In the
British monarchy the style of Royal Highness is associated with the rank of
prince or
princess (although this has not always applied, the notable exception being
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who was given the style in 1947 but was not formally created a British prince until 1957). This is especially important when a prince has another title such as
Duke (or a princess the title of Duchess) by which he or she would usually be addressed. For instance
HRH The Duke of Connaught was a prince and a member of the royal family while
His Grace The Duke of Devonshire and
His Grace The Duke of Abercorn are non-royal dukes and are not members of the
British Royal Family, but instead are members of the British peerage.
According to
letters patent issued by
King George V in 1917 the sons and daughters of sovereigns and the male-line grandchildren of sovereigns are entitled to the style. It is for this reason that the daughters of the
Duke of York,
Princess Beatrice and
Princess Eugenie carry the HRH status, but the children of the
Princess Royal,
Peter Phillips and
Zara Tindall do not. The children of the
Earl of Wessex, at the request of the Earl and
Countess of Wessex, are styled as those of an Earl, thus are
Lady Louise and
Lord Severn. Under his letters patent, only the oldest son of the oldest living son of the
Prince of Wales was also entitled to the style but not younger sons or daughters of the oldest living son of the Prince of Wales.
Queen Elizabeth IIchanged this in 2012 prior to the birth of
Prince George of Cambridge so that all the children of the oldest living son of the Prince of Wales would bear the style. This returned it to the format
Queen Victoria had instituted in 1898. There is no mention of younger living sons of a Prince of Wales, however, in 2018,
Prince Harry was married to
Meghan Markle and they were awarded Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Her title is styled as, HRH The Duchess of Sussex. If Harry were to have children while his grandmother still lives, they would simply be styled as the sons and daughters of a Duke and would not be entitled to the style Royal Highness. Once their grandfather
Charles, Prince of Wales ascended to the throne, they would then, as male-line grandchildren of a sovereign, acquire the style His/Her Royal Highness.
In the
United Kingdom, letters patent dated 21 August 1996 stated that the wife of a member of the
royal family loses the right to the style of HRH in the event of their divorce.
[5] It was for this reason that when the Prince and Princess of Wales divorced, she ceased to be Royal Highness, and was styled
Diana, Princess of Wales.
Similarly, HRH The Duchess of York was restyled
Sarah, Duchess of York after her divorce from HRH The Duke of York.
In December 2012, Queen
Elizabeth II issued a Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm declaring "all the children of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales should have and enjoy the style, title and attribute of royal highness with the titular dignity of Prince or Princess prefixed to their Christian names or with such other titles of honour".
[6] This had the effect of extending the style equally to the female-line.