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British prince
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of British princes from the accession of George I in 1714. The title of prince is at the will of the sovereign, who can both grant and revoke the title. Individuals holding the title of prince will usually also be styled "His Royal Highness" (HRH) or formerly "His Highness" (HH). The sovereign grants the titles of prince and styles of HRH or HH through the use of Letters Patent, Orders in Council, or by another expression of the royal will. The wife of a British prince will usually take the title and style of her husband.
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Prior to 1714, the title of prince and the style of HRH was not customary in usage. Sons and daughters of the sovereign were not automatically or traditionally called a prince or princess. An exception was the Prince of Wales, a title conferred on the eldest son of the sovereign since the reign of Edward I of England. Some others include John, brother of Richard the Lionheart and later King John, who is sometimes called Prince John.
After the accession of George I, it became customary for the sons of the sovereign and grandsons of the sovereign in the male line to be titled Prince and styled His Royal Highness (abbreviated HRH). Great-grandsons of the sovereign were princes styled His Highness (abbreviated HH). This was not a legal creation, but more customary, and in line with George I’s Hanoverian background. It also allowed the creation as the Royal Family of those in immediate line of succession to the throne, with royal titles and living in close proximity.
The titles of prince and princess for members of the Royal Family were used until Queen Victoria issued letters patent in 1864[1] which confirmed the practice regarding children and male-line grandchildren. Subsequently some amendments regarding princes were made, with the issuance of specific letters patent changing the title and style of the following groups:
- In 1898, the children of Prince George, Duke of York, the eldest living son of The Prince of Wales, were customarily titled princes, with the style of Highness, as great-grandchildren of Queen Victoria in the male line. With letters patent dated 28 May 1898, the Crown granted the children of the eldest son of any Prince of Wales the style of Royal Highness[2].
- In 1914, the children of Prince Ernst August III of Hanover, Duke of Brunswick, a great-great-grandchild of George III, were granted the title of prince and the style Highness by George V, in letters patent dated 17 June 1914[3].
- In 1917, George V issued a royal proclamation, altering the name of the Royal House from the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to the House of Windsor[4]. Later that year, new letters patent altered the rights to the title prince and the style Royal Highness. These second letters patent, dated 30 November 1917, stated that "the children of any Sovereign of these Realms and the children of the sons of any such Sovereign (as per the above Letters Patent of 1864) and the eldest living son of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales (a modification of the Letters Patent of 1898) shall have and at all times hold and enjoy the style, title or attribute of Royal Highness with their titular dignity of Prince or Princess prefixed to their respective Christian names or with their other titles of honour". Also decreed in these letters was that "grandchildren of the sons of any such Sovereign in the direct male line ... shall have and enjoy in all occasions the style and title enjoyed by the children of Dukes of these Our Realms" (i.e. Lord or Lady before their Christian name)[5] – as collateral damage resulting from this decree, the Duke of Brunswick and his children were denied the title of prince. Both 1917 letters patent remain in force today, excepting a few amendments and creations noted.
- After the abdication crisis of 1936, George VI issued letters patent (dated 27 May 1937) retroactively regranting The Duke of Windsor his style as son of a Sovereign, whilst expressly denying the title of prince and style Royal Highness to his descendants[6]. The marriage, however, had no issue.
- On 22 October 1948, George VI issued letters patent allowing the children of his son-in-law and daughter, The Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, to assume princely titles and the style Royal Highness[7]; they would not have been entitled to them ordinarily, as grandchildren in the female line, until their mother ascended the throne as Elizabeth II. Thus the current Prince of Wales was styled HRH Prince Charles of Edinburgh until his mother’s accession.
- Elizabeth II issued letters patent, dated 22 February 1957, creating The Duke of Edinburgh a Prince of the United Kingdom[8]. He had been granted the style Royal Highness in 1947 by George VI prior to his wedding to Princess Elizabeth[9].
- On the wedding day of The Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones it was announced by Buckingham Palace on the specific order of Earl and Countess of Wessex that their children would be styled as children of an earl, and not as Princes of the United Kingdom with the style Royal Highness. The daughter of the Earl and Countess of Wessex, Lady Louise Windsor, may, theoretically, be a princess and its is oft asserted that she may be styled as such when she assumes majority[10].
- Sons of sovereigns - HRH The Prince "X", eg HRH The Prince Edward
- Grandchildren - HRH Prince "X" of "Y", where Y is the territorial designation of their father’s peerages, eg HRH Prince Michael of Kent
- Great-grandchildren - HH Prince "X" of "Y" (until 1917, as described above).
- The Prince of Wales is normally styled HRH The Prince of Wales,
- and royal peers, HRH The Duke/Earl of Y. Royal peers remain princes, however.
Wives of British princes take on their husbands' titles. If the prince has a peerage, the wife will become HRH and the female equivalent of the peerage rank, eg HRH The Countess of Wessex. If the prince has no peerage, as in the case of HRH Prince Michael of Kent, the wife will become HRH and will take the title Princess with her husband's name, eg HRH Princess Michael of Kent.
Following the marriage of the Prince of Wales to Camilla Parker Bowles on 9 April 2005 his new wife uses the style HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, using one of his peerage titles, instead of Princess of Wales.
These formal styles are not often used in the media or by the general public. The terms "Prince Charles", "Prince Andrew", "Prince Edward", "Princess Anne", "Princess Diana" and suchforth are most commonly heard, even though the persons involved may never have held that formal shorthand style, or in the lattermost case, the title at all.
Several names have been used repeatedly:
- George is used no fewer than twenty-one times – including six Kings George; Edward VII; Prince George, Duke of Kent and, currently, Charles, Prince of Wales and Prince Michael of Kent
- Frederick occurs twenty times – including Frederick, Prince of Wales; Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Kings George III, IV, V and VI
- William is borne by nineteen princes – Prince William, Duke of Cumberland; George III; William IV and, currently, Prince William of Wales among them
- No fewer than fifteen princes are named Albert, for the Prince Consort – including Edward VII and George VI, who were both known as "Prince Albert"; George V; Edward VIII; Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence, and, currently, Prince Andrew, Duke of York and Prince Henry of Wales
- ^ Royal Styles and Titles – 1864 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, 1898 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, 1914 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, First 1917 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, Second 1917 Letters Patent
- ^ a b Ibid, 1937 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, 1948 Letters Patent
- ^ a b Ibid, 1957 Letters Patent
- ^ a b Ibid, 1947 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, regarding the children of the Earl of Wessex
- ^ Ibid, 1840 Letters Patent
- ^ Ibid, 1857 Letters Patent