Who is the Duke of Edinburgh now?
So, since the passing of Prince Philip I've seen a lot of confusion about who has inherited the title Duke of Edinburgh.
Many people seem to believe that Prince Edward is now the duke, but this is incorrect.
The new duke of Edinburgh is actually Prince Charles.
In 1947 Prince Philip renounced all of his Greek and Danish titles and his claim to the Greek throne. The day before his wedding to The Queen (then Princess Elizabeth) George VI issued Letters Patent that granted Philip the Dukedom of Edinburgh, along with the titles Earl of Merioneth and Baron Greenwich, along with the style "Royal Highness". These titles are hereditary and inherited by Prince Philip's first born son.
In 1957 The Queen created Philip a Prince of the United Kingdom.
The Dukedom of Edinburgh has been created 3 times. The first was for Prince Frederick, the granson of George I. When Frederick died while still Prince of Wales his eldest son Prince George became the duke of Edinburgh. When Prince George eventually became King George III the title merged with the crown.
The second creation was for Queen Victoria's second born son Prince Alfred. This was unusual because traditionally the second born son of the monarch is created Duke of York. When Prince Alfred died in 1900 he left no surviving sons so once again the title merged with the crown.
Upon his marriage to Sophie Rhys -Jones in 1999 Prince Edward (The Queen and Prince Philip's 3rd son) was created Earl of Wessex. This was unusual because princes are usually created dukes when married. It was discussed and agreed by The Queen, Prince Philip and Prince Charles that Edward would eventually become Duke of Edinburgh when the title reverts back to the crown.
So, when The Queen passes and Charles becomes king the Dukedom of Edinburgh will revert to the crown and Charles will be free to recreate it for the 4th time for his younger brother Prince Edward.
Should Charles pass before The Queen then Prince William will become the duke of Edinburgh and once again when he is King it will revert to the crown. Should William pass before he is King then Prince George will inherit the Dukedom.
Hypothetically if Charles is passed over in favour of William he will remain the duke of Edinburgh along with the lesser titles that come with it.
As for the Duchess of Edinburgh, that style was held by The Queen until the 09.04.2021. Before she became Queen, Elizabeth was known as HRH The Duchess of Edinburgh. She is now the Dowager Duchess of Edinburgh.
The current Duchess of Edinburgh is Camilla, duchess of Cornwall. But just as she doesn't use the title Princess of Wales (which she is fully entitled to do) she will unlikely use the title Duchess of Edinburgh. The next Duchess of Edinburgh should be the Sophie, the Countess of Wessex.
Since the Dukedom is going to be granted to Prince Edward it will then be inherited by his son James, Vicount Severen and his heirs. When there are no more sons to inherit the title it will revert to the crown again and can be recreated at the monarchs discretion.
