal title, named after the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, which has been conferred upon members of the British royal family only four times times since its creation in 1726...
, held by The Prince PhilipPrince Philip, Duke of EdinburghPrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh is the husband of Elizabeth II. He is the United Kingdom's longest-serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch.... - CambridgeDuke of CambridgeDuke of Cambridge is a title which has been conferred upon members of the British royal family several times. It was first used as a designation for Charles Stuart , the eldest son of James, Duke of York , though he was never formally created Duke of Cambridge...
, held by Prince William - YorkDuke of YorkThe Duke of York is a title of nobility in the British peerage. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of the British monarch. The title has been created a remarkable eleven times, eight as "Duke of York" and three as the double-barreled "Duke of York and...
, held by The Prince AndrewPrince Andrew, Duke of YorkPrince Andrew, Duke of York KG GCVO , is the second son, and third child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh... - GloucesterDuke of GloucesterDuke of Gloucester is a British royal title , often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England, the next in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; this current creation carries with it the...
, held by Prince RichardPrince Richard, Duke of GloucesterPrince Richard, Duke of Gloucester is a member of the British Royal Family. Prince Richard is the youngest grandchild of King George V and Queen Mary. He has been Duke of Gloucester since his father's death in 1974. He is currently 20th in the line of succession... - KentDuke of KentDuke of Kent is a title which has been created various times in the peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, most recently as a royal dukedom for the fourth son of George V.-Pre-history:...
, held by Prince EdwardPrince Edward, Duke of KentThe Duke of Kent graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst on 29 July 1955 as a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Scots Greys, the beginning of a military career that would last over 20 years. He was promoted to captain on 29 July 1961. The Duke of Kent saw service in Hong Kong from 1962–63...
In detail
With the exceptions of the dukedomsDukes in the United Kingdom
Duke, in the United Kingdom, is the highest-ranking hereditary title in all four peerages of the British Isles. A duke thus outranks all other holders of titles of nobility ....
of Cornwall and Rothesay (which can only be held by the eldest son of the Sovereign), these dukedoms are hereditary according to the Letters Patent
Letters patent
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
that created them, which contain the standard remainder "heirs male of his body". The British monarch also holds and is entitled to the revenues of the Duchy of Lancaster
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Cornwall. It is held in trust for the Sovereign, and is used to provide income for the use of the British monarch...
, and within the borders of the County Palatine
County palatine
A county palatine or palatinate is an area ruled by an hereditary nobleman possessing special authority and autonomy from the rest of a kingdom or empire. The name derives from the Latin adjective palatinus, "relating to the palace", from the noun palatium, "palace"...
of Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
is by tradition saluted as "The Duke of Lancaster" (even when the monarch is a Queen regnant, she does not use the title Duchess). She also rules the Channel Islands
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
as Duke of Normandy
Duke of Normandy
The Duke of Normandy is the title of the reigning monarch of the British Crown Dependancies of the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey. The title traces its roots to the Duchy of Normandy . Whether the reigning sovereign is a male or female, they are always titled as the "Duke of...
.
Past Royal Dukedoms include:
- AlbanyDuke of AlbanyDuke of Albany is a peerage title that has occasionally been bestowed on the younger sons in the Scottish, and later the British, royal family, particularly in the Houses of Stuart and Hanover....
- AlbemarleDuke of AlbemarleThe Dukedom of Albemarle has been created twice in the Peerage of England, each time ending in extinction. Additionally, the title was created a third time by James II in exile and a fourth time by his son the Old Pretender, in the Jacobite Peerage. The name is the Latinised form of the ancient...
- BedfordDuke of Bedfordthumb|right|240px|William Russell, 1st Duke of BedfordDuke of Bedford is a title that has been created five times in the Peerage of England. The first creation came in 1414 in favour of Henry IV's third son, John, who later served as regent of France. He was made Earl of Kendal at the same time...
- ClarenceDuke of ClarenceDuke of Clarence is a title which has been traditionally awarded to junior members of the English and British Royal families. The first three creations were in the Peerage of England, the fourth in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the fifth in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.The title was first...
- Connaught
- CumberlandDuke of CumberlandDuke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British Royal Family, named after the county of Cumberland.-History:...
- HerefordDuke of HerefordThere has only been one Duke of Hereford: The title was created in the Peerage of England for Richard II's cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, due to his support for the King in his struggle against their uncle Thomas of Woodstock, 1st Duke of Gloucester...
- KendalDuke of KendalThe titles of Earl of Kendal and Duke of Kendal have been created several times, usually for people with some connection to the royal family....
- RossDuke of RossThe title Duke of Ross has been created twice in the Peerage of Scotland, both times for younger sons of the King of Scotland. Named for Ross in Scotland, it was first created in 1488 for James Stewart, Earl of Ross, the second son of James III. On his early death in 1504, the title became...
- SussexDuke of SussexDuke of Sussex was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was conferred on 27 November 1801 upon The Prince Augustus Frederick, the sixth son of George III, who was created Duke of Sussex, Earl of Inverness, and Baron Arklow, all in the Peerage of the United Kingdom...
- WindsorDuke of WindsorThe title Duke of Windsor was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1937 for Prince Edward, the former King Edward VIII, following his abdication in December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, a residence of English monarchs since the Norman Conquest, is...
The Hanoverians
House of Hanover
The House of Hanover is a deposed German royal dynasty which has ruled the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg , the Kingdom of Hanover, the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
occasionally combined two territorial designations into a single royal dukedom — for example, the Duke of York and Albany
Duke of York
The Duke of York is a title of nobility in the British peerage. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of the British monarch. The title has been created a remarkable eleven times, eight as "Duke of York" and three as the double-barreled "Duke of York and...
. Other combinations included Gloucester and Edinburgh
Duke of Gloucester
Duke of Gloucester is a British royal title , often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England, the next in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; this current creation carries with it the...
, Cumberland and Strathearn
Duke of Cumberland
Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British Royal Family, named after the county of Cumberland.-History:...
, Clarence and St Andrews
Duke of Clarence
Duke of Clarence is a title which has been traditionally awarded to junior members of the English and British Royal families. The first three creations were in the Peerage of England, the fourth in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the fifth in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.The title was first...
, Kent and Strathearn
Duke of Kent
Duke of Kent is a title which has been created various times in the peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, most recently as a royal dukedom for the fourth son of George V.-Pre-history:...
, Cumberland and Teviotdale
Duke of Cumberland
Duke of Cumberland is a peerage title that was conferred upon junior members of the British Royal Family, named after the county of Cumberland.-History:...
, Connaught and Strathearn
Duke of Connaught and Strathearn
The title Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was granted by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to her third son, Prince Arthur....
and Clarence and Avondale
Duke of Clarence
Duke of Clarence is a title which has been traditionally awarded to junior members of the English and British Royal families. The first three creations were in the Peerage of England, the fourth in the Peerage of Great Britain, and the fifth in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.The title was first...
. The idea was often to combine an English title with a Scottish one, emphasising the unity of the (then new) United Kingdom. Such Hanoverian Dukes were generally also given an Irish title.
The dukedoms of Albany and Cumberland-and-Teviotdale are not vacant but were suspended in 1919
Titles Deprivation Act 1917
The Titles Deprivation Act 1917 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which authorised enemies of the United Kingdom during the First World War to be deprived of their British peerages and royal titles. -Background:...
, as their holders were also reigning German rulers when Britain was at war with Germany in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
; there still exist heirs to these titles who could apply for their restoration. There was speculation that Prince Edward
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex KG GCVO is the third son and fourth child of Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh...
would receive a dukedom such as Cambridge or Sussex upon his marriage in 1999, but instead he received the lesser title Earl of Wessex
Earl of Wessex
The title Earl of Wessex has been created twice in British history, once in the pre-Conquest Anglo-Saxon nobility of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom...
. At the same time as his creation as Earl of Wessex, it was announced that Prince Edward will be created Duke of Edinburgh on the death of both of his parents as Prince Charles will succeed to the title on his father's death. The Dukedom of Edinburgh will become a non-royal dukedom with Prince Edward's descendants.
In the United Kingdom, there is nothing about a particular dukedom that makes it "royal". Rather, these peerages are called Royal Dukedoms because they are held by a member of the royal family who is entitled to the style Royal Highness
Royal Highness
Royal Highness is a style ; plural Royal Highnesses...
. Although the term Royal Duke therefore has no official meaning per se, the category "Duke of the Blood Royal
Royal family
A royal family is the extended family of a king or queen regnant. The term imperial family appropriately describes the extended family of an emperor or empress, while the terms "ducal family", "grand ducal family" or "princely family" are more appropriate to describe the relatives of a reigning...
" was acknowledged as a rank conferring special precedence
Precedence
Precedence may refer to:* Message precedence of military communications traffic* Order of precedence, the ceremonial hierarchy within a nation or state* Order of operations, in mathematics and computer programming...
at court in the unrevoked 20th clause of the Lord Chamberlain's order of 1520. This decree accorded precedence to any peer related by blood to the Sovereign above all others of the same degree within the peerage. The order did not apply within Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
, nor did it grant precedence above the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
or other Great Officers of State
Great Officer of State
In the United Kingdom, the Great Officers of State are traditional Crown ministers, who either inherit their positions or are appointed to exercise certain largely ceremonial functions. Separate Great Officers exist for England and Scotland, and formerly for Ireland...
such as is now enjoyed by royal dukes. But it placed junior Dukes of the Blood Royal above the most senior non-royal duke, junior Earls of the Blood Royal above the most senior non-royal earl, etc. It did not matter how distantly related to the monarch the peers might be (presumably they ranked among each other in order of succession
Order of succession
An order of succession is a formula or algorithm that determines who inherits an office upon the death, resignation, or removal of its current occupant.-Monarchies and nobility:...
to the Crown). Although legally "time does not run against the King", so that the 1520 order is theoretically still in effect, in fact the "Blood Royal" clause seems to have fallen into desuetude
Desuetude
In law, desuetude is a doctrine that causes statutes, similar legislation or legal principles to lapse and become unenforceable by a long habit of non-enforcement or lapse of time. It is what happens to laws that are not repealed when they become obsolete...
in 1917 when George V. limited the style of Royal Highness to children and male-line grandchildren of the Sovereign. Thus peers of the Blood Royal who are not grandchildren of a Sovereign no longer enjoy precedence above other peers.
Under the 20 November 1917, Letters Patent of King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
, the titular dignity of Prince or Princess and the style Royal Highness are restricted to the legitimate children of a Sovereign, the children of a Sovereign's sons, and the eldest living son of the eldest son of a Prince of Wales. For example, when the current Duke of Gloucester and Duke of Kent are succeeded by their eldest sons, the Earl of Ulster and the Earl of St. Andrews, respectively, those peerages (or rather, the 1928 and 1934 creations of them) will cease to be royal dukedoms, instead the title holders will become ordinary Dukes. The third dukes of Gloucester and Kent will each be styled "His Grace" because as great-grandsons of George V, they are not Princes and are not styled HRH. Similarly, upon the death of Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught (1850–1942) (the third son of Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
), his only male-line grandson, Alastair Arthur Windsor, Earl of MacDuff (1914–43), briefly succeeded to his peerages and was styled "His Grace". Before the 1917 changes, his style and title was His Highness Prince Alastair of Connaught.
The sovereign's eldest daughter is typically created Princess Royal
Princess Royal
Princess Royal is a style customarily awarded by a British monarch to his or her eldest daughter. The style is held for life, so a princess cannot be given the style during the lifetime of another Princess Royal...
, and her marriage may create an interesting situation. Princess Louise
Louise, Princess Royal and Duchess of Fife
The Princess Louise, Princess Royal and Duchess of Fife was the third child and the eldest daughter of King Edward VII and Alexandra of Denmark...
, daughter of King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
, married the 6th Earl of Fife
Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife
Alexander William George Duff, 1st Duke of Fife KG, KT, GCVO, PC, VD , styled Viscount Macduff between 1857 and 1879 and known as The Earl Fife between 1879 and 1889, was a British Peer who married Princess Louise of Wales, the third child and eldest daughter of King Edward VII and Alexandra of...
in 1889; he was elevated to the title Duke of Fife
Duke of Fife
Duke of Fife is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, named after Fife in Scotland. There have been two creations of the title, the first in 1889 and the second in 1900, both in favour of Alexander Duff, 6th Earl Fife in the Peerage of Ireland and 1st Earl of Fife in the Peerage of the...
, and his wife was styled HRH The Duchess of Fife. The dukedom was a non-royal one and it continues today. Princess Mary
Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood
The Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood was a member of the British Royal Family; she was the third child and only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. She was the sixth holder of the title of Princess Royal...
, daughter of King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
, married Viscount Lascelles—who succeeded as the 6th Earl of Harewood—in 1922, retaining her HRH; there was no elevation to a dukedom. Anne, Princess Royal
Anne, Princess Royal
Princess Anne, Princess Royal , is the only daughter of Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh...
, daughter of Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
, has taken no title for herself or either of her commoner husbands, though there is absolutely nothing to impede the Sovereign creating a title—almost certainly an earldom, as for HRH Princess Margaret
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon
Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II and the younger daughter of King George VI....
on her marriage to a commoner as Earl of Snowdon
Earl of Snowdon
Earl of Snowdon is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1961, together with the subsidiary title Viscount Linley, of Nymans in the County of Sussex, for Antony Armstrong-Jones, who was then the husband of HRH The Princess Margaret...
in 1961—at any time.
Sons of the sovereign are usually granted a dukedom upon marriage. On the occasion of his marriage, 29 April 2011, The Queen created Prince William Duke of Cambridge
Duke of Cambridge
Duke of Cambridge is a title which has been conferred upon members of the British royal family several times. It was first used as a designation for Charles Stuart , the eldest son of James, Duke of York , though he was never formally created Duke of Cambridge...
.
Forms of Address
- Address: His Royal Highness The Duke of _____
- Speak to as: Your Royal Highness
- After: Sir
Coronet
While non-royal dukes are entitled to a coronet of eight strawberry leaves, to bear at a coronation and on his coat of armsCoat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
, royal dukes are entitled to princely coronets (four crosses patée alternating with four strawberry leaves). The coronets of the royal family are dictated by letters patent. The Duke of York bears by letters patent, and the Duke of Edinburgh was granted in 1947 use of, the coronet of a child of the Sovereign (four crosses patée alternating with four fleurs-de-lis), while the Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay has use of the Prince of Wales Coronet
Honours of the Principality of Wales
The Honours of the Principality of Wales are the Crown Jewels used at the investiture of Princes of Wales. They include a coronet, a ring, a rod, a sword, a girdle, and a mantle....
, the Duke of Cambridge the coronet of a child of the heir-apparent and the current Dukes of Gloucester and of Kent, as grandsons of a Sovereign bear the corresponding coronet.
At coronations, apart from the differentiation in Princely coronets to ducal coronets, a Royal Duke also bears six rows of black dots in the ermine, as opposed to four rows of dots for a duke.