Duke of Edinburgh

1726 creation

The title was first created in the Peerage of Great Britain on 26 July 1726 by King George I, who bestowed it on his grandson, Prince Frederick, who subsequently became Prince of Wales in 1728. The subsidiary titles of the dukedom were Marquess of the Isle of Ely; Earl of Eltham, in the County of Kent; Viscount of Launceston, in the County of Cornwall; and Baron of Snowdon, in the County of Caernarvon, all of which were also in the Peerage of Great Britain. The marquessate was gazetted as Marquess of the Isle of Wight, apparently erroneously. In later editions of the London Gazette the Duke is referred to as the Marquess of the Isle of Ely. Upon Frederick's death, the titles were inherited by his son Prince George. When Prince George became King George III in 1760, the titles merged in the Crown and ceased to exist.

1866 creation

Queen Victoria re-created the title, this time in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, on 24 May 1866 for her second son Prince Alfred, instead of Duke of York, the traditional title of the second son of the monarch. The subsidiary titles of the dukedom were Earl of Kent and Earl of Ulster, also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. When Alfred became the Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1893, he retained his British titles. His only son who survived birth, Alfred, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, committed suicide in 1899, so the Dukedom of Edinburgh and subsidiary titles became extinct upon the elder Alfred's death in 1900.

1947 creation

The title was created for a third time on 19 November 1947 by King George VI, who bestowed it on his future son-in-law Philip Mountbatten, shortly before he married Princess Elizabeth. Subsequently, Elizabeth was styled "HRH The Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh" until her accession in 1952. The subsidiary titles of the dukedom were Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich, of Greenwich in the County of London; all these titles were in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Earlier that year, Philip had renounced his Greek and Danish royal titles (he was born a prince of Greece and Denmark, being a male-line grandson of King George I of Greece and male-line great-grandson of King Christian IX of Denmark) along with his rights to the Greek throne. In 1957, Philip became a prince of the United Kingdom.

Upon Philip's death on 9 April 2021, his eldest son, Charles, Prince of Wales, succeeded to all of his hereditary titles. Upon Charles's accession to the throne on 8 September 2022, the peerages merged in the Crown and ceased to exist.

2023 creation

It was announced in 1999, at the time of his wedding, that Prince Edward would eventually be granted the Dukedom of Edinburgh. The idea came from Prince Philip, who unexpectedly conveyed his wish to Edward and his fiancée, Sophie Rhys-Jones, only days before their wedding. Edward, then seventh in the line of succession to the British throne, had expected the dukedom to be granted to Prince Andrew, his older brother.

Prince Philip died in April 2021. His dukedom was automatically inherited by his eldest son, Prince Charles, before it merged in the Crown when Charles became king. Edward, who had by then dropped to the 14th place in the line of succession because of births of those higher in line, said in June that his being granted such a prestigious title was "a pipe dream of my father's". In July, The Times reported that Charles had decided not to give the title to his brother. Clarence House did not deny the reports, which were met with disapproval by commentators in light of Edward and Sophie's increased role in the monarchy after Andrew withdrew from public life and Charles's son Prince Harry and daughter-in-law Meghan quit royal duties.

It was suggested in November 2022, shortly after Charles III ascended the throne, that Buckingham Palace was considering saving the dukedom for the new king's granddaughter Princess Charlotte of Wales in recognition of her high place in the line of succession and her being the first female member of the royal family whose place in the line of succession cannot be superseded by a younger brother.

The dukedom was bestowed on Prince Edward on the occasion of his 59th birthday on 10 March 2023. This fourth creation of the title is a life peerage, meaning that Edward's son, James, will not inherit the dukedom (unlike Edward's other peerages). This allows Charles to honour his father's wish and reward his brother and sister-in-law while making it possible for Charles's heir apparent, Prince William, to confer it on one of his children. According to Camilla Tominey of The Daily Telegraph, there had been concerns about the effect that "giv(ing) the Edinburgh dukedom to someone descending fast down the royal ranking" would have on the Scottish independence debate. She proposes that "the prospect of Scottish independence now looking less likely" in the light of Nicola Sturgeon's resignation made the conferral less of a risk.

Dukes of Edinburgh

First creation, 1726

Also: Marquess of the Isle of Ely, Earl of Eltham, Viscount Launceston and Baron Snowdon.

Second creation, 1866

Also: Earl of Kent and Earl of Ulster.

Third creation, 1947

Also: Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich.

Fourth creation, 2023

Family trees

Heraldry

Here are the achievements of the various Dukes of Edinburgh:

File:Coat of Arms of William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland.svg|Coat of arms of Prince Frederick as Duke of Edinburgh File:Coat of arms of George William Frederick, Duke of Edinburgh.svg|Coat of arms of George III as Duke of Edinburgh File:Coat of Arms of Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh.svg|Coat of arms of Prince Alfred as Duke of Edinburgh File:Coat of Arms of Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.svg|Coat of arms of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh File:Coat of arms of the Prince of Wales.svg|Coat of arms of Charles III as Duke of Edinburgh File:Coat of Arms of Edward, Duke of Edinburgh.svg|Coat of arms of Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh

In media

A fictional Duke of Edinburgh appears in the 1983 sitcom The Black Adder. Rowan Atkinson plays the title character, Prince Edmund, who is granted the title Duke of Edinburgh by his father, a fictitious King Richard IV.

References

References

1. {{London Gazette. (6 April 2023)
2. Cokayne, G. E.. (1926). "[[The Complete Peerage]]". St. Catherine Press.
3. {{London Gazette. (12 July 1726)
4. {{London Gazette. (4 January 1728)
5. {{London Gazette. (16 April 1751)
6. {{London Gazette. (25 May 1866)
7. {{London Gazette. (21 November 1947)
8. (29 April 2011). "Kate to become Duchess of Cambridge".
9. {{London Gazette. (21 November 1947)
10. {{London Gazette. (22 February 1957)
11. (9 April 2021). "HRH The Duke of Edinburgh". College of Arms.
12. (15 September 2022). "Who is the Duke of Edinburgh now?". Evening Standard.
13. "The Earl of Wessex". Royal.gov.uk.
14. Tominey, Camilla. (10 March 2023). "Prince Edward may have the Duke of Edinburgh title – but getting it wasn't easy". The Telegraph.
15. Nikkhah, Roya. (11 July 2021). "Edward wants to be Duke of Edinburgh but his brother is not on his side". [[The Times]].
16. {{London Gazette. (15 March 2023)
17. (10 March 2023). "The King confers The Dukedom of Edinburgh upon The Prince Edward". The Royal Family.
18. Coughlan, Sean. (10 March 2023). "King Charles grants Prince Edward Duke of Edinburgh title". BBC News.
19. "Blackadder Characters".