Duke of Windsor was a title in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom
The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five Peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the ...
. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch
Edward VIII
Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India from 20 January 19 ...
, following his
abdication on 11 December 1936. The
dukedom takes its name from
the town where
Windsor Castle, a residence of
English monarchs since the time of
Henry I, following the
Norman Conquest, is situated.
Windsor has been the house name of the
royal family
A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/ rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term ...
since 1917.
History
King Edward VIII abdicated on 11 December 1936, so that he could marry the American
divorcée
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
Wallis Simpson.
At the time of the abdication, there was controversy as to how the former King should be titled. The new King
George VI apparently brought up the idea of a title just after the abdication instrument was signed, and suggested using "the
family name
In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community.
Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...
".
Neither the Instrument of Abdication signed by Edward VIII on 10 December 1936 nor its enabling legislation,
His Majesty's Declaration of Abdication Act 1936, indicated whether the king was renouncing the privileges of
royal birth as well as relinquishing the throne.
On 12 December 1936, at the Accession Council of the
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of e ...
, George VI announced he was to make his brother the "Duke of Windsor" with the style of ''
Royal Highness''. That declaration is recorded in the ''
London Gazette
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
''. The Dukedom was formalised by Letters Patent on 8 March 1937. Edward, as a
royal duke, could neither stand for election to the
House of Commons nor speak on political subjects in the
House of Lords. On 3 June 1937, Edward married Wallis Simpson, who upon their marriage became the Duchess of Windsor. Following his abdication, Edward and Wallis lived in exile in Paris, France, except while he was
Governor of the Bahamas. When Germany invaded France in May 1940, the duke and duchess moved to Spain and then Portugal until August when they set sail for the Bahamas. After the war, they became members of
cafe society often splitting their time between Paris and the United States, which they visited frequently. During their stays in New York, they were fond of the
Waldorf Astoria Hotel. The Duke suffered from ill health in his later years and died of cancer on May 28, 1972 in Paris. As the Duke died without issue, the title became extinct on his death. Reportedly, Queen
Elizabeth II banned the title from ever being recreated.
,
Prince Edward House of Windsor1937–1972
,
, 23 June 1894
White Lodge,
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
son of
King George V and
Queen Mary
,
Wallis Simpson3 June 1937
, 28 May 1972
Villa Windsor
4 route du Champ d'Entraînement, also known as Villa Windsor, is a historic villa in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, within the northwest section of the Bois de Boulogne, close to the southern edge of Neuilly-sur-Seine. The house from 1929 i ...
,
Parisaged 77
, -
Royal arms
As the
royal arms
The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, or the royal arms for short, is the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently King Charles III. These arms are used by the King in his official capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom. Varian ...
go hand-in-hand with the crown, the undifferentiated royal arms passed to George VI. It was and is common
heraldic practice for the eldest son to differentiate his
arms
Arms or ARMS may refer to:
*Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body
Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to:
People
* Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader
Coat of arms or weapons
*Armaments or weapons
**Fi ...
in his father's lifetime, but the Duke of Windsor was left in the unusual position of the eldest son needing to difference his arms after his father's death. This was done by means of a label argent of three points, bearing on the middle point an
imperial crown proper.
See also
*
Baron Windsor
*
Viscount Windsor
Viscount Windsor is a title that has been created twice.
The first creation came in the Peerage of Ireland in 1699 when the Honourable Thomas Windsor was made ''Viscount Windsor, of Blackcastle''. He was the younger son of Thomas Hickman-Windso ...
*
Earl of Windsor
Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Old Norse, Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "Germanic ch ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Windsor
Extinct dukedoms in the Peerage of the United Kingdom
Duke of Windsor
Edward VIII
Abdication of Edward VIII
Duke of Windsor
Duke of Windsor