James Alexander Philip Theo Mountbatten-Windsor, Earl of Wessex (born 17 December 2007), styled Viscount Severn from 2007 until 2023, is the younger child and only son of

Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh (Edward Antony Richard Louis; born 10 March 1964) is a member of the British royal family. He is the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the youngest sibling of King ...

, and

Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh (born Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones; 20 January 1965) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Duke of Edinburgh, the youngest sibling of King Charles III. Sophie grew up in Brenchley, ...

. He is the youngest nephew of

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

. He was born during the reign of his paternal grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, at which time he was 8th in line to the British throne. He is currently 16th.

Infancy

James was born on 17 December 2007 at 16:20 GMT at Frimley Park Hospital in

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

caesarean section Caesarean section, also known as C-section, cesarean, or caesarean delivery, is the Surgery, surgical procedure by which one or more babies are Childbirth, delivered through an incision in the mother's abdomen. It is often performed because va ...

. His father

, is the youngest child of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

and

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

. His mother

, worked in public relations before joining the royal family through her marriage in 1999. His full name, James Alexander Philip Theo, was announced on 21 December. He has one older sister, Louise. James was

baptised Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

on 19 April 2008, in the private chapel of

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

by David Conner,

Dean of Windsor The Dean of Windsor is the spiritual head of the Canon (priest), canons of St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, England. The dean chairs meetings of the Chapter of Canons as ''primus inter pares''. The post of Dean of Wolverhampton was assimilat ...

, witnessed by his

godparent Within Christianity, a godparent or sponsor is someone who bears witness to a child's baptism (christening) and later is willing to help in their catechesis, as well as their lifelong spiritual formation. In both religious and civil views, ...

s, Alastair Bruce, Duncan Bullivant, Thomas Hill, Denise Poulton, Jeanye Irwin, and his paternal grandparents, Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.

Education

James attended Eagle House School, a coeducational preparatory school near

Sandhurst, Berkshire Sandhurst is a town and civil parish in the Bracknell Forest borough in Berkshire, England. It is in the south eastern corner of Berkshire, and is situated west-southwest of London, north west of Camberley and south of Bracknell. Sandhurst ...

from 2011 to 2021, before joining the private

Radley College Radley College, formally St Peter's College, Radley or the College of St. Peter at Radley, is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (independent boarding school) for boys near the village of Radley, in Oxfordshire, in the United Kingd ...

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

Official appearances

James made his first official appearance in the carriage procession at

Trooping the Colour Trooping the Colour is a ceremonial event performed every year on Horse Guards Parade in London, United Kingdom, by regiments of Household Division, to celebrate the King's Official Birthday, official birthday of the British sovereign, though t ...

in 2016 and also appeared at the 2022 Trooping the Colour. In September 2020, he joined his parents to help the Great British Beach Clean at

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea began as a f ...

Beach in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, in support of the

Marine Conservation Society The Marine Conservation Society is a UK-based charitable organisation working with businesses, governments and communities to clean and protect oceans. Founded in 1978 as the Underwater Conservation Society, the group claims to be working towards ...

. Following the thanksgiving memorial service for his grandfather Prince Philip on 29 March 2022, James attended the Platinum Jubilee National Service of Thanksgiving and the Platinum Party at the Palace in June 2022. On 17 September 2022, during the period of official mourning for his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, James joined his sister Louise and six cousins to mount a 15-minute

vigil A vigil, from the Latin meaning 'wakefulness' ( Greek: , or ), is a period of purposeful sleeplessness, an occasion for devotional watching, or an observance. The Italian word has become generalized in this sense and means 'eve' (as in "on t ...

around Elizabeth II's coffin, as it lay in state at

Westminster Hall Westminster Hall is a medieval great hall which is part of the Palace of Westminster in London, England. It was erected in 1097 for William II (William Rufus), at which point it was the largest hall in Europe. The building has had various functio ...

. On 19 September he joined other family members at the state funeral. On 6 May 2023, James, who then had the courtesy title

Earl of Wessex Earl of Wessex is a title that has been created twice in British history – once in the pre-Norman Conquest, Conquest Anglo-Saxon nobility of England, and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. In the 6th century AD the region of Wessex ( ...

, attended his uncle Charles III's coronation at

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

, together with the rest of the royal family. The next day they attended the Coronation Concert at

. On 31 March 2024, James attended the

Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...

Mattins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, with his mother and father. He was the only member of the younger generation of royals to attend.

Titles, styles, and honours

Titles and styles

The title Viscount Severn alludes to the Welsh ancestry of Sophie's family. James was accorded this courtesy title at birth, as

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

to his father's

earldom Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used. The titl ...

. At birth James automatically became a prince of the United Kingdom (Prince James of Wessex, now Prince James of Edinburgh) due to

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

issued in 1917 which assigned princely status and the style of ''

Royal Highness Royal Highness is a style used to address or refer to some members of royal families, usually princes or princesses. Kings and their female consorts, as well as queens regnant, are usually styled ''Majesty''. When used as a direct form of a ...

'' to all male-line grandchildren of a sovereign. However, when his parents married,

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a royal official residence, residence in London, and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and r ...

announced that their children would be styled as the children of an

earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the Peerages in the United Kingdom, peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ...

, rather than as

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

princess Princess is a title used by a female member of a regnant monarch's family or by a female ruler of a principality. The male equivalent is a prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for ...

. In 2020, James's mother reaffirmed that James and his sister retained the right to their royal titles and styles and could make a choice on whether to use them from the age of 18. On his father being elevated as

Duke of Edinburgh 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 pr ...

in March 2023, James became styled by

courtesy Courtesy (from the word , from the 12th century) is gentle politeness and courtly manners. In the Middle Ages in Europe, the behaviour expected of the nobility was compiled in courtesy books. History The apex of European courtly culture was ...

, now the family's senior

subsidiary title A subsidiary title is a title of authority or title of honour that is held by a royal or noble person but which is not regularly used to identify that person, due to the concurrent holding of a greater title. United Kingdom An example in the Uni ...

. The Dukedom of Edinburgh, being created as a

life peerage In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

, will become extinct upon his father's death, but as

to his father's

hereditary peerage The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of April 2025, there are 800 hereditary peers: 30 dukes (including six royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 189 earls, 108 viscounts, and 439 barons (not counting subsidiary ...

s of

, Earl of Forfar and Viscount Severn, James is expected to succeed to them in due course.

Honours and decorations

In June 2008, to recognise Prince Edward's visit to the

Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

, a lake in the north of the province was called Lake James. James's sister was similarly honoured by Lake Louise in the same province.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wessex, James, Earl of 2007 births Living people People from Frimley 21st-century English people English Anglicans James, Earl of Wessex English people of Danish descent English people of German descent English people of Greek descent English people of Russian descent English people of Scottish descent Courtesy earls James James People educated at Eagle House School People educated at Radley College James, Earl of Wessex James Sons of life peers