Duke of Edinburgh, named after the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh, is a substantive title that has been created four times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not produce any revenue for the title-holder.
The current holder, Prince Edward, was created duke in 2023 on his 59th birthday by his eldest brother, King Charles III. The dukedom had previously been granted to their father, then Philip Mountbatten, on the day of his marriage to Princess Elizabeth, the future Queen Elizabeth II. Upon Philip's death, the title was inherited by Charles and held by him until Elizabeth died and Charles became king, at which time the title reverted to the Crown.
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 dukedom, 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, died by 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.
Duke Portrait Birth Marriage(s) Death Arms Prince FrederickHouse of Hanover1726–1751also: Prince of Wales (1728),Duke of Cornwall (1727, created 1337),Duke of Rothesay (1727, created 1469) 1 February 1707Leineschloss, HanoverSon of King George IIand Queen Caroline Princess Augusta of Saxe-Gotha17 April 17369 children 31 March 1751Leicester House, Leicester Square, Londonaged 44 Prince GeorgeHouse of Hanover1751–1760also: Prince of Wales (1751) 4 June 1738Norfolk House, LondonSon of Prince Frederickand Princess Augusta Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz8 September 176115 children 29 January 1820Windsor Castle, Windsoraged 81
The dukedom and subsidiary titles merged in the Crown in 1760 upon Prince George's succession to the monarchy.
Second creation, 1866
Also: Earl of Kent and Earl of Ulster.
Duke Portrait Birth Marriage(s) Death Arms Prince AlfredHouse of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha1866–1900also Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1893) 6 August 1844Windsor Castle, WindsorSon of Queen Victoriaand Prince Albert Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia23 January 18746 children 30 July 1900Schloss Rosenau, Coburgaged 55
The dukedom and subsidiary titles became extinct in 1900 upon Prince Alfred's death because his only son predeceased him.
Third creation, 1947
Also: Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich.
Duke Portrait Birth Marriage(s) Death Arms Prince PhilipMountbatten family/House of Glücksburg (by birth)1947–2021 10 June 1921Mon Repos, CorfuSon of Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmarkand Princess Alice of Battenberg Princess Elizabeth20 November 19474 children 9 April 2021Windsor Castle, Windsoraged 99 Prince CharlesHouse of Windsor2021–2022 14 November 1948Buckingham Palace, LondonSon of Prince Philipand Queen Elizabeth II Lady Diana Spencer29 July 19812 children Living Camilla Parker Bowles9 April 2005No issue
The dukedom and subsidiary titles merged in the Crown in 2022 upon Prince Charles's succession to the monarchy.
Fourth creation, 2023
Duke Portrait Birth Marriage(s) Death Arms Prince EdwardHouse of Windsor2023–presentalso: Earl of Wessex (1999),Earl of Forfar (2019),Viscount Severn (1999) 10 March 1964Buckingham Palace, LondonSon of Prince Philipand Queen Elizabeth II Sophie Rhys-Jones19 June 19992 children Living
The dukedom will be held for Prince Edward's lifetime as a life peerage.
Family trees
Heraldry
Here are the achievements of the various Dukes 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. By the series' end however, Edmund's dukedom is revoked, leaving him as "Lord Warden of the Royal Privies."
See also
Duke of Gloucester and Edinburgh Duchess of Edinburgh
References