Welcome to Royal Wedding Wednesdays What’s In A Name. When Meghan Markle marries Prince Harry (formally Henry) she will receive the title of Her Royal Highness Princess Henry of Wales. She will not be “Princess Meghan”. You can only be referred to as a princess if you are born into the Royal family. Such as with Princess Anne or Princess Charlotte. There is the strong possibility, in keeping with tradition, that HM the Queen, could bestow a dukedom or earldom upon Prince Harry when they are married on May 19th.
Other Titles In The Family
Once Prince Charles becomes king, William will then become the heir apparent. If William has an investiture ceremony he will then be known as the Prince of Wales as well as the Duke of Cornwall and Duke of Rothesay. At that time Catherine would become HRH Catherine, Princess of Wales (which was his mother Diana’s title, even though everyone incorrectly shortened it to Princess Diana). Of course, when William becomes king, she will be Queen Catherine. For now, they are the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Princes William and Harry
Prince William is officially His Royal Highness Prince William Arthur Philip Louis of Wales, Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter. Prince Harry is His Royal Highness Prince Henry Charles Albert David of Wales. Throughout school and in their military careers both brothers used the surname of Wales. The name is derived from the title which their father, Prince Charles, holds. The official Royal family surname is Mountbatten-Windsor. In season 2 of The Crown, there was major drama over adding the Mountbatten (Prince Philip’s surname) to Windsor. But then Windsor isn’t the original family name either. It was Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Which you may know this too if you watched Season 2 of Victoria.
The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall
Many have wondered why Camilla did not receive the title of Princess of Wales when she married Charles in 2005. (She is officially known as Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.) Even though Diana passed away in 1997, I think the Queen realized that the public remains loyal to Diana and her beloved status as the people’s Princess.
Royal Wedding Wednesdays What’s In A Name
So what titles are currently available if the Queen wants to bestow one on Prince Harry? The Dukedoms of Clarence, Connaught, Albany, Cumberland, and Sussex are all available. Another one is the Duke of Windsor. But given that that title was previously held by his great uncle, Edward VIII, who abdicated the throne for Wallis Simpson, I highly doubt that anyone will hold that title for a very long time.
Those in the know say it will be the Duke of Sussex.
Other Titles
Have you ever wondered about the ranking of titles? At the top of the royal heap is Emperor~ King of kings (i.e. other sovereigns, not to be confused with THE King of kings in religious terms) and is the ruler of an empire. The title of Emperor is known by other names elsewhere.
-
Tsar (or Czar) in Bulgarian, Serbian, Russian, and Croatian countries. It is derived from the word Caesar.
-
Maharajah in Thailand, India, and Nepal. “Maha” is a prefix meaning highest, and “Rajah” meaning king, hence “highest king”.
-
Kaiser, German rank also derived from Caesar.
Shahanshah, Shah of Shahs, a title given to the emperors, kings, princes and lords of Iran.
Sultan, a Turkish (Ottoman) title, ruler.
Archduke, the title of the ruler of the Archduchy of Austria prior to 1806.
Grand Duke, ruler of a grand duchy. Luxembourg is the only remaining grand duchy.
Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
King and Dukes
From the title of emperor, we then move onto King~ ruler of a kingdom addressed as “Your majesty”. Then Duke ~ ruler of a duchy (i.e. territory) and addressed as “Your Grace”.
Queen Elizabeth’s son, Prince Andrew, Duke of York
Formerly Known as Prince
We then have the title of Prince ~ ruler of a principality.
The title of Crown Prince was once reserved for the heir apparent of an emperor or king.
Dauphin is the title of the crown prince of the royal family of France
Infante is the title of the cadet members of the royal families of Portugal and Spain
Marquess or Marquis was over a marquessate or march (i.e. a border region) and addressed as “the Most Honorable”.
Count (Countess) was theoretically the ruler of a county. In Britain, the title is known as an Earl. An Earl ranks below a marquess and above a viscount. His wife would still be known as a Countess.
Queen Elizabeth’s son, Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex
Baroness Schraeder
Viscount (Viscountess is feminine), theoretically the ruler of a viscounty (Above a Baron, below an Earl and addressed as “My Lord”.)
Baron (Baroness), theoretically the ruler of a barony (i.e. an estate). Just as counties are no longer necessarily connected with a noble Earl or count there are baronies which are not connected with a baron. The most famous Baroness was of course not really a Baroness at all.
There are of course numerous other titles.
Baronet is a hereditary title (meaning you are born into it) ranking below Baron but above Knight; this title is granted only in the British Isles.
Knight is the basic rank of the aristocratic system.
Esquire is a rank of the gentry ( i.e. minor aristocracy) originally derived from Squire and indicating the status of an attendant to a knight or an apprentice knight; it ranked below Knight but above Gentleman.
Gentleman is the basic rank of gentry, historically and primarily associated with land or manorial lords; within British Commonwealth nations, it is also roughly equivalent to some lower nobility of some continental European nations.
Paul McCartney was knighted by the Queen in 1997.
By Any Other Name
I myself consider “that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” and am so glad that my name is not:
Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas Queen, Defender of the Faith, Duchess of Edinburgh, Countess of Merioneth, Baroness Greenwich, Duke of Lancaster, Lord of Mann, Duke of Normandy, Sovereign of the Most Honourable Order of the Garter, Sovereign of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath***, Sovereign of the Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, Sovereign of the Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick, Sovereign of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Micheal and Saint George, Sovereign of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, Sovereign of the Distinguished Service Order, Sovereign of the Imperial Service Order, Sovereign of the Most Exalted Order of the Star of India, Sovereign of the Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire, Sovereign of the Order of British India, Sovereign of the Indian Order of Merit, Sovereign of the Order of Burma, Sovereign of the Royal Order of Victoria and Albert, Sovereign of the Royal Family Order of King Edward VII, Sovereign of the Order of Merit, Sovereign of the Order of the Companions of Honour, Sovereign of the Royal Victorian Order, Sovereign of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem.
The Queen with her youngest grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
While I at times give *** the Order of the Bath in my own home, I can’t help but think I might persuade the H.M. the Queen about gracing me with a title just for typing out her full name.
Until then I remain humbly yours,
Laura, the Duchess of Décor
I have simply adored your posts on the royal family the last several weeks. You have done a lot of research to inform us of the little things one doesn't think of when the royal family comes to mind.
Thanks for sharing!
How interesting!! Thanks for the break down of the titles!! And I never liked that Baroness in the Sound of Music… figures she was a fake! LOL! :):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
Great post. I'm learning so much from RWW! Thanks for taking the time to research all of this interesting info. Looking forward to next week already…
She lets me call her Liz. (“Queenie” when I'm being cheeky.) 🙂
Your Friend,
Deborah
What a lesson! Thank you for sharing. My mind is still trying to absorb it all. I think I'll just stick to being queen around my house. I could never remember all the customs and correct protocol in the royal kingdom.
May you have a princess kind of day!
Tammy
Good Morning Laura,
I'm so enjoying these Wednesday royal updates and tidbits of history. I'm really looking forward to tea with you and then a luncheon. So far there's about 7 of us for luncheon, hopefully more coming.
Love ya'
Meri
Another fun, fascinating and informative post. I'm shouting some of the tidbits to my husband while he gets ready for work “did you know czar comes from caesar?” and so forth – we're quite enjoying it. The thing is I know I will not remember it all, especially the poor queen's offical title – wow. I did not know the official last name, never even occurred to me!
Wow, Laura, don't know how you compile all that information, do research, etc. Great job!
Thank you so much for your visit to my blog today and for commenting too. Always so nice to have you stop by. Susan
Great post! Could you imagine having a name that long? Even William who hasn't been bestowed a marriage title, has a gazillion middle names. Camilla, ugh. She's looking a good deal less horsey since marrying and getting a royal makeover, but still, ugh. I wish Charles would just abdicate. It'd be more of a romantic story vs the shrew who was the third person in Diana's marriage.
A ton of research went into this post. Thanks for sharing.
Is not Duke of Cambridge William’s marriage title?
Very interesting, Laura! I never could keep all of those titles straight. You have done your research! I'm looking forward to the party!
XO,
Jane
I wonder if the Queen can even recite her lengthy title! I used to find titles all very confusing, but once again, Duchess of Decor, you have stepped up and made it all clear!
How charming a Histoire, and what lovely photographs!! Were I Queen, the Order of the Thistle would be the one I'd treasure most.
And I Do believe that when other little girls were practicing being a Princess, Kate must have been trying on hats—as TLo would say, “She CAN rock a hat.”
One more “I do believe”: in reference to the Duke of Windsor title—the “previous couple” who held that name are just as they look in the black and white photo—woebegone waifs whose love affair cost them and the nation a great deal. One sad thought of hers has stuck with me—they felt that they must fulfil the public's expectations of their all-consuming LOVE: “After all that we've sacrificed, we cannot even go out to dinner without being expected to sparkle.”
Bestowing the title on such a lively, promising young couple would bring a breath of fresh air back to its musty reputation.
Thank you SO much for dropping in at LAWN TEA!
rachel
Thank you for the history lesson.
I enjoyed reading all that very much
And I adore the clothing of the royals
I must get my attire ready for the Wedding Day
Janice
What fascinating posts you come up with regarding the wedding. Interesting and informative as well.
I'm going to try and get my act together for the tea party next week – we'll see what happens.
I was struck by the title of Duke of Normandy held by Queen Elizabeth. The most famous Duke of Normandy was William, also known as William the Conqueror who came from Normandy and conquered England in 1066.
I discovered that although England gave up rights to mainland Normandy in 1259, the Channel Islands remained under English rule and although they are autonomous today, they, like Canada and other nations, recognize the Queen as titular head of state.
The toast in the Channel Islands is “the Queen, our Duke.”
Hi Laura, I'm really enjoying your Wednesday posts…so informative and interesting! Just wanted to say thank you again, I received my package on Valentine's Day and fell in love with all the goodies. I posted on it yesterday!
Have a wonderful week
hugs and love,
Debra
RWW! YAY!!!! It always drives me crazy to read books in historical settings that have the titles or addresses wrong. Really, if you're writing a historical book (even if it's a romance novel), so some research and get your titles/forms of address straight!
I also think it interesting that the Queen is styled a Duke (Lancaster and Normandy) and Lord (Mann). Do you know why those weren't feminized? I know that they are tied to the throne, but don't get why they still hold the masculine form.
BTW, I adore William and Harry for using such a simple moniker. I wonder why they didn't use Mountbatten-Windsor though?
BTW, doesn't Henri (the Grand Duke) look a little like Edward aka The Duke of Windsor?
Can't wait for next RWW!!!!
I think Her Majesty will respect Prince William's wishes on this and if beant on giving them a Duchy she'll go for some not so known about or suggested.
Somehow I think Kate will become HRH Princess Catherine Wales.
When Prince Charles ascends to the throne then she will be HRH Princess Katherine, Princess of Wales.
(In fact, I do believe that although choosing not to use it, or was advised not to, Camilla Parker Bowles also bears the title Princess of Wales (though all official websites go a bot omiss in the subject).
She's Duchess where Charles is Duke (Cornwall, Rothesay…), Countess for all Charles' titles as Earl (Chester) so I figured that, though they try not to make waves, she's indeed Princess of Wales)…
Another brilliant post, My Dear.
Appreciated,
Teresa
Dearest Laura,
Enjoyed seeing this post today.
I can't embrace wearing hats in my culture….but sometimes I think this formality would be so refreshing.
Absolutely fun!
You take care.
God bless,
d from homehaven
You know me 😉 I always start remembering things after hitting the send button (I have the same problems when writing postcards ;)).
In Spanish they have a, very famous, Baroness (Thyssen) and if you ask there she's the most famous Baroness they know :D. Just thought you'd like to know as she's a very interesting lady – if not for her family/personal life – for her philantropy in the World of Arts.
Oh wow, what an amazing post–I LOVE it!! It's all so fancy! Wouldn't it be unreal to be them for a day? I don't know–but it would be fun to find out!
XO
Oh my gosh Laura, my head is swimming. I think I'll leave the titles to the royals! Well, except that at my house, my family (all men) is made aware that I am “THE Queen”. 'Nuff said…LOL!
Have a great week,
Judy
Laura, in addition to Duchess of Decor I also nominate you for Princess of Protocol…you certainly have all the titles and salutations straight in your brain! I don't believe I have ever seen Her Majesty's full title ever written out!
Dear Duchess of Decor,
I'm learning so much and having a lot of fun at the same time..
I truly love Kate and would love for her to be called Princess Catherine.
On the matter of the hats..I love all the feathery styles, but could do without the tipped out from the front frisbee looking one's..
What a very impressive family tree.
Yours Sincerely,
A common house maid,
Shirley
Hey!
This is another great post!! I never knew the Queen held so many different titles! I wonder if she ever signs off on anything official using ALL of them–you know, just for “effect?” I might–just like I'd be riding through the streets everyday in that gold carriage, royal sceptre clutched in one hand, orb in the other!
While you definitely are the Duchess of Decor, I'm sure I'm a “royal peculiar.” And I relish the title!
Hugs,
Pea, the Royal Peculiar
Dutchess of Decor, most interesting post, how do you it? So glad you did!
all the best, Karen
Great post on the royal family. No one will lever be like Princess Diane was. Such a great loss. It has to be hard on anyone outside their world to cope with the royal family and rules. Your post was very interesting and informative.
Laura,
I am loving your “Royal” mini-series! I have always loved the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. What a romance!
PS I DO think you deserve something for giving the royals such great press.:)
What a wonderfully informative post. And a funny bunch, those royals! A crown is a heavy burden for all the notariety and luxury. I just pray the upcoming princess, or dutchess or whatever will not be consumed by the position she is marrying into. The crown could use another “peoples princess”.
Thank you for all the wonderful work it tool to put together this interesting post!
xo Yvonne
My precious Duchess, you are to adore!, Laura.
What a wonderful write, so informative & delightfully interesting … soooooooo love all these hats!
Have a beautiful eve ~
TTFN ~
Hugs & love,
Marydon
HI!!
I JUST HOPE what ever Kate's name or title be, it not be Princess William, I hate that one, like Princess Michael of Kent, I prefer she get to keep her own name.
I like your title.
I want a title although my blog title is Queen Mimi's corner,
so I like Queen Mimi, as I have several Princesses in my family!!!
I do like Lady Jamie though!!!
Hugs to you,
I am working on an outfit fitting for the Royal wedding outfit!!!
Hugs,
jamie
I found this quite interesting-thanks for the lesson! Have a great week!
Wow, Laura… that's a lot of titles to keep straight. I would never be able to do it… lol!
I love all of your Royal Wedneday posts! I am amazed by your knowledge and the depth of information! Thank you for sharing with your readers!
Interesting indeed. I've frequently wondered about how all the titles related and who outranked whom. (But I've been to lazy to figure it out. Thanks for doing the hard part.)
I'm really enjoying the RWW posts – I recently decided it was time for another party and that a Royal Wedding Tea was just the ticket. I was so pleased to stumble upon your RWW posts when visiting from The Pennington Point. I've been inspired by “education” :0)
Looking forward to next week.
Dear Duchess of Decor,
This is such an educational post!! Not that I will remember it all!! I am so excited you are doing this series!
xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena
(or Mademoiselle Karena)
Such an informative post from such a decorous duchess. Thank you. I, too, have enjoyed your royal wedding posts of late and just had to curtsy and say how much they are appreciated.
dutchess of decor! love it. i always wanted to be a countess…countess of the cape, maybe?
My mother thought the love story between Wallis and Edward was so lovely ~ so my middle name is Wallis. I always hated that name because I thought it to be unfeminine. That does not bother me so much now. What bothers me now is after reading all about Wallis and how she was so hated, I am a bit sad to be named after her.
Love,
Susan and Bentley
xxoo
How many qustions do you get about your name, and whether or not you are related to THE Laura Ingalls? I love your postings on the Royal family. Do you live in the UK? I was fortunate enough to visit for 10 days in 1995 and had a glorious time, traveling mostly in the north, visiting Roman ruins, and then into Scotland. I will definitely be following your posts.
Have you seen the new movie, “The King's Speech”? I think you would love it (there is a little bit of swearing). I thought it was fabulous! I am learning a lot from your wedding series…thanks! Lisa~
What a wonderful post! I loved it. I have wondered MANY times “do they pull those titles out of a hat”? LOL!
Thanks for the low down!! 🙂
~Liz
Wow!!! I feel like I have completed a class in college! Well done Duchy!
Laura, you’ve gone above and beyond with the interesting facts you’ve provided here. It is absolutely overwhelming that people in other countries have to put up with all this social caste stuff. Makes me so glad we live in America and are free of all the social systems other people have to endure.
Your Grace! This is a wonderful and fascinating post and one I’m bookmarking just because sometimes I get confused with the viscounts and earls and all!
Here’s a weird trivia point — in real life, Georg von Trapp of Sound of Music fame was engaged to a woman named Princess Yvonne (where she was princess of, I have no idea!). I’m trying to remember if in the stage play she was referred to as Baroness, but I know her character name was just Elsa Schraeder (I should get my script to check it out!). But it looks like Baroness was a downgrade from Princess! I love your Wednesday posts!
Well done, my Lady! This was so informative and enjoyable. Thank you, dear one.
I love this post…can’t wait for the next Royal Wedding…I’ve been doing research and planning our (4:00 AM Mountain Time USA) menu for the Big Day! 🙂
Thoroughly enjoyed this educational entry. Now, don’t you think it’s bloody time they ditch some of this nonsense??
I’m totally impressed by your research and appreciate you sharing it. I learned a lot from this post and wish I could retain more of it for future conversations. I so love the photo of Queen Elizabeth with her grand and great-grand children, especially the little girl holding Grandmother’s purse – the Queen’s purse that is always part of any photo. That alone always makes me smile. Thanks again for your hard work in providing us with this complex information.
I love, love, love all of these royalty posts. You must put so much time and effort into them. The ins and outs of it all fascinate me. I couldn’t imagine having to actually keep up with it, but maybe if you are born into it and live it daily, it wouldn’t be so difficult. Sort of like good manners, I suppose, only more complicated.
Laura!!!
Such a wonderful & well-researched post!!! I never knew EXACTLY how the hierarchy played out!!! Thanks!!
I am, of course, your…
Royal PEAculiar
(And, I’m insisting on that royal designation….just wait until we have tea with ER2) —- 😉